JP7630301B2 - Automatic reset system for gas appliances - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an automatic reset system for gas appliances.

Patent Document 1 discloses a series of systems that use gas, including a cogeneration system equipped with a combined heat and power supply device that generates electricity and heat, a heat source unit that heats hot water and a heat medium, a hot water supply device that uses the hot water heated by the heat source unit, and a heating device that uses the heat released from the medium heated by the heat source unit, which are installed in parallel with the cogeneration system.

In this type of system, in the cogeneration system, hot water is heated using the heat generated when electricity is generated by the combined heat and power supply unit and stored in a storage tank, and the heat transfer medium flowing through the circulation path provided between the cogeneration system, the heat source unit, and the heating unit is heated by the heated hot water. Then, in the heat source unit, the hot water supplied from the storage tank is further heated and sent to the hot water tap of the hot water supply unit (hot water supply operation), and the heat transfer medium flowing through the circulation path is heated and sent to the heating radiator of the heating unit (heating operation).

In this way, in a series of systems that use the above gas, hot water supply and heating operations can be performed through the cooperation of the cogeneration system, heat source unit, and equipment that uses the heat generated by these.

JP 2017-53626 A

Conventionally, there have been cases where malfunctions have occurred in the cogeneration systems, heat source units, and equipment that uses heat. In such cases, an error state in the equipment is displayed on the remote control or other device, and when a customer contacts the system after seeing this, a worker visits the site, investigates the cause, and takes action such as replacing parts.

An example of a malfunction that causes a device to go into an error state is a device failure, which requires a part replacement or other action. On the other hand, in addition to device failures that require part replacement, other malfunctions such as temporary noise caused by natural disasters, such as a lightning surge caused by a lightning strike, or communication errors caused by differences in the communication method between devices can also cause a device to go into an error state.

However, problems such as temporary noise or communication errors as described above may be resolved by turning off the power to the device and resetting it.

Conventionally, even if a malfunction occurred in an appliance that could be resolved by resetting it, as described above, the appliance would go into an error state, and a message to that effect would be displayed on the remote control or the like, and customers would see this and contact the customer service center. Therefore, even though the malfunction could be resolved by simply resetting the appliance, a worker would have to go to the site to inspect and reset the appliance in order to release the error state, which poses the problem of increased maintenance costs due to unnecessary on-site visits. There are also problems for customers, such as waiting time until the work is completed and the incurrence of unnecessary maintenance costs.

The present invention has been made in consideration of the above situation, and aims to provide an automatic reset system for gas appliances that can reduce the occurrence of unnecessary maintenance work.

In order to achieve the above object, the automatic reset system for gas appliances according to the present invention has the following characteristic configuration:
At least one gas appliance that utilizes gas or heat generated by utilizing gas;
a malfunction type determination unit that determines whether a malfunction that has occurred in the gas appliance is a malfunction that can be resolved by resetting the gas appliance;
a reset processing unit that resets the gas equipment at a predetermined reset timing when the malfunction type determination unit determines that the malfunction that has occurred in the gas equipment is a malfunction that can be resolved by resetting the gas equipment; and
A reset timing setting unit that sets the reset timing,
The reset timing setting unit sets a time when the gas appliance is not in use as the reset timing .

According to the above characteristic configuration, when a malfunction that occurs in a gas appliance can be resolved by resetting the gas appliance, the gas appliance is reset at a predetermined reset timing, and the malfunction of the gas appliance is resolved. In addition, the timing for resetting the gas appliance can be set arbitrarily, and a time when the gas appliance is not in use is set as the reset timing. If the gas appliance is not in use, even if the gas appliance is automatically reset at a time when the gas appliance is not in use, it is preferable because it is unlikely to cause inconvenience to consumers. Therefore, it is possible to prevent unnecessary maintenance work such as a worker going to the site to perform the reset work , and it is possible to reset the gas appliance at a time when it is unlikely to cause inconvenience to consumers, thereby resolving the inconvenience.

Faults that can be resolved by resetting include, for example, faults caused by temporary noise due to natural disasters such as lightning surges, faults caused by communication errors between gas appliances, faults caused by earth fault detection, and faults such as the remote control that operates the gas appliance not turning on.

In addition, "resetting" in this application means turning off the power to a device and then turning it back on, or restarting the device.

In order to achieve the above object, the automatic reset system for gas appliances according to the present invention is characterized by the following configuration:
At least one gas appliance that utilizes gas or heat generated by utilizing gas;
a malfunction type determination unit that determines whether a malfunction that has occurred in the gas appliance is a malfunction that can be resolved by resetting the gas appliance;
a reset processing unit that resets the gas equipment at a predetermined reset timing when the malfunction type determination unit determines that the malfunction that has occurred in the gas equipment is a malfunction that can be resolved by resetting the gas equipment; and
A reset timing setting unit that sets the reset timing;
A learning unit that learns a usage pattern of the gas appliance ,
The reset timing setting unit sets the time at which the gas appliance can be stopped as the reset timing based on the learning result of the learning unit.

The usage patterns of gas appliances by consumers vary from consumer to consumer due to differences in, for example, the time consumers are at home and the timing of bathing. Therefore, for example, even if a reset timing is uniformly set to a late-night time period, some consumers will not be inconvenienced, but other consumers may be inconvenienced. According to the above-mentioned characteristic configuration, when a malfunction that occurs in a gas appliance can be resolved by resetting the gas appliance, the gas appliance is reset at a predetermined reset timing, and the malfunction of the gas appliance is resolved. In addition, the timing for resetting the gas appliance can be set arbitrarily, and the usage patterns of the gas appliances of each consumer can be learned, and a time when the consumer is unlikely to be using the gas appliance and when the gas appliance is stopped is unlikely to cause inconvenience can be extracted, and the time can be set as the reset timing. Therefore, unnecessary maintenance work such as a worker going to the site to perform the reset work can be suppressed, and the malfunction can be resolved by resetting the gas appliance at a time when the consumer is unlikely to be inconvenienced.

In order to achieve the above object, the automatic reset system for gas appliances according to the present invention is characterized by the following configuration:
At least one gas appliance that utilizes gas or heat generated by utilizing gas;
a malfunction type determination unit that determines whether a malfunction that has occurred in the gas appliance is a malfunction that can be resolved by resetting the gas appliance;
a reset processing unit that resets the gas equipment at a predetermined reset timing when the malfunction type determination unit determines that the malfunction that has occurred in the gas equipment is a malfunction that can be resolved by resetting the gas equipment; and
A reset timing setting unit that sets the reset timing;
A weather information acquisition unit that acquires information related to weather,
The reset timing setting unit sets the time when the gas appliance will need to be reset, which is predicted based on the information acquired by the weather information acquisition unit, as the reset timing.

For example, the time when lightning will strike the area where the gas appliance is installed can be predicted based on weather information. Therefore, according to the above-mentioned characteristic configuration, if a malfunction that occurs in the gas appliance can be resolved by resetting the gas appliance, the gas appliance is reset at a predetermined reset timing, and the malfunction of the gas appliance is resolved. In addition, the timing for resetting the gas appliance can be set arbitrarily, and the time when an event that may cause temporary noise (i.e., a natural disaster related to weather such as lightning) will occur can be predicted, and the predicted time can be set as the reset timing. Therefore, it is possible to prevent unnecessary maintenance work such as workers going to the site to perform reset work, and the malfunction can be resolved by resetting the gas appliance at an appropriate timing.

In order to achieve the above object, the automatic reset system for gas appliances according to the present invention is characterized by the following configuration:
At least one gas appliance that utilizes gas or heat generated by utilizing gas;
a malfunction type determination unit that determines whether a malfunction that has occurred in the gas appliance is a malfunction that can be resolved by resetting the gas appliance;
a reset processing unit that resets the gas equipment at a predetermined reset timing when the malfunction type determination unit determines that the malfunction that has occurred in the gas equipment is a malfunction that can be resolved by resetting the gas equipment; and
A reset timing setting unit that sets the reset timing,
The reset timing setting unit is
When the gas appliance is a heat generating device that generates heat by using gas, a time point at which a malfunction that has occurred in the heat generating device is determined to be a malfunction that can be resolved by the reset is set as the reset timing;
When the gas equipment is a heat utilization equipment that utilizes heat transferred from the heat generating device via a heat medium, the reset timing is set to a predetermined point in time after it is determined that a malfunction that has occurred in the heat utilization equipment is a malfunction that can be resolved by the reset.

When a malfunction occurs in the heat generating device and the heat generating device goes into an error state, for example, it may become impossible to use the heat utilization device. Therefore, when a malfunction occurs in the heat generating device that can be resolved by resetting, it is preferable to reset the heat generating device at that point in time to resolve the malfunction. On the other hand, when a malfunction occurs in the heat utilization equipment and the heat utilization equipment goes into an error state, unlike when the heat generating device goes into an error state, it may only be that part of the equipment with the malfunction becomes unusable, and therefore there is often no need to quickly return from the error state. Also, when a resolvable malfunction is one that allows the heat utilization equipment to continue being used, resetting the heat utilization equipment at the point in time when it is determined that the malfunction is resolvable may cause inconvenience to consumers.

According to the above characteristic configuration, when a malfunction that has occurred in a gas appliance is a malfunction that can be resolved by resetting the gas appliance, the gas appliance is reset at a predetermined reset timing, and the malfunction of the gas appliance is resolved. In addition, the timing of resetting the gas appliance can be set arbitrarily. When the gas appliance is a heat generating device, the heat generating device is reset and the malfunction is resolved at the time when it is determined that the malfunction that has occurred in the heat generating device is a malfunction that can be resolved by resetting. Furthermore, when the gas appliance is a heat utilizing device, the heat utilizing device is reset and the malfunction is resolved at a predetermined time after it is determined that the malfunction that has occurred in the heat utilizing device is a malfunction that can be resolved by resetting. In this way, according to the above characteristic configuration, the occurrence of unnecessary maintenance work is suppressed, and the malfunction of the heat generating device can be resolved early to make the heat utilizing device usable early, and the malfunction that has occurred in the heat utilizing device can be resolved at an appropriate timing (for example, a timing that is not inconvenient for the consumer).

Further, a further characteristic configuration of the automatic reset system for gas appliances according to the present invention is as follows:
a server configured to receive a determination result from the malfunction type determination unit and to transmit a signal to the reset processing unit to execute a reset process for the gas appliance;
The reset processing unit is configured to execute the reset processing of the gas equipment when a signal for executing the reset processing is received from the server.

According to the above characteristic configuration, when a malfunction that can be resolved by resetting occurs in the gas appliance, the server receives the judgment result from the malfunction type judgment unit, and the server can transmit a signal to execute a reset process for the gas appliance. Therefore, the malfunction can be resolved by executing a reset process for the gas appliance.

Further, a further characteristic configuration of the automatic reset system for gas appliances according to the present invention is as follows:
A notification unit capable of notifying that a malfunction has occurred in the gas appliance,
The notification unit notifies the user that a malfunction has occurred in the gas equipment when the malfunction type determination unit determines that the malfunction that has occurred in the gas equipment is not a malfunction that can be resolved by resetting the gas equipment.

According to the above characteristic configuration, if a malfunction occurs in a gas appliance and cannot be resolved by resetting, the consumer can be notified that a malfunction has occurred in the gas appliance.

1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of an automatic reset system according to an embodiment; FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram showing a control configuration. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a processing flow of the automatic reset system according to the embodiment. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a processing flow of the automatic reset system according to the embodiment. FIG. 13 is a functional block diagram showing a control device of an automatic reset system according to another embodiment. FIG. 13 is a functional block diagram showing a control device of an automatic reset system according to another embodiment. FIG. 11 is a functional block diagram showing a control configuration of an automatic reset system according to another embodiment.

Below, an automatic reset system for gas appliances (hereinafter simply referred to as the "automatic reset system") according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[Configuration of automatic reset system for gas appliances]
FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration of the automatic reset system 1 according to this embodiment. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a control configuration. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the automatic reset system 1 includes a gas appliance G (five in this embodiment) that uses gas or heat generated by using gas, a malfunction type determination unit 31 that determines whether a malfunction that has occurred in the gas appliance G is a malfunction that can be resolved by resetting the gas appliance G (hereinafter, also referred to as a "resolvable malfunction"), and a reset processing unit (a cogeneration side reset processing unit 8 and a heat source unit side reset processing unit 16) that resets the gas appliance G at a predetermined reset timing when the malfunction type determination unit 31 determines that the malfunction that has occurred in the gas appliance G is a resolvable malfunction. In this embodiment, the malfunction type determination unit 31 is a functional unit of the control device 30, and the two reset processing units 8 and 16 are functional units of the cogeneration side control unit 6 and the heat source unit side control unit 14, respectively. In addition, the automatic reset system 1 in this embodiment includes a remote control R for operating the gas appliance G.

In this embodiment, the gas appliances G are a cogeneration system G1, a heat source unit G2, a bathroom dryer G3, a floor heating appliance G4, and a hot water appliance G5. The cogeneration system G1 and the heat source unit G2 are heat generating devices, and the bathroom dryer G3, the floor heating appliance G4, and the hot water appliance G5 are heat utilizing devices. In this embodiment, electricity sent through a main line is branched by a distribution board B to the cogeneration system G1, the heat source unit G2, and the bathroom dryer G3.

The cogeneration system G1 is configured as a device that generates electricity and heat. Specifically, the cogeneration system G1 includes a combined heat and power supply unit 2 that generates electricity and heat, such as a fuel cell or an engine-driven generator, a hot water storage tank 3 that stores hot water W heated using the heat generated by the combined heat and power supply unit 2, and a cogeneration side control unit 6 consisting of a computer that controls the start-up, operation, and stop of the cogeneration system G1. The cogeneration side control unit 6 will be described in detail later.

In this cogeneration system G1, hot water W flowing through the drinking water pipeline L1 is taken in from the outside through the cogeneration side water inlet 4a, the taken in hot water W is heated using heat generated in the heat and power combined supply section 2, and the heated hot water W is stored in the hot water storage tank 3. The hot water W stored in the hot water storage tank 3 is then sent out to the outside through the cogeneration side water outlet 4b. In addition, a heat medium circulation path L2 in which a heat medium H circulates is formed between the cogeneration system G1, the heat source unit G2, the bathroom dryer G3, and the floor heating device G4. In the cogeneration system G1, the heat medium H flowing through the heat medium circulation path L2 is taken in through the cogeneration side heat medium receiving section 5a, the taken in heat medium H is heated by the hot water W, and the heated heat medium H is sent out to the outside through the cogeneration side heat medium discharge section 5b.

The heat source unit G2 is installed alongside the cogeneration system G1 and is configured as a device for heating hot water W and heat transfer medium H. Specifically, the heat source unit G2 includes a hot water supply heating section 10 that uses a burner to heat the hot water W sent out from the cogeneration system G1 and flowing through the clean water pipeline L1, a space heating section 11 that uses a burner to heat the heat transfer medium H flowing through the heat transfer medium circulation path L2, and a heat source unit side control section 14 consisting of a computer that controls the stopping, operation, and start-up of the heat source unit G2 and the bathroom dryer G3. Details of the heat source unit side control section 14 will be described later.

This heat source unit G2 is configured to perform hot water supply operation and heating operation. Specifically, in hot water supply operation, hot water W discharged from the cogeneration system G1 and flowing through the clean water pipe L1 is taken in through the heat source unit side water inlet 12a. Then, this taken in hot water W is heated to a preset hot water supply temperature in the hot water heating unit 10, and the heated hot water W is sent out to the hot water supply unit G5 through the heat source unit side water outlet 12b. On the other hand, in heating operation, the heat medium H discharged from the cogeneration system G1 and flowing through the heat medium circulation path L2 is taken in through the heat source unit side heat medium receiving unit 13a, the taken in heat medium H is heated in the heating unit 11, and the heated heat medium H is sent out through the heat source unit side heat medium discharge unit 13b to the radiator 20 of the bathroom dryer G3 and the radiator 22 of the floor heating unit G4, which will be described later.

The bathroom dryer G3 is configured as a device that supplies warm air into the bathroom using the heated heat medium H sent out from the heat source unit G2. Specifically, the bathroom dryer G3 is equipped with a radiator 20 that is installed in the heat medium circulation path L2 and through which the heat medium H passes, and an air blowing mechanism 21 whose operation is controlled by the heat source unit side control unit 14. This bathroom dryer G3 can heat air using the heat radiated by the radiator 20 and supply it to the bathroom as warm air. The heat medium H that has passed through the radiator 20 of the bathroom dryer G3 flows through the heat medium circulation path L2 and is taken in via the cogeneration side heat medium receiving unit 5a.

The floor heating equipment G4 is configured as an equipment that uses heated heat medium H sent from the heat source unit G2 to heat the floor of a room. Specifically, the floor heating equipment G4 is provided with a radiator 22 that is interposed in the heat medium circulation path L2 and through which the heat medium H passes. With this floor heating equipment G4, the floor material can be heated by the heat radiated by the radiator 22. The heat medium H that has passed through the radiator 22 of the floor heating equipment G4 flows through the heat medium circulation path L2 and is taken in via the cogeneration side heat medium receiving section 5a.

The hot water supply device G5 is configured as a device that supplies heated hot water W sent from the heat source device G2 to the bathtub and the washbasin. In this embodiment, the hot water supply device G5 is configured from a hot water tap 23 and the like. With this hot water supply device G5, hot water W heated by the heat source device G2 can be supplied to the bathtub and the washbasin while adjusting the supply amount by adjusting the opening degree of the hot water tap 23, and hot water W can also be supplied from the heat source device G2 to the bathtub to fill it with water or to add hot water.

The remote control R includes a remote control side control unit 25 having functional units for operating the gas appliances G (cogeneration system G1, heat source unit G2, bathroom dryer G3, floor heating appliance G4, hot water appliance G5), and a display unit 29 (alert unit) on which images used for operating the gas appliances G and images showing the status of the gas appliances G are displayed. The remote control side control unit 25 will be described in detail later.

Next, the control configuration of the automatic reset system 1 for gas appliances according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 2.

The control device 30 includes a malfunction type determination unit 31, a reset timing setting unit 32, a timing signal output unit 33, a communication unit 34, and a memory unit 35.

As described above, the malfunction type determination unit 31 is a functional unit that determines whether a malfunction that has occurred in a gas appliance G (cogeneration system G1, heat source unit G2, bathroom dryer G3, floor heating appliance G4, hot water appliance G5) is a resolvable malfunction. Specifically, in this embodiment, when a malfunction is detected in at least one of the cogeneration system G1, heat source unit G2, bathroom dryer G3, floor heating appliance G4, and hot water appliance G5, it determines which gas appliance G the detected malfunction has occurred in and whether the malfunction has been registered in the database as a malfunction that can be resolved by resetting the gas appliance G in which the malfunction has occurred. If the detected malfunction is registered in the database, it is determined to be a resolvable malfunction. On the other hand, if the detected malfunction is not registered, it is determined to be not a resolvable malfunction. The determination of whether the detected malfunction is registered in the database as a malfunction that can be resolved by resetting can be performed, for example, by determining whether an error code indicating the detected malfunction is registered in the database. In addition, the malfunction type determination unit 31 transmits a signal informing the determination result to the cogeneration side reset signal output control unit 8c, the heat source unit side reset signal output control unit 16c, and the notification processing unit 27 of the remote control R, which will be described later.

Malfunctions that can be resolved by resetting include, for example, malfunctions caused by temporary noise due to natural disasters such as lightning surges, malfunctions caused by communication errors between gas appliances G (for example, between the cogeneration system G1 and the heat source unit G2, or between the heat source unit G2 and the bathroom dryer G3), malfunctions caused by ground fault detection, and malfunctions such as the remote control R not turning on. Malfunctions that cannot be resolved by resetting include, for example, malfunctions caused by a clogged radiator, clogged orifice, clogged air filter, or reaching the maintenance elapsed time for the cogeneration system G1, malfunctions caused by detection of the bathroom drain plug being removed, detection of a water outage, or the lifespan of the neutralizer for the heat source unit G2, and malfunctions caused by an abnormality in the automatic test run for the bathroom dryer G3.

The reset timing setting unit 32 is a functional unit that sets the timing (reset timing) to reset the gas equipment G (cogeneration system G1, heat source unit G2, bathroom dryer G3, floor heating equipment G4, hot water equipment G5). Specifically, when the gas equipment G is a heat generating device (cogeneration system G1 and heat source unit G2), the reset timing is set to the time when the malfunction that occurred is determined to be a resolvable malfunction, and when the gas equipment G is a heat utilizing device (bathroom dryer G3, floor heating equipment G4, and hot water equipment G5), the reset timing is set to a predetermined time after the malfunction that occurred is determined to be a resolvable malfunction. Incidentally, the reset timing setting unit 32 of this embodiment sets the reset timing for the cogeneration system G1 and the heat source unit G2 to the time when a signal is received informing that the malfunction that occurred in these is determined to be a resolvable malfunction. In addition, for the bathroom dryer G3, floor heating equipment G4, and hot water equipment G5, the reset timing is set to a predetermined time (for example, 2:00 a.m.) during the time period when these are not used. In this embodiment, the time periods during which the bathroom dryer G3, floor heating device G4, and hot water supply device G5 are not in use are input in advance by the consumer via the remote control R.

The timing signal output unit 33 is a functional unit that outputs a signal related to the reset timing set by the reset timing setting unit 32 to the cogeneration side reset signal output control unit 8c and the heat source unit side reset signal output control unit 16c, which will be described later. The timing signal may be output after it is detected that a resolvable malfunction has occurred in the gas equipment G, or may be output in advance before the malfunction is detected.

The communication unit 34 is configured to perform wireless or wired bidirectional communication with the communication units 9, 17, and 28 of the cogeneration side control unit 6, the heat source unit side control unit 14, and the remote control side control unit 25, which will be described later.

The storage unit 35 is configured to store a database in which malfunctions that can be resolved by resetting are organized by type of gas appliance G, as well as information necessary for various processes. For example, the database is a database in which error codes indicating malfunctions that can be resolved by resetting are registered.

Next, the cogeneration side control unit 6 will be described. The cogeneration side control unit 6 includes a cogeneration side operation control unit 7, a cogeneration side reset processing unit 8, a communication unit 9, etc.

The cogeneration side operation control unit 7 is a functional unit that controls the operation of the cogeneration system G1. Specifically, it controls the operation of the combined heat and power supply unit 2 and the operation of various auxiliary equipment such as valves (not shown) and pumps (not shown).

The cogeneration side reset processing unit 8 is a functional unit that performs reset processing of the cogeneration system G1. Specifically, it is configured to reset the cogeneration system G1 when the malfunction type determination unit 31 determines that the malfunction that has occurred in the cogeneration system G1 is a resolvable malfunction. The cogeneration side reset processing unit 8 of this embodiment includes a cogeneration side reset execution unit 8a, which is a functional unit that executes reset processing of the cogeneration system G1, a cogeneration side reset signal output unit 8b, which is a functional unit that outputs a reset signal to the cogeneration side reset execution unit 8a, and a cogeneration side reset signal output control unit 8c, which is a functional unit that controls the reset signal output unit 8b to output a reset signal at the reset timing set by the reset timing setting unit 32.

In this embodiment, the cogeneration side reset signal output control unit 8c is configured to receive a signal notifying the cogeneration system G1 when the malfunction that has occurred in the cogeneration system G1 is determined to be a resolvable malfunction. The cogeneration side reset signal output control unit 8c is also configured to receive a signal related to the reset timing output from the timing signal output unit 33.

Therefore, according to the cogeneration side reset processing unit 8 in this embodiment, when a signal is received notifying that the malfunction that occurred in the cogeneration system G1 has been determined to be a resolvable malfunction, and the reset timing set by the reset timing setting unit 32 is reached (in this embodiment, when a signal is received notifying that the malfunction that occurred has been determined to be a resolvable malfunction), the cogeneration side reset signal output control unit 8c controls the cogeneration side reset signal output unit 8b to output a reset signal. Then, a reset signal is output from the reset signal output unit 8b, and the cogeneration side reset execution unit 8a receives the reset signal, and the reset execution unit 8a executes the reset process of the cogeneration system G1.

The communication unit 9 is configured to perform wireless or wired bidirectional communication with the communication unit 34 of the control device 30 and the communication unit 17 of the heat source unit control unit 14 described below.

Next, the heat source unit side control unit 14 will be described. The heat source unit side control unit 14 includes a heat source unit side operation control unit 15, a heat source unit side reset processing unit 16, a communication unit 17, etc.

The heat source unit operation control unit 15 is a functional unit that controls the operation of the heat source unit G2 and the bathroom dryer G3, and specifically controls the operation of the burners of the hot water heating unit 10 and the room heating unit 11, the blower mechanism 21 of the bathroom dryer G3, and various auxiliary equipment such as the pump.

The heat source machine side reset processing unit 16 is a functional unit that performs reset processing of the heat source machine G2 and the bathroom dryer G3. Specifically, when the malfunction type determination unit 31 determines that the malfunction that occurred in the heat source machine G2, the bathroom dryer G3, the floor heating device G4, and the hot water device G5 is a resolvable malfunction, it is configured to reset the malfunctioning device. The heat source machine side reset processing unit 16 of this embodiment includes a heat source machine side reset execution unit 16a, which is a functional unit that executes the reset processing of the heat source machine G2 or the bathroom dryer G3, a heat source machine side reset signal output unit 16b, which is a functional unit that outputs a reset signal to the heat source machine side reset execution unit 16a, and a heat source machine side reset signal output control unit 16c, which is a functional unit that controls the heat source machine side reset signal output unit 16b so as to output a reset signal at the reset timing set by the reset timing setting unit 32.

In this embodiment, the heat source unit side reset signal output control unit 16c is configured to receive a signal notifying the user when it is determined that a malfunction that has occurred in the heat source unit G2, the bathroom dryer G3, the floor heating device G4, and the hot water device G5 is a fixable malfunction. The heat source unit side reset signal output control unit 16c is also configured to receive in advance a signal related to the reset timing output from the timing signal output unit 33.

Therefore, according to the heat source machine side reset processing unit 16 in this embodiment, when a signal is received notifying that the malfunction occurring in the heat source machine G2, the bathroom dryer G3, the floor heating device G4, and the hot water device G5 has been determined to be a resolvable malfunction, and when the reset timing set by the reset timing setting unit 32 arrives (for the heat source machine G2, the time when the heat source machine side reset signal output control unit 16c receives a signal notifying that the malfunction occurring in the heat source machine G2 has been determined to be a resolvable malfunction, and for the bathroom dryer G3, the floor heating device G4, and the hot water device G5, a predetermined time during the time period when these devices are not used), the heat source machine side reset signal output control unit 16c controls the heat source machine side reset signal output unit 16b to output a reset signal. Then, a reset signal is output from the reset signal output unit 16b, the heat source machine side reset execution unit 16a receives the reset signal, and the reset process is executed.

In this embodiment, the set temperature and heating area of the floor heating device G4, as well as the temperature of the hot water W discharged from the hot water supply device G5, are adjusted by the amount of hot water W supplied from the heat source device G2 and the temperature of the hot water W, and the operation of the floor heating device G4 and the hot water supply device G5 is controlled by the heat source device side operation control unit 15. Therefore, resetting the floor heating device G4 and the hot water supply device G5 corresponds to resetting the heat source device G2. Therefore, in this embodiment, if a resolvable malfunction occurs in any of the heat source device G2, the floor heating device G4, and the hot water supply device G5, a reset process is performed on the heat source device G2, and if a resolvable malfunction occurs in the bathroom dryer G3, a reset process is performed on the bathroom dryer G3.

The communication unit 17 is configured to perform wireless or wired bidirectional communication with the communication unit 9 of the cogeneration side control unit 6, the communication unit 28 of the remote control R, and the communication unit 34 of the control device 30.

Next, the remote control control unit 25 will be described. The remote control control unit 25 includes an operation processing unit 26, a notification processing unit 27, a communication unit 28, etc.

The operation processing unit 26 is a functional unit that executes the processes required to operate the gas appliances G. In this embodiment, it is configured to be able to transmit and receive signals to and from the cogeneration side control unit 6 and the heat source unit side control unit 14 to operate the cogeneration system G1, the heat source unit G2, the bathroom dryer G3, the floor heating appliance G4, and the hot water appliance G5.

The notification processing unit 27 is a functional unit that performs a process (a malfunction display process) of displaying a display notifying the occurrence of a malfunction on the display unit 29. Specifically, when the malfunction type determination unit 31 receives a signal notifying the occurrence of a malfunction in the gas equipment G that it has been determined that the malfunction is not a resolvable malfunction, or when the malfunction type determination unit 31 receives a signal notifying the occurrence of a malfunction that the reset process has been performed twice or more, the notification processing unit 27 performs a process of displaying a display notifying the occurrence of a malfunction on the display unit 29. The number of consecutive executions of the reset process is the number of times that the reset process is performed in a case where, after a reset process is performed to resolve a resolvable malfunction that has occurred in the gas equipment G, the resolvable malfunction is not resolved, and then a reset process is performed to resolve the same resolvable malfunction that has occurred in the same gas equipment G. For example, when a resolvable malfunction occurs and the reset process is executed, the number of consecutive executions of the reset process becomes 1. If the resolvable malfunction is not resolved and the reset process is executed again, the number of consecutive executions of the reset process becomes 2. If the resolvable malfunction is still not resolved and the reset process is executed again, the number of consecutive executions of the reset process becomes 3. In other words, in this embodiment, if the resolvable malfunction is not resolved despite the reset process being executed again (i.e., if the number of consecutive executions of the reset process at this point is 2), a message is displayed on the display unit 29 notifying the user that a malfunction has occurred.

The communication unit 28 is configured to perform wireless or wired bidirectional communication with the communication unit 9 of the cogeneration side control unit 6, the communication unit 17 of the heat source unit side control unit 14, and the communication unit 34 of the control device 30.

[Processing flow of automatic reset system for gas appliances]
Next, an example of a process flow of the automatic reset system 1 having the above configuration will be described with reference to Figures 3 and 4. In the following, a case where a signal related to the reset timing is transmitted in advance from the timing signal output unit 33 to each reset signal output control unit 8c, 16c will be described as an example.

First, the reset timing setting unit 32 sets the reset timing for the cogeneration system G1 and the heat source unit G2, and the reset timing for the bathroom dryer G3, the floor heating unit G4, and the hot water unit G5 (step #1).

Next, a signal related to the reset timing is output from the timing signal output unit 33, and the cogeneration side reset signal output control unit 8c and the heat source unit side reset signal output control unit 16c receive this signal. Then, in each reset signal output control unit 8c, 16c, the reset timing related to the gas equipment G (cogeneration system G1, heat source unit G2, bathroom dryer G3, floor heating equipment G4, hot water equipment G5) is determined (step #2).

In other words, in this embodiment, when the gas appliance G in which a resolvable malfunction has occurred is a cogeneration system G1 or a heat source machine G2, the cogeneration side reset signal output control unit 8c and the heat source machine side reset signal output control unit 16c control the cogeneration side reset signal output unit 8b and the heat source machine side reset signal output unit 16b to output a reset signal when a signal is received notifying the user that the malfunction has been determined to be resolvable. On the other hand, when the gas appliance G in which a resolvable malfunction has occurred is a bathroom dryer G3, a floor heating appliance G4, or a hot water appliance G5, the heat source machine side reset signal output control unit 16c controls the heat source machine side reset signal output unit 16b to output a reset signal when a specified time comes when these appliances are not in use.

Next, when the cogeneration side control unit 6 or the heat source unit side control unit 14 detects a malfunction of the gas appliance G, a signal indicating the nature of the malfunction (e.g., a signal indicating an error code) is sent to the control device 30, and the malfunction type determination unit 31 determines which gas appliance G is the subject of the detected malfunction (step #3). If the gas appliance G is a cogeneration system G1 or a heat source unit G2 (step #3: heat generation device), the process proceeds to step #4. On the other hand, if the gas appliance G is a bathroom dryer G3, floor heating appliance G4, or hot water appliance G5 (step #3: heat utilization appliance), the process proceeds to step #8.

In step #4, the malfunction type determination unit 31 also determines whether the detected malfunction is a malfunction that can be resolved by resetting the cogeneration system G1 or the heat source machine G2. If it is determined that the malfunction is a resolvable malfunction (step #4: Yes), a signal to that effect is sent to the cogeneration side reset signal output control unit 8c or the heat source machine side reset signal output control unit 16c (step #5). Next, the cogeneration side reset signal output unit 8b and the heat source machine side reset signal output unit 16b are controlled by each reset signal output control unit 8c, 16c to output a reset signal (step #6). Then, the cogeneration side reset execution unit 8a executes a reset process for the cogeneration system G1, and the heat source machine side reset execution unit 16a executes a reset process for the heat source machine G2 (step #7). This resets the cogeneration system G1 or the heat source machine G2. After the reset process is executed, the process proceeds to step #14. On the other hand, if it is determined that the detected malfunction is not a resolvable malfunction (step #4: No), a signal notifying that effect is sent to the notification processing unit 27 (step #13), and the notification processing unit 27 executes a malfunction display process (step #17). As a result, a display notifying that a malfunction has occurred in the cogeneration system G1 or the heat source unit G2 is displayed on the display unit 29.

In step #8, the malfunction type determination unit 31 determines whether the detected malfunction is a malfunction that can be resolved by resetting the bathroom dryer G3, floor heating device G4, or hot water device G5. If it is determined that the malfunction is a resolvable malfunction (step #8: Yes), a signal informing that effect is sent to the heat source device side reset signal output control unit 16c (step #9). Next, the heat source device side reset signal output control unit 16c determines whether it is time to reset (i.e., whether it is a specified time) (step #10), and if it is determined that it is time to reset (step #10: Yes), it proceeds to step #11, and if it is determined that it is not time to reset (step #10: No), it repeats step #10. Then, the heat source device side reset signal output unit 16b is controlled to output a reset signal that commands the reset of the malfunctioning device (step #11), and the heat source device side reset execution unit 16a executes the reset process of the device (step #12). This resets the malfunctioning device. After the reset process is performed, the process proceeds to step #14. On the other hand, if it is determined that the detected malfunction is not a fixable malfunction (step #8: No), a signal to that effect is sent to the notification processing unit 27 (step #13), and the notification processing unit 27 executes a malfunction display process (step #17). As a result, a display is displayed on the display unit 29 notifying that a malfunction has occurred in the bathroom dryer G3, floor heating appliance G4, or hot water appliance G5.

In step #14, the cogeneration side control unit 6 and the heat source unit side control unit 14 determine whether or not a malfunction has been detected, and if no malfunction has been detected (step #14: No), the process ends. On the other hand, if a malfunction is still detected (step #14: Yes), the malfunction type determination unit 31 determines whether or not the reset process has been executed consecutively less than twice (step #15), and if it has been executed less than twice (step #15: Yes), the process returns to step #3, and if it has been executed two or more times (step #15: No), a signal notifying the user is sent to the notification processing unit 27 (step #16), and the notification processing unit 27 executes a malfunction display process (step #17).

As described above, according to the automatic gas appliance reset system of this embodiment, if a malfunction that occurs in the gas appliance G can be resolved by resetting the gas appliance G, the gas appliance G is automatically reset and the malfunction of the gas appliance G is resolved. This makes it possible to prevent unnecessary maintenance work, such as having a worker go to the site to perform the reset work.

[Another embodiment]
[1] In the above embodiment, the gas appliances G include a cogeneration system G1, a heat source unit G2, a bathroom dryer G3, a floor heating appliance G4, and a hot water appliance G5, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the gas appliances G may not include any of the above as heat utilization equipment, or may include equipment other than the above.

[2] In the above embodiment, the bathroom dryer G3, the floor heating appliance G4, and the hot water appliance G5 (i.e., heat utilization appliances) are reset at a specified time during the period when they are not in use, but this is not limited to the above.
For example, as shown in Fig. 5, the control device 30 may be configured to include a learning unit 36 that learns the usage patterns of gas appliances G of consumers. Based on the learning results of the learning unit 36, the time at which the gas appliance G can be stopped may be set as the reset timing. In this way, the usage patterns of gas appliances G for each consumer are learned, and a time at which the consumer is unlikely to be using the gas appliance G and at which stopping the gas appliance G is unlikely to cause inconvenience can be extracted, and this time can be set as the reset timing. Therefore, the gas appliance G can be reset at a time at which inconvenience is unlikely to cause the consumer, thereby eliminating the malfunction.
6, the control device 30 may be configured to include a weather information acquisition unit 37 that acquires information related to the weather, and the time when the gas appliance G needs to be reset, predicted based on the information acquired by the weather information acquisition unit 37, may be set as the reset timing. For example, if the time when lightning will occur in the area where the gas appliance G is installed is predicted based on the weather information, and this predicted time is set as the reset timing, even if a resolvable malfunction occurs due to temporary noise caused by a lightning surge, the gas appliance G can be reset at an appropriate time to resolve the malfunction. Note that an example of how the weather information acquisition unit 37 acquires information related to the weather is to acquire the information via an internet line or the like.

[3] In the above embodiment, when the gas appliance G is a cogeneration system G1 and a heat source unit G2 (i.e., a heat generating device), the reset timing is set to the time when a signal is received notifying that a malfunction that has occurred in the gas appliance G has been determined to be a fixable malfunction, but this is not limited to this, and the reset timing may be set to any appropriate time. In this case, as in the case of the heat utilization appliance, the reset timing may be set based on the learning results in the learning unit 36 and the information acquired by the weather information acquisition unit 37.

[4] In the above embodiment, the cogeneration side reset signal output control unit 8c and the heat source side reset signal output control unit 16c control the reset signal output units 8b and 16b so as to output a reset signal at the reset timing set by the reset timing setting unit 32, but this is not limited to the above, and the reset timing setting unit 32 may not be provided. In this case, for example, as shown in FIG. 7, the automatic reset system may be configured to include a server 40 that can receive the judgment result of the malfunction type judgment unit 31 and transmit a signal to the reset processing unit 8, 16 to execute the reset process of the gas equipment G. In this way, when a resolvable malfunction occurs in the gas equipment G, the server 40 receives the judgment result of the malfunction type judgment unit 31. Then, a signal for executing the reset process of the gas equipment G is transmitted from the server 40 to the cogeneration side reset signal output control unit 8c and the heat source side reset signal output control unit 16c. As a result, the reset signal output control units 8c and 16c control the reset signal output units 8b and 16b so as to output a reset signal at the time of receiving the signal. Therefore, the malfunction can be resolved by performing a reset process on the gas appliance G through remote operation via the server 40.

[5] In the above embodiment, the heat source unit side reset processing unit 16 performs the reset process for the bathroom dryer G3, but this is not limited to the above. If a dryer side control unit that controls the operation of the bathroom dryer G3 is provided separately from the heat source unit side control unit 14, the dryer side control unit may have a processing unit that performs the reset process, and the processing unit may perform the reset process for the bathroom dryer G3.

[6] In the above embodiment, the heat source unit G2 is reset when a resolvable malfunction occurs in the floor heating unit G4 or the hot water supply unit G5, but this is not limited to the above. In the case of an embodiment having a floor heating unit side control unit that controls the setting temperature and heating area of the floor heating unit G4 and the operation of the unit, and a hot water supply unit side control unit that controls the setting and operation of the hot water supply temperature and the amount of hot water to be filled of the hot water unit G5, the heating unit side control unit and the hot water supply unit side control unit may have a processing unit that performs the reset processing, and the processing unit may perform the reset processing of the floor heating unit G4 and the hot water supply unit G5 separately from the heat source unit G2.

[7] In the above embodiment, when a resolvable malfunction occurs in any of the cogeneration system G1, heat source unit G2, bathroom dryer G3, floor heating equipment G4, and hot water equipment G5, a reset process is performed on the equipment in which the resolvable malfunction occurred, but this is not limited to the above. When a resolvable malfunction occurs in any of the above equipment, only the equipment in which the resolvable malfunction occurred may be reset, or a reset process may be performed on one or more other equipment at the same time. For example, when a resolvable malfunction occurs in the bathroom dryer G3, in addition to the bathroom dryer G3, one or more of the cogeneration system G1, heat source unit G2, floor heating equipment G4, and hot water equipment G5 may also be reset together with the bathroom dryer G3.

[8] In the above embodiment, the display unit 29 as the notification unit and the notification processing unit 27 that displays a predetermined display on the display unit 29 are provided, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the notification unit may not include the display unit 29 or the notification processing unit 27. In addition, the notification unit may notify the user by sound that a malfunction has occurred in the gas appliance.

[9] In the above embodiment, when the number of consecutive executions of the reset process is two or more, a display notifying the user that a malfunction has occurred is displayed on the display unit 29, but this is not limited to the above. The upper limit of the number of consecutive executions of the reset process before the malfunction display process is executed may be arbitrarily set, and the malfunction display process may be executed when the number of consecutive executions of the reset process is one or more, or three or more.

The configurations disclosed in the above embodiments (including other embodiments) can be applied in combination with configurations disclosed in other embodiments, provided no contradictions arise. Furthermore, the embodiments disclosed in this specification are merely examples, and the present invention is not limited thereto, and can be modified as appropriate within the scope of the purpose of the present invention.

This invention can be used in an automatic reset system for gas appliances, which can reduce the occurrence of unnecessary maintenance work.

1: Automatic reset system 8: Cogeneration side reset processing unit 16: Heat source device side reset processing unit 29: Display unit (notification unit)
31: Malfunction type determination unit 32: Reset timing setting unit 36: Learning unit 37: Weather information acquisition unit 40: Server G: Gas appliance G1: Cogeneration system (heat generating device)
G2: Heat source machine (heat generating device)
G3: Bathroom dryer (heat utilization equipment)
G4: Floor heating equipment (heat utilization equipment)
G5: Hot water equipment (heat utilization equipment)

Claims (6)

At least one gas appliance that utilizes gas or heat generated by utilizing gas;
a malfunction type determination unit that determines whether a malfunction that has occurred in the gas appliance is a malfunction that can be resolved by resetting the gas appliance;
a reset processing unit that resets the gas equipment at a predetermined reset timing when the malfunction type determination unit determines that the malfunction that has occurred in the gas equipment is a malfunction that can be resolved by resetting the gas equipment; and
A reset timing setting unit that sets the reset timing,
The automatic reset system for a gas appliance , wherein the reset timing setting unit sets a time when the gas appliance is not in use as the reset timing . At least one gas appliance that utilizes gas or heat generated by utilizing gas;
a malfunction type determination unit that determines whether a malfunction that has occurred in the gas appliance is a malfunction that can be resolved by resetting the gas appliance;
a reset processing unit that resets the gas equipment at a predetermined reset timing when the malfunction type determination unit determines that the malfunction that has occurred in the gas equipment is a malfunction that can be resolved by resetting the gas equipment; and
A reset timing setting unit that sets the reset timing;
A learning unit that learns a usage pattern of the gas appliance ,
The automatic reset system for gas appliances, wherein the reset timing setting unit sets the time at which the gas appliance can be shut off as the reset timing based on the learning results of the learning unit. At least one gas appliance that utilizes gas or heat generated by utilizing gas;
a malfunction type determination unit that determines whether a malfunction that has occurred in the gas appliance is a malfunction that can be resolved by resetting the gas appliance;
a reset processing unit that resets the gas equipment at a predetermined reset timing when the malfunction type determination unit determines that the malfunction that has occurred in the gas equipment is a malfunction that can be resolved by resetting the gas equipment; and
A reset timing setting unit that sets the reset timing;
A weather information acquisition unit that acquires information related to weather,
The automatic reset system for gas appliances, wherein the reset timing setting unit sets the time when the gas appliance needs to be reset, predicted based on information acquired by the weather information acquisition unit, as the reset timing. At least one gas appliance that utilizes gas or heat generated by utilizing gas;
a malfunction type determination unit that determines whether a malfunction that has occurred in the gas appliance is a malfunction that can be resolved by resetting the gas appliance;
a reset processing unit that resets the gas equipment at a predetermined reset timing when the malfunction type determination unit determines that the malfunction that has occurred in the gas equipment is a malfunction that can be resolved by resetting the gas equipment; and
A reset timing setting unit that sets the reset timing,
The reset timing setting unit is
When the gas appliance is a heat generating device that generates heat by using gas, a time point at which a malfunction that has occurred in the heat generating device is determined to be a malfunction that can be resolved by the reset is set as the reset timing;
When the gas equipment is a heat utilization equipment that utilizes heat transferred from the heat generating device via a heat medium, the automatic reset system for gas equipment sets the reset timing to a predetermined point in time after it is determined that a malfunction that has occurred in the heat utilization equipment is a malfunction that can be resolved by the reset. a server configured to receive a determination result from the malfunction type determination unit and to transmit a signal to the reset processing unit to execute a reset process for the gas appliance;
The automatic reset system for gas equipment according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the reset processing unit is configured to execute the reset processing of the gas equipment when a signal for executing the reset processing is received from the server. A notification unit capable of notifying that a malfunction has occurred in the gas appliance,
The automatic reset system for gas equipment according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the notification unit notifies that a malfunction has occurred in the gas equipment when the malfunction type determination unit determines that the malfunction that has occurred in the gas equipment is not a malfunction that can be resolved by resetting the gas equipment.

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