JPH079307B2 - Air conditioner - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Object of the Invention (Field of Industrial Application) The present invention relates to an air conditioner having a so-called "on" timer function for automatically starting operation at a desired time.

(Prior Art) Some air conditioners include a wireless remote control device as shown in FIG.

Reference numeral 1 denotes an air conditioner main body, which has an air inlet 2 on the front surface and an air outlet 3 and an infrared receiver 4 at the bottom.
Reference numeral 5 denotes a wireless remote control device having an operating device for setting operating conditions, so that various information based on the operation of the operating device is transmitted to the infrared receiver 4 of the main body 1 by an infrared signal. It has become.

By the way, some of such air conditioners have a so-called "on" timer function and automatically start operation at the time when the user sets and inputs the remote control device 5. This is very convenient in that the heating operation can be started before waking up on a winter morning to preheat the room.

(Problems to be solved by the invention) However, in the era of one air conditioner per house and one air conditioner per room, an "on" timer is used to perform heating operation in the morning. However, there is a problem that it is difficult to use for children, women, old people, etc. who are unfamiliar with operation.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances,
It is an object of the present invention to provide an air conditioner with excellent reliability that enables anyone to easily perform an optimum operation that matches the life pattern of a user with an extremely simple operation.

[Configuration of the Invention] (Means for Solving Problems) Means for storing the operation start time only in a predetermined time zone, an operation device, and a predetermined operation based on the stored time when the operation device is operated. And a control means for starting the operation at the time.

(Operation) The operation start time is stored only in a predetermined time zone. Then, when the operating device is operated, the operation is started at a predetermined time based on the stored time.

(Embodiment) An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

First, the appearance is the same as in FIG.

Then, the refrigeration cycle of the main body 1 and the control circuit are
Shown in the figure.

Reference numeral 11 is a compressor, and the compressor 11 includes a four-way valve 12 and an outdoor heat exchanger 1.
3, the decompression device 14, the indoor heat exchanger 15 and the like are sequentially connected to form a heat pump type refrigeration cycle. That is,
During the cooling operation, the refrigerant flows in the direction of the solid line arrow to form a refrigeration cycle, and the outdoor heat exchanger 13 functions as a condenser and the indoor heat exchanger 15 functions as an evaporator. Four-way valve during heating operation
By the switching operation of 12, the refrigerant flows in the direction of the dashed arrow in the drawing to form a heating cycle, and the indoor heat exchanger 15 is a condenser,
The outdoor heat exchanger 13 acts as an evaporator. An outdoor fan 16 is provided near the outdoor heat exchanger 13, and an indoor fan 17 is provided near the indoor heat exchanger 15.

On the other hand, 20 is a control unit for controlling the entire air conditioner, which is composed of a microcomputer and its peripheral circuits, and the like, to which an infrared receiving circuit 4a and a radiant heat temperature sensor 21 are connected to the outside. The infrared receiving circuit 4a is provided in the infrared receiving unit 4 below the main body 1, receives an infrared signal transmitted from the remote control device 5, decodes it, and supplies it to the control unit 20. The radiant heat temperature sensor 21 detects radiant heat from the wall of the room in which the main body 1 is attached.

FIG. 1 shows a control circuit of the remote control device 5.

31 is a run / stop button for setting the start and stop of driving. 32 is a good morning button for setting "good morning" operation. 33 is a room temperature control key for setting the room temperature. Reference numeral 34 is an operation switching key for switching and setting operation modes such as a cooling operation mode and a heating operation mode. These operating devices are provided on the upper surface of the remote control device 5 in an exposed state and are connected to an internal key reading circuit 35. The key reading circuit 35 reads the operation on each of the operating devices as input information and supplies it to the control unit 36.

The control unit 36 controls the display drive circuit 37 and the transmission code generation circuit 40 based on the information supplied from the key input circuit 35. The display drive circuit 37 drives the time display 38 and the operation mode display 39.
The time display 38 and the operation mode display 39 are provided on the upper surface of the remote control device 5 in an exposed state together with various operating devices. The transmission code generation circuit 40 emits a code signal according to a command from the control unit 36, and the code signal is converted into an infrared signal by the infrared transmission circuit 41, and the main body 1
It will be sent to.

Next, the operation of the above structure will be described with reference to FIG.

In the remote control device 5, the heating operation mode and the time Tx at which the operation is to be started are set, and the operation / stop button 31 is pressed. Then, the control unit 36 determines the remaining time Tt until the operation start time Tx as the current time (by the clock function).
Calculate from Tg, divide the remaining time Tt by 15 minutes (division),
If there is a surplus in the result, round up and use the calculated value as time data. Then, a code is created from the time data and the setting data, and the code is transmitted from the infrared transmission circuit 41 as the first "ON" timer code. At the same time, the remaining time Tt
Start timer counting. The transmission code is taken into the control unit 20 of the main body 1.

When the count time reaches Tt, the controller 36 sends a second "ON" timer code. This second "ON" timer code is a so-called operation start command.

Thus, when the controller 20 captures the second "ON" timer code, the controller 20 immediately responds to it and starts the heating operation.

Note that the remote control device 5 may be left in another room or kotatsu, and then the second "ON" timer code does not reach the control unit 20. In response to this, the control unit 20 performs timer counting in 15-minute units based on the first “ON” timer code received earlier,
At least a predetermined time (15 minutes) from the time Tx when operation should start
The operation is started within the second "ON" timer code not reached.

Therefore, if such a heating / ON timer is set in the morning time zone, the room can be warmed up when the user wakes up, and it is comfortable to wake up in the cold winter morning.
After that, the user operates / drives the remote control device 5.
When the stop button 31 is pressed, the control unit 36 transmits the operation stop code and the operation is stopped. Since this operation stop code may not reach the control unit 20 of the main body 1, the control unit 20
Has a safety function that automatically stops the operation if it is connected for a predetermined time or longer.

By the way, the control unit 36 of the remote control device 5 is
The set operation start time Tx is stored (updated) in the internal memory only in a predetermined time zone, for example, 4:00 to 8:00 in the morning. That is, the start time Tx of the latest operation among the operations that start in the time zone of 4:00 to 8:00 in the morning is stored. Further, the operation stop time (by operating the operation / stop button 31) Ty is stored (updated) in the internal memory.

When the user presses the good morning button 32 of the remote control device 5, the control unit 36 reads the operation start time Tx in the memory and the remaining time Tt until the operation start time Tx.
Is calculated from the current time Tg, and the first “good morning” code corresponding to the data is transmitted from the infrared transmission circuit 41. Then, the timer count is started. The transmission code is taken into the control unit 20 of the main body 1.

The count time Tc is shorter than Tt by a fixed time, for example (Tt
-30 minutes), that is, 30 minutes before the operation start time Tx, the control unit 36 transmits the second “good morning” code. This second "good morning" code is 30
This is a so-called operation start preparation command indicating that the pre-operation time of a minute before has come.

Thus, when the control unit 20 takes in the second "good morning" code, the control unit 20 takes in the temperature Tr detected by the radiant heat temperature sensor 21, adjusts the pre-operation time according to the temperature detected Tr, and at that adjustment time. Start driving. That is, if the room temperature is low and Tr> 15 ℃, after 15 minutes (operation start time
Start operation 15 minutes before Tx). If the room temperature is not so low and Tr ≦ 15 ℃, 30 minutes later (operation start time
Start driving at Tx).

The remote control device 5 may be left in another room or a kotatsu, and then the second "good morning" code does not reach the control unit 20. In response to this, the control unit 20 counts the timer based on the first "good morning" code received earlier, and when the time Tx at which the operation should be started is a predetermined time (30 to 15 minutes) earlier. ,
Whether or not the second "Good morning" code arrives, it will start driving there.

In this way, the heating operation when waking up in the morning can be reliably performed by the extremely simple operation of pressing the "Good morning" button 32 of the remote control device 5, and it is possible to wake up comfortably even in the cold winter morning. Is. In particular, even for children, women, and elderly people who are unfamiliar with the operation, it is possible to easily and easily perform optimal driving that matches their lifestyle pattern. Moreover, since the pre-operation time before the operation start time Tx is adjusted according to the temperature condition of the room, not only the comfort but also the energy saving effect can be improved.

On the other hand, the control unit 36, after transmitting the second "good morning" code,
The operation stop time Ty in the memory is read and the operation stop time is read.
The remaining time To until Ty is calculated from the current time Tg. Then, the timer count is started, and when the count time Tc reaches To, the operation stop code is transmitted and the operation is stopped. In addition, this operation stop code may not reach the control unit 20 of the main body 1, in which case the safety function of the control unit 20 operates,
The operation is automatically stopped when the operation continues for a predetermined time or longer. Therefore, it is safe for the user to go out after waking up.

By the way, the operation start time Tx that is stored only between 4:00 and 8:00 in the morning is not limited to that by the “ON” timer, and the user operates the operation / stop button 31 of the remote control device 5 to start the operation. In some cases, the latest operation start time Tx is stored.

Although only the heating operation has been described in the above embodiment, the same operation can be performed for the cooling operation. Also, the time zone in which the operation start time Tx is stored is set from 4 am to 8 am in the morning, but it can be appropriately changed according to the usage situation. For example, in the case of the cooling only type, the daytime with the highest frequency of use Or it may be in the evening hours.

Besides, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention.

[Effects of the Invention] As described above, according to the present invention, a means for storing the disclosure time of driving only in a predetermined time zone, an operating device, and an operating device based on the stored time when the operating device is operated. Since a control means for starting the operation at a predetermined time is provided, anyone can easily perform the optimum operation that matches the life pattern of the user with extremely simple operation. Machine can be provided.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of a control circuit of a remote control device in one embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration of a refrigeration cycle and a control circuit of a main body in the embodiment, and FIG. FIG. 4 is a flow chart for explaining the operation of the example, and FIG. 4 is an external perspective view of the example and the conventional air conditioner. 1 …… Main body, 5 …… Remote control device, 20 ……
Control part, 32 …… Good morning button (operator), 36 …… Control part.

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Tetsuo Sano, 336 Tatehara, Fuji City, Shizuoka Prefecture, Toshiba Corporation Fuji Factory (72) Ken Matsuo, 336, Tatehara, Fuji City, Shizuoka Prefecture, Toshiba Corporation, Fuji Factory, Ltd.

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A means for storing the start time of the operation only in a predetermined time zone, an operating device, and a control means for starting the operation at a predetermined time based on the stored time when the operating device is operated. An air conditioner comprising: 2. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the control means starts the operation a predetermined time before the stored time. 3. The air conditioner according to claim 2, wherein the control means adjusts the predetermined time in accordance with the radiant heat of the indoor wall.