JP2013029275A - Control device, and control system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a control device and control system, in which equipment of a control object can operate appropriately to motion of a person in a region of an operation object while reducing energy consumption.SOLUTION: In a network system 1, a controller 100 controls a television 200A, an air conditioner 200B, and a luminaire 200C which are arranged in one room. For example, the luminaire 200C is controlled so that the more people come in and out the room, the brighter lighting in the room becomes.

Description

  The present invention relates to a control device and a control system, and more particularly to a control device and a control system for controlling the operation of a device.

  Conventionally, various techniques for controlling the operation of devices such as an air conditioner (hereinafter also referred to as an air conditioner) and a lighting device in accordance with information from sensors or the like have been disclosed.

  For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for specifying an area where a human is present in a room and adjusting the air direction of an air conditioner based on the specified area.

  Patent Document 2 discloses a technique for controlling the air conditioner so that the presence range of the human body is detected by an infrared sensor, and the swinging operation of the air conditioner is controlled so that air can be blown only to the detected range. Yes.

JP-A-6-180139 JP-A-8-219524

  However, in the conventional technology as described above, the position information detected as a human position used for air conditioning or the like is position information detected at a certain time. Therefore, for example, when the detected position changes rapidly, for example, when a person moves rapidly in the room, control is performed such that the air direction of the air conditioning is rapidly changed following the detected position. It is expected that complicated control such as ON / OFF of the switch will be executed.

  In addition, an increase in energy consumption due to frequent switching of the switch ON / OFF is also expected.

  The present invention has been conceived in view of such circumstances, and its purpose is to control the operation of a device to be controlled suitable for human operation in the region to be operated while suppressing energy consumption. An apparatus and control system is provided.

  A control device according to the present invention is a control device that controls the operation of a device, and includes a detection means for detecting the presence or absence of a person in at least a part of a region to be operated of the device, and the presence or absence of a person in the detection means. And a control means for controlling the operation of the device based on the frequency of switching of the detection results.

  Preferably, the detection means detects the presence or absence of a person for each of a plurality of different areas in the region, and the control means performs the operation for each of the plurality of areas of the device based on the frequency for the area. Control.

  Preferably, a control means controls the operation | movement about each of several area of an apparatus based on the frequency about the said area, and the sum total of the frequency about two or more areas of several areas.

Preferably, the two or more areas of the plurality of areas include the area to be controlled.
Preferably, when the sum of the frequencies for two or more of the plurality of areas is less than a predetermined value, the control means performs the operation for each of the areas of the device based on the frequency for the areas. If the sum of the frequencies for two or more of the plurality of areas is equal to or greater than a predetermined value, the operation for each of the areas of the equipment is Control based on the frequency of two or more areas.

Preferably, the device is at least one of an air conditioner and a lighting device.
A control system according to the present invention is a control system including a device and a control device for controlling the operation of the device, and the control device determines whether or not there is a person in at least a part of the operation target area of the device. Detection means for detecting, and control means for controlling the operation of the device based on the switching frequency of the detection result of the presence / absence of a person in the detection means.

  According to the present invention, the operation of the device is controlled based on the switching frequency of the detection result of the presence / absence of a person with respect to the detection means for detecting the presence / absence of a person in at least a part of the operation target area of the device. The

  Thereby, the presence or absence of a person in the operation target area of the device can be detected easily and accurately, and the detection result can be reflected in the control content of the operation of the control target device.

  Therefore, the operation of the device to be controlled can be made suitable for the human operation in the operation target region. By such control, it is possible to avoid making the control target device perform a useless operation that does not correspond to a human operation in the operation target region. Therefore, it is possible to avoid wasting energy for operating the device.

It is an image figure which shows the whole structure of the network system which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the specific example of a structure of a household appliance. It is a block diagram showing the hardware constitutions of the controller which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart of the process performed in a controller. It is an image figure which shows the whole structure of the network system which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram showing the hardware constitutions of the controller which comprises the network system of embodiment of this invention. It is a figure showing typically each detection zone of a plurality of sensors in an embodiment of the invention. In embodiment of this invention, in order to control a household appliance based on the detection output of a sensor, it is a flowchart of the process performed in a controller. It is a figure which shows typically the change of the detection result of a sensor in embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart of the process performed in the controller of embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the table utilized for determination of the content of control in embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows typically an example of the information for determining the control content (air volume) of an air-conditioner based on the combination of the value of u and v. It is a flowchart of the process performed in the controller in embodiment of this invention.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the same parts are denoted by the same reference numerals. Their names and functions are also the same. Therefore, detailed description thereof will not be repeated.

[First Embodiment]
<Outline of control system>
First, an outline of the operation of the network system according to the present embodiment will be described. FIG. 1 is an image diagram showing an overall configuration of a network system 1 according to the present embodiment.

  Referring to FIG. 1, network system 1 according to the present embodiment is implemented in, for example, a house or an office. The network system 1 includes a television 200A, an air conditioner 200B, a lighting fixture 200C, and a sensor 300 that are arranged in one room. Hereinafter, the television 200A, the air conditioner 200B, and the lighting fixture 200C are collectively referred to as a home appliance 200. The network system 1 may include other than the television 200A, the air conditioner 200B, and the lighting fixture 200C as the home appliance 200.

  The network system 1 includes a television 100A, an air conditioner 200B, a lighting fixture 200C, a sensor 300, and a controller 100 for controlling other home appliances. The controller 100 can perform data communication with the television 200A, the air conditioner 200B, the lighting fixture 200C, the sensor 300, and other home appliances via a wired or wireless network 400. The controller 100 uses a wired LAN (Local Area Network), wireless LAN, PLC (Power Line Communications), Bluetooth (registered trademark), ZigBee (registered trademark), or the like as the network 400, for example.

  The sensor 300 detects whether or not there is a person in the above-described room. As a detection method, for example, a so-called human sensor constituted by an infrared sensor or an ultrasonic sensor is used. The sensor 300 may be configured by a pressure sensor installed on the floor surface of the room. The pressure sensor detects pressure when a person who enters the room steps on the pressure sensor. In the network system 1, it is determined that a person exists in the room because the detection output is generated.

  The controller 100 generates a control command for each home appliance 200 based on the detection output of the sensor 300. Specifically, the controller 100 generates a control command for each home appliance 200 according to the frequency at which the sensor 300 switches the detection result of the presence or absence of a person in the room. And the controller 100 transmits the said control command to each household appliance 200. FIG.

<Hardware configuration of controller 100>
Next, an aspect of the hardware configuration of the controller 100 according to the present embodiment will be described. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of controller 100 according to the present embodiment.

  The controller 100 includes a memory 101, a display 102, a tablet 103, buttons 104, a communication interface 105, a speaker 107, a clock 108, and a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 110. In the controller 100, the display 102 and the tablet 103 constitute a touch panel 106.

  The memory 101 is various types of RAM (Random Access Memory), ROM (Read-Only Memory), a hard disk, and the like. The memory 101 stores a control program executed by the CPU 110 and various data necessary for executing the control program.

  The memory 101 may be configured by a storage medium that is detachable from the controller 100. Storage media include CD-ROM (Compact Disc-Read Only Memory), DVD-ROM (Digital Versatile Disk-Read Only Memory), USB (Universal Serial Bus) memory, memory card, FD (Flexible Disk), hard disk, magnetic Tape, cassette tape, MO (Magnetic Optical Disc), MD (Mini Disc), IC (Integrated Circuit) card (excluding memory card), optical card, mask ROM, EPROM, EEPROM (Electronically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory), etc. And a medium for storing the program in a nonvolatile manner.

  The program here includes not only a program directly executable by the CPU but also a program in a source program format, a compressed program, an encrypted program, and the like.

  CPU110 will transmit the said control command to the household appliance 200 via the communication interface 105, if the control command with respect to the household appliance 200 by a user is input via the touch panel 106 or the button 104. FIG.

<Composition of home appliances>
FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a specific example of the configuration of the home appliance 200. Referring to FIG. 2, home appliance 200 includes input unit 22 that is a mechanism for accepting an operation input from a user, control unit 23 that is a control device that generally controls the operation of home appliance 200, and home appliance 200. Drive unit 24 which is a mechanism for driving a mechanism (not shown) for functioning as a communication unit, and a communication unit 25 including a communication device for communicating with other devices such as controller 100.

  When the home appliance 200 is an air conditioner 200B, the drive unit 24 is a mechanism for driving a mechanism for performing a cooling operation, a heating operation, and / or a dehumidifying operation. And the drive part 24 is controlled by the control part 23, and if it is at the time of air_conditionaing | cooling operation, a wind direction, an air volume, etc. are controlled. The control unit 23 determines the set temperature, the wind direction, the air volume, and the like related to cooling according to the instruction content input to the input unit 22 or the control signal from the controller 100.

  When the household appliance 200 is the lighting fixture 200C, the drive unit 24 is a mechanism for controlling the color and intensity of the illumination for the mechanism that emits light. The drive unit 24 drives a mechanism that emits light in order to realize a control command for the color and intensity of illumination input from the control unit 23. Specifically, for example, when the lighting fixture 200C includes an LED (Light Emitting Diode) as a light emitting mechanism, the drive unit 24 adjusts the light emission intensity according to the amount of power supplied to the LED. The control unit 23 determines the control content regarding the color and intensity of the illumination by the drive unit 24 according to the instruction content input to the input unit 22 or the control signal from the controller 100.

<Control of home appliances based on room entry status>
Next, control of the operation of the home appliance 200 based on the detection output of the sensor 300 in the network system 1 will be described. FIG. 4 is a flowchart of processing executed by the CPU 110 of the controller 100 for the control.

  CPU 110 is executed during a period in which the home appliance is in a state for functioning as home appliance 200. For example, when the home appliance 200 is an air conditioner 200B, the air conditioner 200B is in a state of performing a cooling operation, a heating operation, and / or a dehumidifying operation (operation switch is turned on) by operating the input unit 22 or the like. State. Moreover, when the household appliance 200 is the lighting fixture 200C, it is the state made into the state (for example, switch-on) which performs lighting operation.

  Referring to FIG. 4, CPU 110 first waits until an interrupt signal from sensor 300 is input in step S <b> 10. The sensor 300 outputs an interrupt signal to the controller 100 on condition that the detection result of the presence / absence of a person in the room changes from “absent” to “present”. When an interrupt signal is input from sensor 300, CPU 110 advances the process to step S20.

  In step S20, CPU 110 records the time when the interrupt signal detected in step S10 is input in a table that records the time when the interrupt signal is input, and advances the process to step S30.

  Here, each time recorded in step S20 is expressed as Li. Here, i indicates that the time is the i-th recorded time in the table. The time corresponding to each Li is expressed as Ti.

  An example of the contents of the table in which the time is registered in step S20 is shown in Table 1.

  In Table 1, Ti is registered for each of L1, L2, L3,. Specifically, “10:05:01” (meaning “10: 5: 1 am”) is recorded as Ti corresponding to L1. Also, “10:05:02” corresponding to L2, “10:05:03” corresponding to L3, “10:05:04” corresponding to L4, “10:05:03” corresponding to “L5” “10:05:05” corresponds to L6, “10:05:06” corresponds to L7, “10:05:07” corresponds to L7, and “10:05:08” corresponds to L8. Are recorded respectively.

  In the example shown in Table 1, it means that the interrupt signal of the sensor 300 is inputted every second from 10:05.

  In the present embodiment, the format in which Ti is recorded in step S20 is not limited to the table shown in Table 1. Every time an interrupt signal is input from the sensor 300, information for specifying the time of the interrupt may be recorded.

  Next, in step S30, the CPU 110 searches for the Li recorded in the processing of the previous step S20, thereby counting the number of recorded Lis in the past predetermined time from the current time Ti, and setting it as Ci. Record.

  That is, for example, when the current time is “10:05:08” and the above “predetermined time” is 5 seconds, the current time is selected from the Li recordings shown in Table 1. Li recorded in a range from “10:05:08” to “10:05:03” five seconds before is extracted, and the number is recorded as Ci. In the example of Table 1, since L3 to L8 are applicable, “6” is recorded as Ci.

  Next, in step S40, the CPU 110 determines an activity amount u based on the value of Ci recorded in the immediately preceding step S30, and advances the process to step S50.

  The method of determining the activity amount u in step S40 is determined using a threshold value (Khu) predetermined for Ci. Specifically, the activity amount u is determined based on a predetermined range of conditions as shown in Table 2, for example.

  As understood from Table 2, the activity amount u is determined according to the value of Ci. For example, when Ci is 0 or more and less than 1, the activity amount is determined as “0”. Further, when Ci is 1 or more and less than 2, the activity amount is determined as “1”. In addition, the aspect which determines the active mass u based on Ci is not limited to what was shown in Table 2.

  For example, in Table 2, it is configured that the activity amount u increases by a certain amount every time Ci increases by a certain amount (when Ci increases by 1, the value of the determined activity amount u increases by 1). However, the determined rate of increase of the activity amount u may be changed according to the range of the value of Ci. That is, for example, in the range of Ci from 0 to 3, every time Ci increases by 1, the corresponding activity amount u increases by 1, and when Ci is between 4 and 10, each time Ci increases by 2 The value of the activity amount u increases by 1 (that is, u = 4 when 4 ≦ Ci <6, u = 5 when 6 ≦ Ci <8, and u = 6 when 8 ≦ Ci <10. , ...).

  Further, the mode of determining the activity amount u from Ci is not limited to the table format as described with reference to Table 2 and the like, and if the activity amount u is determined to increase as Ci increases, The activity amount u may be determined in other forms such as a function.

  In step S50, CPU110 performs the control corresponding to u determined in step S40 with respect to the household appliance 200, and returns to the standby state in step S10.

  The execution of the control in step S50 means outputting a control signal to the home appliance 200.

  An example of a control signal output to the home appliance 200 will be described with reference to Table 3.

  Table 3 shows the content of the control signal for the brightness corresponding to the activity amount u when the home appliance 200 is the lighting device 200C.

  As understood from Table 3, when the activity amount u is 0, a control signal “OFF” is output to the lighting device 200C. Thereby, the control unit 23 of the lighting device 200 </ b> C controls the drive unit 24 to turn off the illumination.

  In Table 3, “Umax” means the maximum brightness of the lighting apparatus 300C. And in the network system 1 of this Embodiment, the controller 100 can control the illuminating device 300C in multiple steps of "Umax" which is "1" regarding brightness. Note that the stage “1” is the darkest and the “Umax” is the brightest. However, the stage “1” is brighter than the unlit state.

  As understood from Table 3, when the activity amount u is “1”, the CPU 110 transmits a brightness control signal of the brightness stage “1” to the lighting device 200C. In response to this, the control unit 23 of the lighting device 200 </ b> C controls the drive unit 24 so that the drive unit 24 has the brightness of the stage “1”.

  In the present embodiment described above, an interrupt signal is input from the sensor 300 to the controller 100 on condition that the detection output of the sensor 300 is switched from “absent” to “present”. Every time such an interrupt signal is input, the controller 100 records the time when the interrupt signal is input. The recording mode is as shown in Table 1, for example, and the recording is stored in the memory 101.

  Based on the recording of the time of the interrupt signal, the number of recordings Ci of the interrupt signal within a predetermined time is calculated. The amount of activity u is determined according to the value of Ci. And the control content of the household appliance 200 is determined based on the determined activity amount u.

  When the home appliance 200 is the lighting device 200C, a control signal is output to the lighting device 200C so that the illumination becomes brighter as the value of the activity amount u increases. The activity amount u increases as the value of Ci increases. The value of Ci increases as the number of interrupt signals input within a predetermined time increases. In other words, in the present embodiment, control is performed so that the brightness of lighting device 200 </ b> C becomes brighter as the number of interrupt signals from sensor 300 input to controller 100 within a predetermined time increases.

  The case where the number of interrupt signals of the sensor 300 within a predetermined time is large is a state in which a person enters and exits frequently in a room that is an operation target of the lighting device 200C as described with reference to FIG.

  That is, according to the present embodiment, control is performed such that the more people enter and exit the room, the brighter the room is illuminated.

<Modified example of home appliance control (1)>
In the example described above, the case where the home appliance 200 to be controlled is the lighting device 200C has been described.

Here, a case where the home appliance 200 to be controlled is an air conditioner 200B will be described.
Table 4 shows an example of control contents corresponding to the activity amount u for the air conditioner 200B.

  In Table 4, “Umax” indicates the maximum air volume of the air conditioner 200B. In the network system 1 of the present embodiment, the air conditioner 200B is controlled in multiple stages from “1” to “Umax” with respect to the air volume.

  As understood from Table 4, when the activity amount u is “0”, the air volume of the air conditioner 200B is “OFF”. That is, the air conditioner 200B is controlled not to output wind.

  Further, the control signal corresponding to the value “1” of the activity amount u is the control signal of the stage “1”. Further, the control signal corresponding to the value “2” of the activity amount u is the control signal of the stage “2”. Further, the control signal corresponding to the value “Umax” of the activity amount u is the control signal of the stage “Umax”.

  In the present modification, in step S50 (see FIG. 4), the control signal for the air volume of the air conditioner 200B corresponding to the activity amount u is determined according to Table 4, and the CPU 110 outputs the control signal to the air conditioner 200B. In response to this, the control unit 23 of the air conditioner 200 </ b> B controls the drive unit 24 so as to obtain an air volume according to the control signal transmitted from the controller 100.

  In the modification described above, the air conditioner 200B is controlled such that the greater the value of the activity amount u, the greater the air volume output from the air conditioner 200B. It should be noted that the value of the activity amount u increases as the number of people entering and exiting the controlled room increases.

  In other words, in the present modification, the control is performed so that the air volume of the air conditioner 200 </ b> B increases when a person enters and leaves the room.

<Modification of home appliance control (2)>
As a control content when the home appliance 200 to be controlled by the network system 1 is the air conditioner 200B, the set temperature related to the operation of the air conditioner 200B can be used instead of the air volume described with reference to Table 4.

  Table 5 is a diagram showing an example of the content of the control signal corresponding to the activity amount u used in such a modification.

  This modification relates to control of a set temperature when the air conditioner 200B is in a cooling operation. Further, in this modification, the set temperature of the air conditioner 200B is controlled in multiple stages of Umax + 1.

  As understood from Table 5, the smaller the value of the activity amount u, the lower the set temperature in the control signal transmitted to the air conditioner 200B. For example, when the value of the activity amount u is “0”, the control signal sets the preset temperature of the air conditioner 200 </ b> B to an upper limit temperature that is predetermined for the cooling operation. When the value of the activity amount u is “1”, the set temperature of the control signal transmitted to the air conditioner 200B is “upper limit− (upper limit−lower limit) × 1 / Umax”. The “upper limit” is the upper limit temperature described above. The “lower limit” is a lower limit temperature predetermined for the cooling operation of the air conditioner 200B. When the value of the activity amount is “1”, the value obtained by subtracting the lower limit temperature from the upper limit temperature is multiplied by 1, and a value obtained by dividing the result by Umax is calculated. Is a value obtained by subtracting from the upper limit temperature.

  As understood from Table 5, the set temperature of the control signal transmitted to the air conditioner 200B decreases as the value of the activity amount u increases.

  As described above, the value of the activity amount u increases as the room to be controlled increases and decreases. Therefore, in this modification, control is performed so that the set temperature of the air conditioner 200B that is performing the cooling operation becomes lower as the room enters and exits more intensely.

  In this modification, even when the air conditioner 200B performs the heating operation, the set temperature may be set lower as the value of the activity amount u increases. Thereby, it is considered that the more the person moves in the room, the lower the degree of necessity of heating the room, and the set temperature can be lowered.

<Other variations>
In the present embodiment described above, the sensor 300 detects a person's entry and exit in an operation target area (room) of the lighting device 200C and the air conditioner 200B, but the sensor 300 is a partial area in the room. It is also possible to detect the presence or absence of a person in In this case, the presence or absence of human detection in the sensor 300 is switched by moving between the detection range and the detection range of the sensor 300 when a person moves in the room. That is, an interrupt signal is output from the sensor 300 to the controller 100 when a person moves from outside the detection range to within the detection range.

  In such an example, as the movement of a person in the room becomes more intense, the number Ci of interrupt signals recorded within a predetermined time increases and the value of the activity amount u increases. That is, in such an example, the more people move in the room, the brighter the illumination by the lighting device 200C, the larger the air volume of the air conditioner 200B, and / or the lower the set temperature in the cooling operation of the air conditioner 200B. .

[Second Embodiment]
<Outline of control system>
FIG. 5 is an image diagram showing the overall configuration of the network system 1 according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

  Referring to FIG. 5, in network system 1 of the present embodiment, a plurality of sensors 300A, 300B, 300C,... 300N are installed instead of sensor 300 of the first embodiment.

  FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of the controller 100 constituting the network system 1 of the present embodiment.

  The hardware configuration of the controller 100 of this embodiment is the same as that of the controller 100 of the first embodiment. However, the controller 100 according to the present embodiment communicates detection outputs of the sensors 300 </ b> A to 300 </ b> N via the communication interface 105.

  In the present embodiment, the sensors 300 </ b> A to 300 </ b> N each set a different area in a region (room) that is a device operation target as a detection target.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram schematically showing detection areas of a plurality of sensors (sensors 300A to 300N) of the present embodiment.

  FIG. 7 shows twelve areas, area 1 to area 12. Sensors 300A-300N include at least twelve sensors for detecting the presence or absence of a person in each of zones 1-12.

  In FIG. 7, the detection target areas of the plurality of sensors are shown not to overlap each other, but the detection target areas of the sensors may overlap each other.

<Control of home appliances based on sensor output>
FIG. 8 is a flowchart of processing executed by CPU 110 of controller 100 to control home appliance 200 based on the detection outputs of sensors 300A to 300N in the present embodiment.

  Referring to FIG. 8, CPU 110 first waits until an interrupt signal is input from any of sensors 300 </ b> A to 300 </ b> N or an interrupt signal from a timer is input at step SA <b> 10.

  The sensors 300 </ b> A to 300 </ b> N output an interrupt signal to the controller 100 on the condition that the state changes between “absence” and “present” of the presence of a person in the detection target area of each sensor. That is, for example, in a plurality of areas shown in FIG. 7, when a person moves from area 2 to area 3, a sensor that uses area 2 as a detection target region changes its detection result from “present” to “absent”. Change. In response to this, an interrupt signal is output to the controller 100. Further, the detection output of the sensor having the area 3 as the detection target region changes from “absent” to “present”. In response to this, the sensor outputs an interrupt signal to the controller 100.

  In addition, when a person goes out of the room from the area 1, the detection output changes from “present” to “absent” in the sensor having the area 1 as a detection target area. In response to this, the sensor outputs an interrupt signal to the controller 100.

  Further, the CPU 110 starts a time measuring operation as an interrupt signal timer in response to the execution of the process in step SA50 described later or in response to the start of the process shown in FIG. The timer uses a predetermined time (for example, 5 seconds) as a time measurement time. The CPU 110 generates a timer interrupt signal and inputs it to the controller 100 every time the predetermined time is counted. The timer operation is stopped by executing step SA20 described later. Then, by executing step SA50, which will be described later, the timekeeping time is reset, and the timekeeping operation is started again.

  CPU110 advances a process to step SA20, when the interrupt signal from a sensor is input, or when the interrupt signal is input from the said timer.

  In step SA20, CPU 110 records the detection results of the presence / absence of a person in the detection target region for all sensors, and proceeds to step SA30.

  Table 6 shows an example of the recorded contents of the detection result at time Ti for each sensor recorded in step SA20.

  In Table 6, the detection output of each sensor is indicated by Li [j]. In the present embodiment, i indicates each sensor. In the present embodiment, each sensor corresponds to each zone included in the region to be operated as shown in FIG. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 7, when the operation target region (room) is divided into 12 areas, Li includes L1 to L12.

j corresponds to the time at which step SA20 is executed.
In the example shown in Table 6, L1 to L8 and the like are detected for four times of “10: 05:; 01”, “10:05:03”, “10:05:06”, and “10:05:11”. Results are shown.

  The detection results shown in Table 6 are indicated by “0” or “1”. “0” indicates that no person is present in the target area, and “1” indicates that a person is present in the target area.

  Also, in the example shown in Table 6, at time “10:05:01”, the presence of a person is detected only in the area corresponding to L4, and it is indicated that no person is present in the other areas. ing.

  In addition, at time “10:05:03”, it is indicated that a person exists only in the area indicated by the area L5 and no person exists in the other areas.

  In addition, at time “10:05:06”, it is indicated that a person exists only in the area indicated by the area L6 and no person exists in the other areas.

  In the example shown in Table 6, there is shown a case where no change in the presence / absence of a person is detected in each area from the time “10:05:06” until the time counted by the above timer elapses. . Then, Li [j] is recorded at time “10:05:11”, which is five seconds later. In the detection result of the time, the presence of a person was detected only in the area indicated by L6, and the person was absent in the other areas, as in the time “10:05:06” 5 seconds before that time. It is shown.

  Returning to FIG. 8, after recording Li [j] in step SA20, CPU 110 advances the process to step SA30.

  In step SA30, Li [j] is searched, and the number of detection result switching within a predetermined time period from the present to each sensor is counted and recorded as Ej.

  The number of detection result switching refers to the number of times the detection result is switched between “present” and “absent”. Specifically, the number of switching between 0 and 1 shown in Table 6 is Calculated.

In the present embodiment, the “predetermined time” is, for example, 10 seconds.
In the example shown in Table 6, each Ej when the current time is “10:05:11” is illustrated.

  In this example, as a calculation target of Ej, detection results from “10:05:11” to “10:05:01” that is 10 seconds before that are referred to.

  For L1, in Table 6, the detection results are all “0” during that period. That is, in the detection result, there is no switching between “present” and “absent”. Therefore, Ej is calculated as “0” and recorded.

Similarly, Ej is “0” for L2, L3, L7, and L8.
For L4, the detection output is switched from 1 to 0 from time “10:05:01” to time “10:05:03”. Thereafter, the detection output remains zero. Therefore, Ej is “1”.

  For L5, the detection output is switched from 0 to 1 from time “10:05:01” to time “10:05:03”. Further, at time “10:05:06”, the detection output is switched from 1 to 0. Thereafter, the detection output remains 0 and remains unchanged. Therefore, Ej is “2” for L5.

  For L6, the detection output is switched from 0 to 1 from time “10:05:03” to time “10:05:06”. Thereafter, there is no change in the detection output. Therefore, Ej is “1” for L6.

  Returning to FIG. 8, after recording Ej for the detection output of each sensor in step SA30, the CPU 110 advances the process in step SA40.

  In step SA40, CPU 110 determines an activity amount u for each sensor based on Ej for the detection output of each sensor recorded in step SA30.

  When determining the activity amount u from Ej, for example, a table as shown in Table 7 is referred to.

  In Table 7, the activity amount u is associated with each range of Ej. In addition, the range of Ej corresponding to the value of each activity amount does not overlap each other. Therefore, if the value of Ej is determined, the value of one activity amount u can be obtained correspondingly.

The activity amount u increases as the value of Ej increases.
Returning to FIG. 8, after determining the activity amount u for each sensor in step SA40, the CPU 110 determines the content of the control signal corresponding to each activity amount u for the home appliance 200 in step SA50. It transmits to the household appliance 200 as a control signal regarding the area to which the quantity u corresponds.

  In the present embodiment, as described with reference to FIG. 7, each of the plurality of sensors detects the presence or absence of each person in the plurality of areas shown in FIG. 7. Therefore, the activity amount u for each sensor determined in step SA40 corresponds to each area to be detected. Therefore, the control signal transmitted to home appliance 200 in step SA50 includes the control contents for each of the areas to be detected.

  Further, the contents of the control signal corresponding to the activity amount u in step SA50 are, for example, the brightness of the illumination device 200C as shown in Table 3 and the output of the air conditioner 200B as shown in Table 4. The air volume is mentioned.

  That is, in the present embodiment, the operation target area of the device is divided into a plurality of different areas. The presence or absence of a person in each of the plurality of areas is detected by each of the plurality of sensors (sensors 300A to 300N). And the controller 100 outputs the control signal which shows the control content about each area with respect to the household appliance 200 of control object. Thereby, operation | movement of the household appliance 200 is controlled for every area based on the switching frequency of the detection result of the presence or absence of a person about the said area.

  According to the present embodiment, the contents of control are determined according to the frequency of switching of the detection result of the presence / absence of a person for each area.

  In the present embodiment, in addition to the input of the interrupt signal of the sensor, the process after step SA20 is executed by the input of the interrupt signal from the timer, and the control signal is transmitted to home appliance 200. In the present embodiment, the processing after step SA20 is executed not only when an interrupt signal is input from the sensor, but also when the timer time is over. As a result, interrupts from all sensors are input for a long time after that even if the detection result is frequently switched between “present” and “absent” for sensors in a certain time zone. Even if not, since the processing after step SA20 is executed at regular intervals by the timer operation, the appropriate amount of activity u for each area is determined according to the detection result of the sensor for each area. This makes it possible to transmit a control signal corresponding to the state of each area to the home appliance 200.

This will be described more specifically with reference to FIG.
FIG. 9 is a diagram schematically showing a change in the detection result of the sensor corresponding to L4 in Table 6.

In FIG. 9, the vertical axis indicates the detection result of the sensor, and the horizontal axis indicates time.
As can be understood from FIG. 9 and Table 6, the detection result of L4 changes from 0 to 1 at time “10:05:03”, and then changes from 1 to 0 at time “10:05:03”. doing. It is assumed that “0” continues as the detection result thereafter. In this case, in the time zone near the time “10:05:01”, it can be said that the switching frequency of the detection result of L5 is relatively high. However, after that, there is no switching of detection results, and the frequency of switching is not high. However, after time “10:05:03”, if there is no interrupt signal from other sensors including L5, the activity amount u is not updated and the control content corresponding to the relatively high frequency is continued. It becomes.

  However, in the present embodiment, the activity amount u is updated as appropriate at fixed time intervals that are timed by the timer. Thereby, the household appliance 200 is controllable in the aspect according to the actual condition of a control object more.

[Third Embodiment]
In the present embodiment, as in the second embodiment, the controller 100 transmits a control signal indicating the control content for each area as described with reference to FIG.

  In addition, the controller 100 according to the present embodiment determines the control content for each area based on the activity amount u of the area and the activity amount v based on the sum of the switching numbers for all the areas. .

  FIG. 10 is a flowchart of processing executed in the controller 100 of the present embodiment.

  Referring to FIG. 10, CPU 110 is conditioned on the input of an interrupt signal from a sensor or an interrupt signal from a timer in steps SB10 to SB30, as in steps SA10 to SA30 of FIG. (Step SB10), the detection result of the presence or absence of a person in the detection target area of all sensors is recorded (step SB20), and the switching number Ej is calculated (step SB30).

  Then, similarly to step SA40, CPU 110 calculates activity amount u in step SB40, and determines activity amount v based on the sum of switching numbers (ΣEj) for all areas in step SB41. While the activity amount u indicates the amount of activity for each area, the activity amount v indicates the activity amount of the entire room. Similarly to the activity amount u, the activity amount v is acquired based on, for example, a table in which Ci in Table 2 is changed to Ej.

  In the present embodiment, the CPU 110 determines the control content in step SB51 based on the activity amount u obtained in step SB40 and the activity amount v obtained in step SB41. FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of a table used for determining control contents in the third embodiment.

  In FIG. 11, one control content (control content of the lighting device 200 </ b> C) for each area is determined by a combination of the values of u and v.

  In the present embodiment, when the value of activity amount v is increased to some extent, lighting device 200C is controlled to light up for all areas even if activity amount u is a small value.

  FIG. 12 is a diagram schematically showing an example of information for determining the control content (air volume) of the air conditioner 200B based on the combination of the values of u and v.

  In the example shown in FIG. 12, when the value of the activity amount v is increased to some extent, the lighting device 200C has the maximum air volume even if the activity amount u is a small value. Therefore, the lighting is controlled for all the areas.

[Fourth Embodiment]
FIG. 13 is a flowchart of processing executed by the CPU 110 of the present embodiment.

  In the present embodiment, CPU 110, on condition that an interrupt signal from a sensor or an interrupt signal from a timer is input in steps SC10 to SC30 (steps SB10 to SB30 in FIG. 10) ( Step SC10), the detection results of the presence / absence of persons in the detection target areas of all sensors are recorded (step SC20), and the switching number Ej is calculated (step SC30).

  Next, similarly to step SB40, CPU 110 determines an activity amount u based on Ej for all areas in step SC40.

  Then, in step SC51, the CPU 110 determines whether or not the sum U of the activity amounts u for all the areas is less than a predetermined threshold value Tw. If so, the process proceeds to step SC50. If it is determined that it is equal to or greater than Tw, the process proceeds to step SC51.

  In step SC50, the control contents for each area are determined according to Table 3 and Table 4 based on the activity amount u for each area.

  On the other hand, in step SC51, the control content for each zone is determined according to Table 3 and Table 4 based on the sum U of the activity amounts u for all zones. As a result, when the amount of activity is large, such as when the entire room is moving rapidly, the control content for each area based on the activity amount of the entire room (the sum U of the activity amounts u for all areas) Is determined.

  Each embodiment disclosed this time must be considered as illustrative in all points and not restrictive. The scope of the present invention is defined by the terms of the claims, rather than the description above, and is intended to include any modifications within the scope and meaning equivalent to the terms of the claims. In addition, the inventions described in the embodiments and modifications thereof are intended to be implemented alone or in combination as much as possible.

  100 controller, 101 memory, 102 display, 103 tablet, 104 button, 105 communication interface, 106 touch panel, 107 speaker, 108 clock, 200 home appliance, 200A TV, 200B air conditioner, 200C lighting device, 200C lighting fixture, 300, 300A, 300B , 300C, 300A-300N sensor, 400 network.

Claims (7)

A control device for controlling the operation of the device,
Detecting means for detecting the presence or absence of a person in at least a part of a region to be operated of the device;
A control device comprising: control means for controlling the operation of the device based on the frequency of switching of the detection result of the presence / absence of a person in the detection means. The detection means detects the presence or absence of a person for each of a plurality of different areas in the region,
The control device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit controls the operation of each of the plurality of areas of the device based on the frequency of the area.   The control means controls the operation of each of the plurality of areas of the device based on the frequency for the area and the sum of the frequencies for two or more areas of the plurality of areas. The control device according to claim 2.   The control device according to claim 3, wherein two or more of the plurality of zones include a zone to be controlled. The control means includes
If the sum of the frequencies for two or more of the plurality of areas is less than a predetermined value, the operation for each of the areas of the device is controlled based on the frequency for the areas. ,
When the sum of the frequencies for two or more areas of the plurality of areas is equal to or greater than a predetermined value, the operation for each of the areas of the device is changed to the frequency for the areas and the plurality of areas. The control device according to claim 2, wherein control is performed based on the frequency for the two or more areas.   The control device according to claim 1, wherein the device is at least one of an air conditioner and a lighting device. A control system comprising a device and a control device for controlling the operation of the device,
The controller is
Detecting means for detecting the presence or absence of a person in at least a part of a region to be operated of the device;
And a control means for controlling the operation of the device based on the frequency of switching of the detection result of the presence / absence of a person in the detection means.

Images