JP2017060096A - Operation unit and communication system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an easy-to-use operation unit and a communication system at the operation of equipment in and out of a residence.SOLUTION: An operation terminal 13, which is an operation unit communicable with a control device 11 which controls equipment 12, includes: a determination unit which determines whether or not the operation terminal 13 exists in a residence area in which the control device 11 is installed; and an operation screen display unit which changes an operation screen for the equipment 12 according to the determination result, and displays it on a display unit.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

  Embodiments described herein relate generally to an operating device and a communication system used for controlling devices.

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, technology for remotely operating devices such as home appliances from outside has been advanced.
However, when the device is controlled using the operation terminal, the display contents of the operation screen displayed by the operation terminal are the same when operated from outside the house and when operated from within the house.

  Therefore, for example, even when the operator remotely operates the lighting equipment outside the home, the operation buttons for light control or color adjustment used in the home are often turned on / off, etc. Since it is always displayed on the operation screen of the operation terminal together with the operation buttons and the like, there is a problem that it is not easy for the operator.

Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2015-133663

  Therefore, an object of the present embodiment is to provide an operation device and a communication system that are easy to use when operating devices inside and outside the house.

  The operation device according to the embodiment is an operation device capable of communicating with a control device that controls equipment, and a determination unit that determines whether or not the operation device exists in a home area where the control device is installed; An operation screen display unit that changes an operation screen for the device according to the determination result and displays the operation screen on the display unit.

  The communication system of the embodiment is a communication system including an operation device and a control device that transmits a control signal to the device based on control information for controlling the device transmitted from the operation device, The operation device includes a determination unit that determines whether or not the operation device exists in an in-home area where the control device is installed, and changes an operation screen for the device according to the determination result to display the operation device. An operation screen display unit to be displayed on the unit.

  According to the present embodiment, it is possible to provide an operating device and a communication system that are easy to use when operating devices inside and outside the house.

1 is a configuration diagram of a communication system according to an embodiment. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the operating terminal 13 in connection with embodiment. It is a figure which shows the example of the selection screen which selects an apparatus by starting of an application in connection with embodiment. 12 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a flow of an operation screen display process executed when any selection button on the selection screen G1 is touched according to the embodiment. It is a figure which shows the example of the operation screen for homes in connection with embodiment. It is a figure which shows the example of the operation screen for external use in connection with embodiment.

  The operating device of the present embodiment is an operating device capable of communicating with a control device that controls equipment, and a determination unit that determines whether or not the operating device exists in a home area where the control device is installed. And an operation screen display unit that changes an operation screen for the device according to the result of the determination and displays the operation screen on the display unit.

  The communication system according to the present embodiment is a communication system including an operation device and a control device that transmits a control signal to the device based on control information for controlling the device transmitted from the operation device. The operation device is configured to determine whether the operation device exists in a home area where the control device is installed, and to change an operation screen for the device according to the determination result, And an operation screen display unit displayed on the display unit.

Hereinafter, embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings.
(Constitution)
FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a communication system according to the present embodiment. The communication system 1 is a system that allows not only a person in the house to operate home electrical appliances (hereinafter referred to as equipment) in the house 2 but also a person outside the house to be remotely operable.

  In FIG. 1, in order to simplify the description, in the house 2, there is one control device 11 and three devices 12 as controlled devices that can operate according to control signals from the control device 11. A case will be described as an example where an operator in the house and an operator outside the house can operate each device 12 with the operation terminal 13 respectively.

  The communication system 1 includes a plurality of operation terminals 13 and a control device 11 that transmits a control signal CS1 corresponding to control information CS2 for control of the device 12 transmitted from each operation terminal 13 to the device 12. System.

  In FIG. 1, three devices 12 are shown as devices A, B, and C, and an operation terminal 13 used by an in-home operator is shown as an operation terminal A, and an operation terminal 13 used by an outside operator. Is shown as operating terminal B. In FIG. 1, the operation terminal A is inside the house 2 and the operation terminal B is outside the house 2.

  The device 12 is, for example, a home appliance such as a lighting fixture or an air conditioner. Each device 12 can be operated by a remote controller (not shown) dedicated to the device, and can also be operated by a control signal CS1 from the control device 11.

  Therefore, each device 12 has a receiving unit that receives a control signal CS1 such as an infrared signal from the control device 11, and the control device 11 transmits a control signal CS1 such as an infrared signal to each device 12. have.

  The control device 11 is a remote control device that is installed in the house 2 and converts the control information CS2 of the device 12 transmitted from each operation terminal 13 into a control signal CS1 such as an infrared signal and transmits the control information CS2 to control the device 12. is there.

Furthermore, the control device 11 communicates with a predetermined cloud server 14 via a router 16 that is a wireless LAN device, and receives control information CS2 from an operation terminal 13 outside the home via a public line 15 such as the Internet line. Receive and transmit control signal CS1.
As described above, when receiving the control information CS2 from the operation terminal 13, the control device 11 transmits the control signal CS1 to the device 12 corresponding to the received control information CS2 to the device 12.

  The router 16 is installed in the house 2, and the control device 11 is connected to the router 16 so as to be communicable by wire or wirelessly. Control information CS2 from each operation terminal 13 is supplied to the control device 11 via the router 16. Therefore, the control device 11 has a communication unit that communicates with the router 16.

  As described above, the control device 11 is installed in the building of the house 2 where the equipment 12 is installed, is connected to the router 16, and is connected to the router 2 via the public line 15 that is a network to which the router 16 is connected. Control information from the external operation terminal 13 can be received.

  The control device 11 includes a central processing unit (hereinafter referred to as CPU) 11a and a memory 11b such as ROM and RAM. In the control device 11, a program for transmitting a control signal for each device 12 is stored in the memory 11b.

  Each operation terminal 13 is, for example, a smartphone, an operation device that has a communication function, and has a central processing unit (CPU) and a memory, and can execute a downloaded application software program (hereinafter referred to as an application). is there.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of the operation terminal 13.
The operation terminal 13 includes a CPU 21, a memory 22, a communication unit 23, a display 24, and a touch panel unit 25.

The CPU 21 is a control unit that reads and executes a software program stored in the memory 22 and realizes various functions of the operation terminal 13.
The memory 22 is a storage unit including a rewritable volatile memory such as a ROM, a RAM, and a flash memory.

  The communication unit 23 is a circuit for performing communication through a public line, WIFI, or the like. Here, the communication unit 23 can communicate with the router 16 via the public line 15. For example, the communication unit 23 communicates with the router 16 using the public line 15 outside the building of the house 2.

Furthermore, the communication part 23 can also perform communication using the WIFI between the operation terminal 13 and the router 16 in the building of the house 2, for example.
Therefore, the operation terminal 13 is an operation device that can communicate with the control device 11 that controls each device 12 through the public line 15 and the router 16 inside and outside the house 2. It is possible to communicate with the control device 11 via the router 16 by using it.

  The communication unit 23 always determines whether or not communication with the router 16 via WIFI is possible by monitoring the communication state with the router 16. When the communication unit 23 determines that communication with the router 16 is possible, the communication unit 23 or the operation terminal 13 has a function of automatically switching communication with the router 16 to communication using WIFI. Therefore, the user of the operation terminal 13 does not need to be aware of whether the operation terminal 13 can be connected to the router 16.

Note that the operation terminal 13 may perform communication using the WIFI with the router 16 according to the user's selection.
The display 24 is a display unit such as a liquid crystal display panel. On the display screen of the display 24, a selection screen and an operation screen described later are displayed.

  The touch panel unit 25 is a device that is provided in close contact with the display surface of the display device 24 and detects a touched position on the display surface of the display device 24. When the user touches a button or the like displayed on the display screen of the display 24, the CPU 21 executes processing corresponding to the instruction corresponding to the button from the touched position.

  The CPU 21 executes various programs for realizing a call and data communication function as a smartphone. Furthermore, the CPU 21 executes the application downloaded and stored in the memory 22 in accordance with a user instruction.

  Here, an application for controlling the device 12 is downloaded and stored in the memory 22. The application includes selection screen data for selecting a device to be controlled, and operation screen data for each device that displays an instruction button for controlling the device.

  Further, the application of the operation terminal 13 includes control information corresponding to each control signal to each device 12. The control information is, for example, an infrared signal code corresponding to an operation such as on or off that is predetermined for each device 12.

  Each operation terminal 13 is operated by an operator and can execute an application. The operator uses the application to give a desired operation instruction to each device 12 to control each device 12. Can do.

  The operation instruction designated by the operator is converted into a predetermined infrared code signal for the controlled object by the application, and is sent as control information CS2 from each operation terminal 13 in the house 2 to the control device 11 via the router 16. Alternatively, it is sent directly to the control device 11 without going through the router 16. Further, the control information CS2 from the operation terminal 13 outside the home is transmitted to the router 16 via the public line 15, and is transmitted from the router 16 to the control device 11.

  Communication between the control device 11 and the operation terminal 13 is performed by a communication method such as wireless LAN or Bluetooth (registered trademark). Therefore, individual identification information, for example, a MAC address, that each operation terminal 13 has is registered in the control device 11 and the router 16. The individual identification information is registered and stored in the memory 11b, for example.

As described above, when the user activates an app for device control on the operation terminal 13, the user selects a control target on the selected selection screen generated and displayed by the app, and uses the operation screen. An operation instruction for controlling the desired device 12 can be given.
(Function)
Next, an operation screen switching process performed on the operation terminal 13 will be described.

When an app for device control is activated, the operation terminal 13 displays a selection screen for selecting a device to be controlled by the app.
FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a selection screen for selecting a device by starting an application. The selection screen G1 is a so-called home screen when the application is activated.

  As described above, the operation terminal 13 is a smartphone, and the display screen of the display 24 is arranged on one surface of the plate-shaped main body. The selection screen G1 shown in FIG. 3 is displayed on the display screen of the display 24 of the operation terminal 13. The selection screen G1 includes button image areas 31, 32, and 33 for a plurality of devices to be controlled.

  Here, the device A is a lighting fixture, and the button image area 31 is a selection button for the lighting fixture. The device B is an air conditioner, and the button image area 32 is an air conditioner selection button. The device C is a television, and the button image area 33 is a television selection button.

  When the user touches the selection button corresponding to the device to be controlled, the operation terminal 13 displays the operation screen of the selected device, but the operation terminal 13 is in the building of the house 2 where the device 12 is installed. That is, the operation terminal 13 selects and displays an operation screen to be displayed depending on whether or not the user is in the house.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an example of a flow of operation screen display processing executed when any selection button on the selection screen G1 is touched.
The operation screen display processing program in FIG. 4 is a part of the application program stored in the memory 22.

When the user activates the application, the CPU 21 displays a selection screen G1, which is a home screen shown in FIG. 3, on the display 24 (S1). The process of S1 constitutes a selection screen display unit that displays a selection screen for selecting the device 12 to be operated.
When the user touches the selection button on the selection screen G1, the CPU 21 determines whether the communication unit 23 can communicate with the router 16 (S2).
That is, the device 12 to be operated is selected from the plurality of devices 12 displayed on the selection screen G1, and when the user selects the device 12 to be operated from the plurality of devices 12, S2 Judgment is made.

  Since the communication unit 23 can perform communication such as WIFI at various places and can communicate with routers installed at various places at various places, the CPU 21 controls the transmission of the control signal CS1 to the device to be controlled. It is determined whether communication with the router 16 connected to the device 11 is possible.

When the router 16 to which the control device 11 is connected and the communication unit 23 of the operation terminal 13 can communicate, the CPU 21 determines that the operation terminal 13 is in the building of the house 2, that is, in the house, and so on. If not, it is determined that the operation terminal 13 is outside the building of the house 2, that is, outside the house. In the case of FIG. 1, the operation terminal A is in the house 2 and is in a home operation state in which the user operates the device 12 in the house 2.
That is, in S2, when communication with the router 16 which is a wireless LAN device is possible, it is determined that the operation terminal 13 exists in the home area, and when communication with the router 16 is not possible, the operation terminal 13 It is determined that it does not exist in the residential area.

As described above, the communication by the WIFI between the communication unit 23 and the router 16 is performed when the communication unit 23 or the operation terminal 13 determines that the communication by the WIFI is possible with the router 16. Is determined to be possible (S2: YES).
The process of S2 executed by the CPU 21 is performed to determine whether or not the operation terminal 13 exists in a home area where the control device 11 is installed, that is, within a range where communication can be performed within the building of the house 2. Parts.
The home area is an area that can communicate with the router 16 installed in the building of the house 2 and includes an area that can communicate with the router 16 even outside the building. The outside area is an area where communication with the router 16 installed in the building of the house 2 is impossible.
When it is determined that communication with the router 16 is possible (S2: YES), the CPU 21 displays a home operation screen prepared in advance for the device selected in S1 on the display 24 (S3). .

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a home operation screen. FIG. 5 shows an example in which the luminaire is selected in S1.
The home operation screen G2 includes various operation buttons so that various controls can be performed on the device A which is a lighting fixture.

  The operation screen G2 changes the all-light button 41 for turning on the luminaire, the unlit button 42 for turning the luminaire off, the nightlight button 43 for turning the luminaire into the nightlight state, and the dimming and toning state of the luminaire. A light adjustment / color adjustment operation unit 44, a cursor key 45, and a cursor 46 are included.

  The all-light button 41, the turn-off button 42, and the nightlight button 43 are instructions for transmitting control information to put the lighting fixture in the all-light state, the turn-off state, and the nightlight state when the user touches each button display area on the display screen. And an operation instruction unit for giving to the operation terminal 13.

  The cursor key 45 is an annular cross key, and the cursor 46 is displayed in the area of the dimming / toning operation unit 44. The user can move the cursor 46 within the area of the light control / color control operation unit 44 by operating the cursor key 45.

The dimming / toning operation unit 44 moves the cursor 46 on the screen by the user operating the cursor key 45, and according to the position of the cursor 46, an operation for increasing / decreasing the amount of light emitted from the lighting device, It is an operation instruction unit for giving a control information transmission instruction to the operation terminal 13 in accordance with the operation of toning light emitted from the lighting fixture.
Since the user is in the house 2, the user can operate the operation screen G2 and perform various fine controls on the device A that is a lighting fixture.

  When it is determined that communication with the router 16 is not possible (S2: NO), the CPU 21 displays an operation screen for home use prepared in advance for the device selected in S1 on the display 24 (S4). That is, when NO in S2, the operation terminal 13 is outside the house 2 and is in an out-of-home operation state in which the user operates the device 12 outside the house 2.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of an operation screen for outside the house. FIG. 6 shows an example in which the luminaire is selected in S1.
The operation screen G3 for home use includes a smaller number of operation buttons than the operation screen G2 so that the device A, which is a lighting fixture, can be turned on / off.

The operation screen G3 includes a lighting button 51 that turns on the lighting fixture and a light-off button 52 that turns the lighting fixture off.
The lighting button 51 is an operation instruction unit having the same function as the all-light button 41. The turn-off button 52 is an operation instruction unit having the same function as the turn-off button 42.

  The user can only control on / off of the lighting device A by operating the operation screen G3. However, since the user is not in the house 2, the lighting device is set to the nightlight state or the cursor key 45 is pressed. It is very unlikely that it will be necessary to manipulate to change the dimming / toning state of the luminaire.

Since the operation screen G2 is an in-home operation, the “dimming / color adjustment” button is large, and the operation screen G3 is an out-of-home operation, so the “lit” and “off” buttons are large, which is convenient for the user. .
That is, the processing of S3 and S4 of the CPU 21 configures an operation screen display unit that changes the operation screen for the device 12 according to the determination result of S2 and displays it on the display 24 that is a display unit. Then, by the processing of S3 and S4, the operation screen G3 for performing operations such as on / off for the device 12, and the dimming / toning other than operations such as on / off and operations such as on / off Any one of the operation screens G2 for performing the second operation such as the above is displayed on the display 24 as the operation screen.

  As described above, when the device 12 to be operated is selected on the selection screen G1, which is the home screen here, whether the operation terminal 13 is in the house 2 and the user is in the home operation state where the user operates the device 12, or the operation terminal It is determined whether 13 is outside the house 2 and the user is in an out-of-home operation state in which the user operates the device 12, and the operation screen of the device 12 is selected and displayed according to the determination result.

Therefore, according to the above-described embodiment, it is possible to provide an operating device and a communication system that are easy to use when operating devices inside and outside the house.
(Modification)
In the embodiment described above, whether or not the operation terminal 13 is in the house 2 is determined based on whether or not communication with the router 16 is possible. However, GPS (Global Positioning System) data is used. You may make it determine using.
That is, the determination of S2 may be performed based on the distance between the operation terminal 13 and the house 2 to determine whether or not the operation terminal 13 exists in the home area where the control device 11 is installed.

In FIG. 1, the operation terminal 13 has a GPS receiver 26 for calculating the position information of the operation terminal 13 as indicated by a dotted line, and the CPU 21 determines the position of the operation terminal 13 from the output data of the GPS receiver 26. Can be determined. The CPU 21 determines whether the operation terminal 13 is in the house 2 based on the GPS information of the house 2 stored in the memory 22 in advance, that is, the position information of the house and the own position information obtained by the GPS receiver 26. It can be determined whether or not.
That is, it is determined whether or not the operation terminal 13 is in the house 2 by calculating the distance between the operation terminal 13 and the house 2 based on the position information of the operation terminal 13 and the position information of the building of the house 2. The

In this way, it may be determined whether the operation terminal 13 is in the house 2 using GPS.
As described above, according to the above-described embodiments and modifications, it is possible to provide an operating device and a communication system that are easy to use when operating devices inside and outside the house.

  The program shown in FIG. 4 for executing the operation described above is recorded as a computer program product in its entirety or in part on a portable medium such as a flexible disk or CD-ROM, or a storage medium such as a hard disk. Or it is remembered. The program is read by a computer, and all or part of the operation is executed. Alternatively, all or part of the program can be distributed or provided via a communication network. The user can easily realize the operating device and the communication system of the present embodiment by downloading the program via a communication network and installing the program on a computer, or by installing the program on a computer from a recording medium.

  Although several embodiments of the present invention have been described, these embodiments are illustrated by way of example and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These novel embodiments can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, replacements, and changes can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. These embodiments and modifications thereof are included in the scope and gist of the invention, and are included in the invention described in the claims and the equivalents thereof.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Communication system, 2 house, 11 Control apparatus, 11b Memory, 12 apparatus, 13 Operation terminal, 14 Cloud server, 15 Public line, 16 Router, 22 Memory, 23 Communication part, 24 Display, 25 Touch panel part, 26 Receiver , 31, 32, 33 Button image area, 41 All light button, 42 Off button, 43 Nightlight button, 44 Dimming / toning operation part, 45 Cursor key, 46 cursor, 51 On button, 52 Off button

Claims (8)

An operating device capable of communicating with a control device for controlling equipment,
A determination unit that determines whether or not the operating device exists in a home area where the control device is installed;
An operation screen display unit that changes an operation screen for the device according to the determination result and displays the operation screen on the display unit;
Having an operating device. There are a plurality of the devices,
The operation device according to claim 1, wherein the determination unit performs the determination when a device to be operated is selected from the plurality of devices. A selection screen display unit for displaying a selection screen for selecting the device to be operated;
The operation device according to claim 2, wherein the selection is performed from among the plurality of devices displayed on the selection screen.   The operation screen display unit includes an operation screen for performing a first operation on the device, and an operation screen for performing a second operation including operations other than the first operation and the first operation. The operation device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein any one of the above is displayed on the display unit as the operation screen. The control device can communicate with a wireless LAN device installed in the building,
The determination unit determines that the operation device exists in the home area when communication with the wireless LAN device is possible, and when the communication with the wireless LAN device is not possible, the operation device The operating device according to claim 1, wherein the operating device is determined not to exist in a home area.   5. The determination unit according to claim 1, wherein the determination unit determines whether or not the operation device exists in the in-home area where the control device is installed based on a distance between the operation device and the building. The operation device according to any one of the above. A communication system comprising an operating device and a control device that transmits a control signal to the device based on control information for controlling the device transmitted from the operating device,
The controller is
A determination unit that determines whether or not the operating device exists in a home area where the control device is installed;
An operation screen display unit that changes an operation screen for the device according to the determination result and displays the operation screen on the display unit;
A communication system.   The communication system according to claim 7, wherein the control device is connected to a router and receives the control information from an operation terminal outside the residential area via a network to which the router is connected.

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