JP3815172B2 - Multi-room air conditioner - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a multi-room air conditioner, and more particularly to auto-restart control when power is restored after a power failure or the like occurs.
[0002]
[Prior art]
An air conditioner such as a room air conditioner includes an indoor heat exchanger in the indoor unit, a four-way valve that switches the compression and refrigerant circulation directions in the outdoor unit, an outdoor heat exchanger, and the like, and the indoor unit and the outdoor unit are connected by piping. Are connected to form a refrigeration cycle, and a refrigerant is circulated through the refrigeration cycle to cool or heat the room.
[0003]
As an example of the above-described air conditioner, there is one that includes automatic operation and auto-restart control in order to perform air conditioning with higher operability.
[0004]
In the automatic operation, when an operation button provided on a wireless remote controller or the like is turned ON, a cooling operation is performed if the room temperature of the room (the air suction temperature of the indoor unit) is higher than the room temperature set temperature set by the wireless remote controller or the like. However, if the temperature is lower than the room temperature set by the wireless remote controller or the like, the heating operation is automatically selected and the operation is started.
[0005]
The auto-restart control always stores the current operation state in a non-volatile storage device (for example, EEPROM), and based on the operation content stored in the storage device when power is restored such as when a power failure occurs. Operation is automatically resumed.
[0006]
The automatic operation and the automatic restart control are realized by a microcomputer and program software provided in the indoor unit or the outdoor unit.
[0007]
FIGS. 8A, 8B, and 8C show a multi-room air conditioner in which a plurality of indoor units 51 and 52 are connected to one outdoor unit 50 and air conditioning operation can be performed.
[0008]
When the automatic operation and the automatic restart control are realized in the multi-room air conditioner, the following operation mode may occur.
[0009]
For example, because the room on the indoor unit 51 side has a heating / cooling load, the room temperature of the room on the indoor unit 51 side becomes lower than the room temperature set by the remote controller just before the occurrence of a power failure, and the automatic operation is changed to the heating operation mode. In this case, the operation state at this time is as follows.
[0010]
FIG. 8A shows the operation mode immediately before the power failure, FIG. 8B shows the operation mode immediately after the power failure is resolved, and FIG. 8C shows the state where the operation mode is established after the power recovery.
[0011]
Usually, the outdoor unit 50 of the multi-room air conditioner is configured to transmit and receive signals alternately between the indoor unit 51 and the indoor unit 52, and therefore, after power is restored, for example, the indoor unit 51 Send and receive from the side.
[0012]
In the operation mode immediately before the power failure shown in FIG. 8A, the indoor unit 52 and the outdoor unit 50 are established in the cooling operation, and the indoor unit 51 is required in the heating mode, but the outdoor unit is already established in the cooling operation. (Different mode), the indoor unit 51 also stops the air blowing operation.
[0013]
Next, immediately after the power recovery shown in FIG. 8 (b), the operation is automatically resumed based on the operation content stored in the storage device, but the indoor unit 51 is initially stored in the heating mode stored in the storage device. At this time, the operation is resumed and an instruction for the operation mode of the heating mode is transmitted to the outdoor unit 50. Thereafter, the indoor unit 52 tries to resume the operation in the cooling mode stored in the storage device, and transmits an instruction of the operation mode of the cooling mode to the outdoor unit 52.
[0014]
As a result, FIG. 8C shows a state in which the operation mode is established after the power recovery. The indoor unit 51 and the outdoor unit 50 establish the heating operation mode first and start the heating operation. The operation mode of the mode is instructed, but since the outdoor unit has already established the heating operation mode (different mode), the indoor unit 52 is in the cooling mode operation state and the air blowing operation is also stopped, In the driving state immediately before the stop, y cannot restart the driving.
[0015]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In the case of a multi-room air conditioner, the operation mode instructed to the outdoor unit after power recovery such as a power failure becomes a different mode as described above, which may be different from the operation mode state immediately before the stop. Even in the stopped state, the auto-restart control that restarts the operation in the same state as the operation state until the power is turned off has been complicated and the technology has not been established.
[0016]
The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and even when the main power supply is shut down for some reason, the operation is automatically resumed in the original operation mode when the power is restored without any operation by the user. An object of the present invention is to provide a multi-room air conditioner equipped with auto restart control.
[0017]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention provides a plurality of indoor units comprising a storage unit that can retain stored information even when the indoor unit control unit and the power supply are shut off, and a communication unit that communicates with the outdoor unit; It has an outdoor unit including a wireless remote controller (hereinafter referred to as a remote controller) that performs operation mode selection, room temperature control, air volume adjustment, and the like, and a communication unit that performs communication between the outdoor unit control unit and the indoor unit.
[0018]
In addition, the present invention is provided with a switch that can disable the control that automatically starts operation when the power is turned off once the power is restored.
[0019]
The present invention also provides a plurality of indoor units having communication means for communicating between the indoor unit control means and the outdoor unit, and a wireless remote controller (hereinafter referred to as remote controller) that performs operation mode selection, room temperature control, air volume adjustment, and the like. The outdoor unit includes an outdoor unit that includes a storage unit that can store stored information even when the power source is shut off and a communication unit that communicates with the indoor unit.
[0020]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
[0021]
The multi-room air conditioner of the present invention comprises an indoor heat exchanger in the indoor unit, a compressor in the outdoor unit, a four-way valve for switching the circulation direction of the refrigerant, an outdoor heat exchanger, and the like. A plurality of the indoor units are connected to the machine by connecting pipes to form a refrigeration cycle, and the refrigerant is circulated through the refrigeration cycle to cool or heat the room.
(Embodiment 1)
In FIG. 1, A and B are indoor units, and C is an outdoor unit.
[0022]
The outdoor unit A includes control means 1a, communication means 2a and storage means 3a, the outdoor unit B includes control means 1b, communication means 2b and storage means 3b, and the outdoor unit C includes communication means. 1c and control means 2c are provided.
[0023]
The communication unit 2a of the indoor unit A and the communication unit 1c of the outdoor unit C are connected by a connection line 4a, and the communication unit 2b of the indoor unit B and the communication unit 1c of the outdoor unit C are connected by a connection line 4b. Yes.
[0024]
Reference numeral 5a denotes a wireless remote controller used for operation of the indoor unit A, such as operation stop or room temperature setting, and 5b denotes a wireless remote control used for operation stop of the indoor unit B, room temperature setting, or the like.
[0025]
And it has automatic operation control and air-restart control for air conditioning with high operability.
[0026]
In the automatic operation control, when an operation button (not shown) provided on the remote controllers 5a and 5b is turned on, the room temperature of the living room (the air suction temperature of the indoor units A and B) is controlled by the remote controllers 5a and 5b. If the temperature is higher than the set room temperature, the cooling mode is reversed. If the temperature is lower than the room temperature set by the remote controllers 5a and 5b, the heating mode is automatically selected and the operation is started. ing.
[0027]
In the auto restart control, the current operation status is always stored in a non-volatile storage device (for example, an EEPROM), and when power is restored such as when a power failure occurs, the auto restart control is based on the operation content stored in the storage device. To automatically resume operation.
[0028]
The automatic operation and the auto restart control are realized by a microcomputer and program software provided in the indoor units A and B and the outdoor unit C.
[0029]
Further, the auto restart control will be described in detail.
[0030]
When the power failure occurs, the power is shut down, the power is restored, and the outdoor unit operating mode when the power is turned on is different from the operating mode immediately before the power is turned off. Description will be made by taking the different mode state described using 8 (a), (b), and (c) as an example.
[0031]
That is, the room temperature of the room on the indoor unit A side is lower than the room temperature set temperature immediately before the occurrence of the power failure, and the indoor unit A side is changed to the heating mode.
[0032]
When the operation mode of the indoor unit A is changed, the changed indoor operation mode (heating mode) is stored in the storage unit 3a.
[0033]
When the operation mode of the outdoor unit C is changed, the changed outdoor operation mode is stored in the storage unit 3a of the indoor unit A from the communication unit 1c via the connection line 4a. In this case, the outdoor unit C is stored. Since the operation mode is not changed, the cooling mode is stored.
[0034]
Thus, the latest operation mode (heating mode) of the indoor unit A and the operation mode (cooling mode) of the outdoor unit C are stored in the storage unit 3a.
[0035]
Similarly to the above, in the indoor unit B, the latest operation mode (cooling mode) of the indoor unit B and the operation mode (cooling mode) of the outdoor unit C are stored in the storage unit 3b.
[0036]
Immediately before the power failure, since the operation mode of the indoor unit A is different from that of the outdoor unit C, it is determined that the operation mode is different and the air blowing operation is not performed and is in a stopped state. In addition, the indoor unit B and the outdoor unit C are established in the cooling operation, and the cooling operation is performed.
[0037]
Next, auto-restart control will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 2 when a power failure occurs in this state, the power is shut off, and then the power is restored and the power is restored.
[0038]
Transmission / reception of the communication means 1c, 2a, and 2b of the outdoor unit C, the indoor unit A, and the indoor unit B is executed alternately in the order of the indoor unit A and the indoor unit B.
[0039]
First, for the indoor unit A, the heating mode that is the indoor operation mode stored in the storage means 3a of the indoor unit A and the cooling mode that is the outdoor operation mode are read and compared with the operation mode (steps S1 to S3).
[0040]
It is determined that the operation modes are different, and the communication delay flag “1” is set (step S4). And the instruction | indication of an operation mode is not transmitted to the outdoor unit C until fixed time passes (step S6, S7).
[0041]
For the indoor unit B, the cooling mode that is the indoor operation mode stored in the storage means 3b of the indoor unit B is compared with the cooling mode that is the outdoor operation mode (step S3), and the operation mode is determined to be the same. The communication delay flag “0” is set (step S5), and an instruction for the cooling operation mode is transmitted to the outdoor unit C without waiting for a predetermined time to elapse (steps S6 and S8).
[0042]
The outdoor unit C performs transmission / reception alternately with the indoor unit A and the indoor unit B. Therefore, immediately after the power is restored, the outdoor unit C first performs transmission / reception from the indoor unit A in a predetermined order. At this time, since the indoor unit A does not transmit the operation mode instruction to the outdoor unit C unless a certain time elapses, the outdoor unit C remains stopped.
[0043]
Thereafter, the outdoor unit C starts transmission / reception with the indoor unit B, receives a cooling mode as an operation mode instruction from the indoor unit B, and starts a cooling operation.
[0044]
After a predetermined time has elapsed, the indoor unit A transmits a heating mode that is an operation mode instruction, and sets a communication delay flag to “0” (steps S7 to S9).
[0045]
However, the outdoor unit C has already been determined in the cooling mode and is provided with first-come-first-served control, so this is ignored and the cooling operation is continued.
[0046]
As a result, since the indoor unit A is in a different mode from the outdoor unit C, the air blowing operation is not performed.
[0047]
Thereafter, normal operation control (room temperature control, air volume control, etc.) is performed (step S14) while constantly monitoring and storing the operation modes of the indoor units A and B and the outdoor unit C (steps S10 to S13). .
[0048]
With this configuration, when the operation modes of the indoor units A and B and the outdoor unit C stored when the power is restored are different modes, the transmission of the operation mode instruction to the outdoor unit C from the communication means 2a and 2b is constant. By delaying the time, the operation can be resumed in the same state as the operation state immediately before the power is cut off.
(Embodiment 2)
Next, Embodiment 2 in the multi-room air conditioner of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The configuration of the multi-room air conditioner in the second embodiment is the same as that in the first embodiment shown in FIG.
[0049]
FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the control of the second embodiment.
[0050]
Hereinafter, the mutual relationship and operation of the above components will be described.
[0051]
When the operation mode is changed by the remote controller 5a, the control unit 1a of the indoor unit A stores the changed indoor operation mode in the storage unit 3a (steps S30 and S31). When the indoor operation mode or the outdoor unit operation mode received from the outdoor unit C is changed (step S32), the indoor operation mode and the outdoor operation mode are compared (step S33). If the information is 0, the storage means 3a stores 1 as the different mode information (steps S34 and S35).
[0052]
Thereby, the latest indoor operation mode and different mode information are memorize | stored in the memory | storage means 3a.
[0053]
Thereafter, normal operation control is performed (step S36).
[0054]
The indoor unit B performs the same operation.
[0055]
First, the indoor unit B starts operation with cooling. A cooling operation mode instruction is transmitted from the indoor unit B to the outdoor unit C, and the outdoor unit C operates in the cooling operation mode accordingly. Thereafter, when the indoor unit A starts operation by heating (steps S21 and S22), the indoor unit A does not blow air because the operation mode is different from the outdoor unit C (different mode state).
[0056]
Immediately after the power is shut off in this state and then the power is restored, the indoor unit A reads “1” that is the indoor operation mode and the different mode information stored in the storage unit 3a (step S23). It is determined that the different mode information is “1”, and a communication delay flag is set (step S24). And an operation mode instruction | indication is not transmitted to the outdoor unit C until fixed time passes (step S26, S27).
[0057]
The indoor unit B reads the cooling and the different mode information “0” as the indoor operation mode stored in the storage unit 3b. It is determined that the different mode information is “0” (step S23), the communication delay flag is cleared (step S25), and a cooling operation mode instruction is transmitted to the outdoor unit C without waiting for a certain period of time to elapse (step S26, S28).
[0058]
Thereafter, the process goes through a step (step S29) of clearing the communication delay flag.
[0059]
The subsequent steps are the same as those in the first embodiment.
(Embodiment 3)
Next, Embodiment 3 in the multi-room air conditioner of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 4 is a block diagram of the multi-room air conditioner in the third embodiment. 6a is a switch provided in the control means 1a of the indoor unit A. 6b is a switch provided in the control means 1b of the indoor unit B. The rest is the same as in the first and second embodiments.
[0060]
FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the control of the third embodiment.
[0061]
Hereinafter, the mutual relationship and operation of the above components will be described.
[0062]
The control means 1a of the indoor unit A determines whether the switch 6a is ON or OFF when the power is shut off and then restored (step S41). If the switch 6a is ON, the operation is automatically restarted by the stored information in the storage means 3a (step S42). Subsequent operations are the same as those in the first and second embodiments (step S43). When the switch 6a is OFF, the operation is not automatically resumed, and the stop state is continued until an operation instruction is given from the remote controller 5a (step S44).
[0063]
The indoor unit B operates in the same manner.
[0064]
Next, an embodiment of the multi-room air conditioner of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 6 is a block diagram of the multi-room air conditioner in the third embodiment. Reference numeral 3c denotes storage means provided in the control means 2c of the outdoor unit C. Except having the memory | storage means 3c in the outdoor unit C, it is the same as Embodiment 1 shown in FIG.
[0065]
FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the control of the third embodiment.
[0066]
Hereinafter, the mutual relationship and operation of the above components will be described.
[0067]
When the operation mode is changed by the remote controller A, the control unit 1a of the indoor unit A stores the changed indoor operation mode in the storage unit 3a. Thus, the latest indoor operation mode and outdoor operation mode are stored in the storage means 3a.
[0068]
The indoor unit B performs the same operation.
[0069]
First, the indoor unit B starts operation with cooling. A cooling operation mode instruction is transmitted from the indoor unit B to the outdoor unit C, and the outdoor unit C operates in the cooling operation mode accordingly. After that, when the indoor unit A starts operation by heating, the indoor unit A does not blow because the operation mode is different from the outdoor unit C (different mode state).
[0070]
The control unit 1c of the outdoor unit C is configured such that each time the mode of any indoor unit is changed in the storage unit 3c, heating that is an operation mode instruction for the indoor unit A and cooling or outdoor operation that is an operation mode instruction for the outdoor unit B The cooling that is the operation mode of the machine C is stored and normal operation control is continued (steps S64 to S67).
[0071]
Immediately after the power supply is shut off in this state and then the power supply is restored, the indoor unit A transmits heating, which is the indoor operation mode stored in the storage unit 3a, to the outdoor unit C as an operation mode instruction. The indoor unit B transmits the cooling that is the indoor operation mode stored in the storage unit 3b to the outdoor unit C as an operation mode instruction.
[0072]
The control unit 1c of the outdoor unit C reads out the operation mode instructions of the indoor units A and B and the operation mode of the outdoor unit C from the storage unit 3c (step S51), and reads the read operation mode instructions of the indoor unit A and the outdoor unit. If the different operation modes are compared and the different modes are set, the indoor unit A different mode flag is set (steps S52 and S53).
[0073]
Moreover, the operation mode instruction | indication of the read indoor unit B and the operation mode of an outdoor unit are compared, and if it is a different mode, an indoor unit B different mode flag will be set (step S54, S55). The control unit 1c of the outdoor unit C does not adopt the operation mode instruction transmitted from the indoor unit in which the different mode flag is set for a certain period of time (steps S56 to S63). Therefore, the heating which is the operation mode instruction of the indoor unit A is not adopted for a certain period of time, and the cooling which is the operation mode instruction of the indoor unit B is adopted and the cooling operation is started.
[0074]
After a certain period of time, the prohibition of adopting the operation mode instruction from the indoor unit A is canceled, but since the outdoor unit C has already determined the operation mode of cooling, this is ignored and the cooling operation is continued (first arrival priority control).
[0075]
As a result, the indoor unit A does not blow air because the operation mode is different from that of the outdoor unit C (different mode state).
[0076]
【The invention's effect】
As is clear from the above embodiments, the present invention is configured such that in any case, the operation is resumed in the same state as the operation state until the power is turned off.
[0077]
In addition, it is sufficient for the different mode information to be 1 bit, and in any case, the operation is resumed in the same state as the operation state until the power is turned off with the storage means having a smaller storage capacity. Is.
[0078]
In addition, depending on the user and their usage environment, it may be possible to disable automatic return, but even at that time, it is possible to select whether the automatic return function is enabled or disabled with a switch on the control means, so that the range of use is further expanded. Become.
[0079]
Further, since the indoor unit does not need to store the outdoor operation mode, the storage capacity of the storage means of the large number of indoor units can be reduced, and the cost of the entire system can be reduced.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing Embodiment 1 in a multi-room air conditioner of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing the contents of the control. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the contents of control in Embodiment 2 of the invention. FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a third embodiment of the multi-room air conditioner of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the same control contents. FIG. 6 is a block of the fourth embodiment of the multi-room air conditioner of the present invention. FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the same control content. FIG. 8A to FIG. 8C are block diagrams of a conventional multi-room air conditioner.
A, B Indoor unit C Outdoor units 1a-1c Control unit 2a-2c Communication unit 3a-3c Storage unit 4a, 4b Connection line 5a, 5b Remote control unit 6a, 6b Switch

Claims (4)

Performs operation mode selection, room temperature control, air volume adjustment, etc., with a plurality of indoor units equipped with communication means for communicating with the outdoor unit and storage means that can retain the stored information even when the indoor unit control means and the power supply are shut off In a multi-room air conditioner comprising an outdoor unit having a wireless remote controller (hereinafter referred to as a remote controller) and a communication unit for communicating with an outdoor unit control unit and an indoor unit, the power is cut off to the storage unit of each indoor unit. The operation mode of the indoor unit before the operation and the operation mode of the outdoor unit are stored, and when the stored indoor unit operation mode differs from the outdoor unit operation mode when the power is restored, the operation mode instruction to the outdoor unit is made by communication means. The multi-room air conditioner is configured so that the operation is resumed in the same state as the operation state until the power is cut off by delaying the transmission of the power. The storage unit of each indoor unit stores information on whether the operation mode of the indoor unit before the power is shut off and the operation mode of the indoor unit and the outdoor unit are the same or different (different mode information), and power is restored. 2. The multi-room air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the operation mode instruction is switched immediately to the outdoor unit according to the stored different mode information or is transmitted after being delayed for a predetermined time. The multi-room air conditioner according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising a switch capable of disabling control for automatically starting operation when power is restored once the power is turned off. A plurality of indoor units having communication means for communicating between the indoor unit control means and the outdoor unit, a wireless remote controller (hereinafter referred to as remote control) for performing operation mode selection, room temperature control, air volume adjustment, etc., outdoor unit control means, In a multi-room air conditioner comprising an outdoor unit equipped with a storage unit that can retain stored information even when the power is shut off and a communication unit that communicates with the indoor unit, before the power is shut off to the storage unit of the outdoor unit The operation mode of each indoor unit and the operation mode of the outdoor unit are stored, and when the power is restored, the operation mode instruction from the indoor unit in which the stored indoor unit operation mode and the outdoor unit operation mode are different is not adopted for a certain period of time. By doing so, the multi-room air conditioner is configured so that the operation is resumed in the same state as the operation state until the power is turned off.

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