JP5007411B2 - Pump remote management system - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a pump remote management system, and more particularly to a pump remote management system that obtains failure information and operation information of a pump installed in a remote location and enables remote operation of the pump.

  In buildings such as apartment buildings and office buildings, pump devices are widely used to supply water from the water mains to a water supply terminal (such as a water tap or a water heater). Since this abnormal stop of the pump device is directly connected to water outage, it is essential to provide a backup function by providing a plurality of pumps in such a building. For this reason, a plurality of pumps are installed in the building, and when a failure of a specific pump is detected during operation, the operation is switched to another normal pump and water supply is continued. .

  Usually, the presence or absence of such a pump failure is monitored by a remote monitoring device. For example, if a drop in pressure on the inflow side or discharge side of the pump, or a failure of the inverter that controls the rotation speed of the pump occurs, an ON / OFF switch is turned on to notify the occurrence of the failure, causing the remote monitoring device to fail. Report outbreaks.

However, in such a conventional alarm system, it is necessary to increase the number of ON / OFF switches in accordance with the number of failure items to be monitored, and the device becomes large. In addition, since a notification is made after a failure has occurred, there has been a problem that a failure of the pump cannot be prevented.
The present invention has been made in view of such conventional problems, and a pump remote management system capable of displaying various failure items and further performing remote pump operation and remote operation monitoring. The purpose is to provide.

In order to achieve the above-described object, one embodiment of the present invention has at least one pump, a pump control unit that controls operation of the pump, and a function of acquiring failure information and operation information from the pump control unit. A communication device; and a remote management device that communicates with the communication device, wherein the pump control unit is configured to generate collective failure data including a plurality of failure items, and the collective failure data includes one bit If any of the failure items is abnormal, the collective failure data changes from one of 0 and 1 to the other, and the communication device periodically acquires the batch failure data from said pump controller, wherein when there is a change in collective failure data, data are read out of the failure item, among the failure item The only item of data that was normal as the the failure information is configured to transmit to the remote management apparatus, further, transmits in a predetermined cycle the operation information obtained from the pump control unit to the remote management apparatus, A pump remote management system configured to receive command data transmitted from the remote management device and transmit the command data to the pump control unit.

In a preferred aspect of the present invention, the items constituting the failure information and the operation information and the number thereof are configured to be variable.
In a preferred aspect of the present invention, the at least one pump is a plurality of pumps.

  According to the present invention, various types of pump failure information can be transmitted to the remote management device without using an ON / OFF switch. In addition to failure information, operation information such as pump discharge pressure and its target value can be sent to the remote management device, so the pump status can be remotely monitored and the occurrence of failure can be predicted. Is possible. Further, since command data can be transmitted from the remote management device to the control unit via the communication device, the operation of the pump can be remotely controlled.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a pump remote management system according to an embodiment of the present invention. In addition, in embodiment described below, the example which applied this invention to the pump apparatus (water supply apparatus) for supplying tap water to a building is shown.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the pump remote management system includes a pump 10, a control panel (pump control unit) 20 that controls the operation of the pump 10, a communication device 50 connected to the control panel 20, and a communication device. 50 and a remote management center (remote management device) 70 connected to the modem 60. The pump 10, the control panel 20, the communication device 50, and the modem 60 are installed as one pump device (water supply device) on the site of the building, and the remote management center 70 communicates with the pump device through a network line such as an NTT line. Do.

  FIG. 2 is a schematic view showing the pump device in detail. As shown in FIG. 2, the pump 10 is electrically connected to the inverter 18, and the control panel 20 controls the rotational speed of the pump 10 via the inverter 18. The pump 10 is provided with an optical or magnetic rotary encoder (rotational speed detector) 15, and the rotational speed of the pump 10 is monitored by the control panel 20 by an output signal from the rotary encoder 15. Yes. The control panel 20 is configured to control various devices including the inverter 18. In this example, one pump 10 is connected to the control panel 20, but a plurality of pumps may be connected.

  The pump 10 is connected to an upstream water supply pipe 22 extending from the water main pipe 12, and a discharge pipe 26 is connected to the discharge side of the pump 10. The discharge pipe 26 has a check valve 28 for preventing water from flowing back from the discharge side to the suction side when the pump 10 is stopped, and maintaining the pressure in the discharge pipe 26. A flow switch (water amount detector) 30 for detecting that the amount of water has decreased is provided. The flow switch 30 operates when the amount of water discharged from the pump 10 to the discharge pipe 26 becomes smaller than a set value, and issues an underwater amount detection signal. The flow switch 30 is connected to the control panel 20, and an excessive amount of water in the discharge pipe 26 is monitored by the control panel 20.

  A suction-side pressure sensor 16 that detects a water pressure (suction pressure) in the upstream water supply pipe 22 is installed on the upstream side of the pump 10. The suction side pressure sensor 16 is connected to the control panel 20, and an output signal of the suction side pressure sensor 16 is transmitted to the control panel 20. The discharge pipe 26 includes a discharge side pressure sensor 34 for detecting the water pressure (discharge pressure) in the discharge pipe 26 and a pressure tank 36 for storing the water in the discharge pipe 26, respectively. Is attached through. The discharge side pressure sensor 34 is connected to the control panel 20, and the water pressure in the discharge pipe 26 is monitored by the control panel 20 by a signal from the discharge side pressure sensor 34.

  The discharge pipe 26 is connected to a downstream water supply pipe 42 extending to the water supply terminal 40 of an office building or an apartment, and the water of the water main pipe 12 is supplied to each water supply terminal 40 by the operation of the pump 10. These water supply terminals 40 are, for example, a water heater, a water faucet, a flush valve for toilet cleaning, etc. provided in each of the branched downstream water supply pipes 42.

  The control panel 20 controls the rotational speed (rotational frequency) of the pump 10 via the inverter 18 based on the target value of the discharge pressure input from the input panel 44 and the output signal from the discharge side pressure sensor 34. That is, the control panel 20 controls the inverter 18 to apply a predetermined AC voltage or DC voltage to the motor of the pump 10 to increase or decrease the speed of the pump 10. As the rotation of the pump 10 increases, the discharge amount of the pump 10 increases. At this time, the water pressure in the discharge pipe 26 increases, but this discharge pressure is sequentially detected by the discharge side pressure sensor 34, and the control panel 20 determines that the pressure detected by the discharge side pressure sensor 34 matches the target value. Thus, the rotational speed of the pump 10 is feedback-controlled.

  Here, how the pump 10 is operated will be described. When water is used at the water supply end 40 and the pressure detected by the discharge-side pressure sensor 34 falls below a preset start pressure, the pump 10 of the water supply apparatus 10 is started. When the pump 10 is driven, water in the water main pipe 12 is sucked into the pump 10 through the upstream water supply pipe 22 and discharged to the discharge pipe 26 at a predetermined pressure. The water discharged to the discharge pipe 26 is supplied to the water supply terminal 40 on the demand side through the downstream water supply pipe 42. The water pumped up by the pump 10 is pressurized to a pressure that can sufficiently supply water to the water supply terminal 40 provided at the highest position such as a middle-rise house, a high-rise house, or a commercial building.

  If the amount of water used at the feed end 40 is reduced during operation of the pump 10 and the flow amount is reduced below the set value, the operation of the pump 10 is stopped. When the pump 10 is stopped, sufficient water is accumulated in the pressure tank 36 by temporarily increasing the operation speed of the pump 10 and increasing the discharge pressure. Eventually, the pump 10 is stopped in a state where the water in the pressure tank 36 is increased to a predetermined stop pressure.

  Thereafter, when water is used again at the water supply terminal 40, water is supplied from the pressure tank 36 for a while, but the water in the pressure tank 36 decreases, and the detection pressure of the discharge-side pressure sensor 34 is equal to or lower than the above-described starting pressure. The pump 10 is started again. When the suction pressure exceeds the discharge pressure during the operation of the pump 10, the operation of the pump 10 is stopped.

  Here, as described above, the control panel 20 controls the rotational speed of the pump 10 so that the discharge pressure detected by the discharge-side pressure sensor 34 matches the target value. The discharge pressure constant control for controlling the rotation speed of the pump 10 so that the discharge pressure of the pump 10 is constant, or the target value of the discharge pressure of the pump 10 is sequentially calculated so that the terminal pressure of the pipe is constant, and this target The estimated terminal pressure constant control for controlling the rotational speed of the pump 10 so that the discharge pressure of the pump 10 matches the value is performed.

  As described above, the control panel 20 stops the operation of the pump 10 when the amount of water used is small. The pressure tank 36 and the check valve 28 are used to maintain the water pressure in the discharge pipe 26 after the pump 10 is stopped. As shown in FIG. 2, a diaphragm (partition wall) 41 formed of a resilient material such as rubber is disposed inside the pressure tank 36, and an air chamber 47 formed by the diaphragm 41 is added to the air chamber 47. Pressurized air is enclosed in advance. When the rotation speed of the pump 10 is increased when the amount of water flowing through the discharge pipe 26 is equal to or less than the set value, the water flowing through the discharge pipe 26 flows into the pressure tank 36 through the branch pipe 39, and the air chamber 47 through the diaphragm 41. Compress the air inside. Since the check valve 28 is disposed between the pump 10 and the pressure tank 36, the pressure in the discharge pipe 26 is maintained by the compressed air in the pressure tank 36.

  The control panel 20 constantly monitors the operation state of the pump 10 such as the suction pressure, the discharge pressure, the rotation speed of the pump 10, the pressure in the pressure tank 36, and the current value supplied to the inverter. Such operation information is periodically acquired by the communication device 50 and sent to the remote management center 70.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the communication device 50 includes a communication unit 50a and a protocol converter 50b. The communication unit 50a is configured to acquire operation information and failure information of the pump device from the control panel 20 at regular intervals (for example, every 250 ms). The protocol converter 50b is for converting various information (data) acquired from the control panel 20 into TCP / IP network data. This protocol converter 50b enables data transmission / reception between the remote management center 70 and the control panel 20 through a network line such as an NTT line. RS-232C is used as an interface for connecting between the control panel 20 and the communication device 50 and between the communication device 50 and the modem 60. The network line connecting the communication device 50 and the remote management center 70 is not limited to a wired line, and may be wireless. In this case, a communication module such as a ubiquitous module is used instead of the modem.

  A batch failure address is provided in the program of the control panel 20, and when any abnormality occurs in the pump 10, data designated by the batch failure address (hereinafter referred to as batch failure data) changes. Yes. More specifically, the collective failure data indicates whether there is an abnormality in a predetermined failure item such as suction pressure, discharge pressure, inverter 18, pressure in the pressure tank 36, current value supplied to the pump 10, or electric leakage. It plays a role as a symbol, and when an abnormality occurs in any of these failure items, the collective failure data (bit) changes (for example, changes to 0 when normal, changes to 1 when abnormal).

  The communication device 50 described above periodically reads the collective failure data and monitors whether or not a failure has occurred in the pump 10. When the batch failure data changes, the communication device 50 determines that a failure has occurred in the pump 10 and reads out all data of the failure item. And the communication apparatus 50 transmits only the data in which abnormality was seen among the acquired data to the remote management center 70 as failure information. The remote management center 70 reads the data sent from the communication device 50, converts it into information indicating the failure state of the pump device, and displays specific failure items.

  Further, the communication device 50 is configured to acquire operation information of the pump device as data from the control panel 20 and periodically transmit it to the remote management center 70. The operation information of the pump device acquired from the control panel 20 is roughly divided into setting items and operation items. The setting items are the target value of the discharge pressure, the starting pressure of the pump 10, and the operation items are the actual discharge pressure, the current value supplied to the pump 10, and the like. Such driving information is periodically acquired and configured to be temporarily stored in the communication device 50. When a certain amount of data (operation information) is stored in the communication device 50, it is automatically sent to the remote management center 70. The remote management center 70 reads data from the communication device 50 and converts it into information indicating the operating state of the pump 10. With such a configuration, the operator can monitor the operation state of the pump device, and further, a failure can be predicted from a change in the operation state.

  Each failure item (discharge pressure drop, inverter failure, etc.) is assigned an address. Similarly, an address is assigned to each setting item (discharge pressure target value, starting pressure, etc.) and each operation item (discharge pressure, current value, etc.). Accordingly, when the communication device 50 requests data from the control panel 20 by designating an address assigned to a desired item (for example, discharge pressure), the control panel 20 transmits the data corresponding to the designated address to the communication device. 50. In this way, the communication device 50 can obtain desired information from the control panel 20. The above items and their numbers (that is, addresses and their numbers) are variably configured.

  The remote management center 70 is configured to transmit command data to the control panel 20 via the communication device 50. That is, the communication device 50 receives command data from the remote management center 70, converts the command data from TCP / IP network data to data that can be recognized by the control panel 20, and converts the converted command data to the control panel 20. send. The control panel 20 controls the operation of the pump 10 according to the command data, or transmits the requested operation information to the remote management center 70. With such a configuration, it is possible to remotely control the change of the discharge pressure and the starting pressure, the start / stop of the pump 10 and the like from the remote management center 70.

  Usually, when pump abnormality information is entered in the remote management center 70, a service person goes to the site, checks the state of the equipment, and then resets the alarm. According to the present embodiment, when abnormality information is entered, the remote management center 70 checks the state of the device via the communication device 50 to reset the alarm directly from the remote management center 70 according to the situation. The pump that has stopped abnormally can be started. Moreover, when a pressure shortage request is received from the building side, the pump discharge pressure set value can be adjusted without going to the site. Since there is no need for the service staff to go to the site, there are no dispatch costs, the request can be handled quickly in time, and the countermeasures and response to building water supply can be made quickly.

  The remote management center 70 is preliminarily input with a maintenance reference value corresponding to the application of the pump 10, and the collected data is compared with the maintenance reference value. When there is an abnormality in the collected data, an alarm is displayed to prompt maintenance of the pump device. For example, when the sealed pressure in the pressure tank 36 is gradually decreasing, it can be considered that the maintenance time of the pressure tank 36 is approaching. Therefore, the remote management center 70 compares the sealed pressure in the pressure tank 36 transmitted from the control panel 20 with the maintenance reference value, and prompts maintenance of the pressure tank 36 when the sealed pressure falls below the maintenance reference value. Is displayed. When the remote management center 70 manages a plurality of pump devices, a maintenance reference value can be set for each pump device, and maintenance corresponding to each pump device can be performed.

  The communication device 50 operates by receiving power from an external power supply, but preferably includes a battery in case of emergency. Advantages of having a battery include the following. When the power supply of the pump device is turned off or the building has a power failure, the regular communication between the communication device 50 and the control panel 20 is interrupted. Since the communication device 50 including the battery can continue to operate even under such a situation, it is detected that the power supply of the pump device is OFF and notifies the remote management center 70 of this. Can do. In the present embodiment, the communication device 50 is provided independently of the control panel 20, but the communication device 50 may be incorporated into the control panel 20 and integrated.

  The embodiment shown in FIG. 2 is an example in which the pump is directly connected to the water main, but a water receiving tank that temporarily stores tap water is installed upstream of the pump, and the water stored in this water receiving tank is used. It is good also as supplying to each water supply terminal with a pump. Moreover, although this embodiment shows the example which applied this invention to the pump apparatus for supplying water to buildings, such as a apartment house and an office building, this invention is not limited to this example, Other uses It can also be applied to other pumps. In the present embodiment, the case of a pump device using an inverter has been described. However, the present invention can also be applied to a pump device using a fixed speed pump directly driven by a commercial power source. When using a water receiving tank, the water level signal of the water receiving tank is added as operation information and failure information.When a fixed speed pump is used, information on inverter failure and rotational speed is not required. The items constituting the operation information and failure information are changed.

  Although one embodiment of the present invention has been described so far, it is needless to say that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and may be implemented in various forms within the scope of the technical idea.

It is a mimetic diagram showing a pump remote management system in an embodiment of the present invention. It is a schematic diagram which shows a pump apparatus in detail.

Explanation of symbols

10 Pump 12 Water Main 15 Rotary Encoder 16 Suction Pressure Sensor 18 Inverter 20 Control Panel (Pump Controller)
22 Upstream water supply pipe 26 Discharge pipe 28 Check valve 30 Flow switch 34 Discharge side pressure sensor 36 Pressure tank 38, 39 Branch pipe 40 Water supply terminal 41 Diaphragm 42 Downstream water supply pipe 44 Input panel 47 Air chamber 50 Communication device 50a Communication section 50b Protocol Converter 60 Modem 70 Remote management center (remote management device)

Claims (5)

At least one pump;
A pump controller for controlling the operation of the pump;
A communication device having a function of acquiring failure information and operation information from the pump control unit;
A remote management device that communicates with the communication device;
The pump control unit is configured to generate collective fault data including a plurality of fault items. The collective fault data is 1-bit data, and any of the fault items has an abnormality. If it occurs, the collective failure data changes from one of 0 and 1 to the other,
The communication device
The batch failure data is periodically acquired from the pump control unit, and when there is a change in the batch failure data, the failure item data is read, and only the data of the failure item among the failure items is read. Is transmitted to the remote management device as the failure information, and
The operation information acquired from the pump control unit is transmitted to the remote management device at a predetermined cycle,
A pump remote management system configured to receive command data transmitted from the remote management device and transmit the command data to the pump control unit. The pump remote management system according to claim 1 , wherein items and the number of items constituting the failure information and the operation information are configured to be variable. The pump remote management system according to claim 1 or 2 , wherein the at least one pump is a plurality of pumps.   The pump and the pump control unit constitute a pump device,
  The remote management device is configured to display an alarm for prompting maintenance of the pump device when the operation information transmitted from the communication device is abnormal as compared with a preset maintenance reference value. The pump remote management system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the pump remote management system is provided.   A plurality of the pump devices are provided,
  The pump remote management system according to claim 4, wherein the maintenance reference value is preset for each of the plurality of pump devices, and maintenance according to each pump device can be performed.

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