JPH03139698A - Chime device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To drive a chime at proper time by setting the chime driving period to a point of time when the output voltage of a solar battery drops below a specific value. CONSTITUTION:The solar battery 3 is connected to a battery 5 through a diode 4 and the battery 5 is connected to a chime driving circuit 7 through the switch part 6a of a sunshine decision circuit 6. Then the output voltage of the solar battery 3 is measured by the voltage measuring means 6b of the sunshine decision circuit 6 and a reference voltage is supplied from the battery 5; and the measurement result of the voltage measuring means 6b is compared with the reference voltage by a comparing circuit 6c and a switch part 6a is turned on when the result is smaller than the specific value. Consequently, detailed time annunciation is realized.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Industrial Field of Application) The present invention relates to a chime device that uses a solar cell to set the chime drive timing.

(Prior Art) Chime devices that are usually installed outdoors to notify children when it is time to go home use a timer and always drive the chime at the scheduled time.

Since this chime device uses a commercial AC power source as its driving power source, it requires facilities such as cable wiring and underground construction, and also requires a burden on electricity costs. Therefore, the idea was to use solar cells as a power source for the chime.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) As described above, although equipment costs and running costs can be reduced by using solar cells, the following problems remain. In other words, since the sunset time varies greatly depending on the season, if the chime is driven at a fixed time using a timer, for example, in the summer, the chime will sound while it is still bright enough, and in the winter, the chime will sound only after it is completely dark. etc., does not serve as a wake-up call to return home at an appropriate time.

Furthermore, it cannot be used as a warning bell for returning home when it gets dark due to bad weather.

(Object of the Invention) The present invention has been made based on the above circumstances, and focuses on the fact that the output voltage of a solar cell changes according to changes in the amount of incident light. It is an object of the present invention to provide a chime device which is set at the time when the chime falls below a predetermined value and realizes chime drive at an appropriate time according to seasonal shifts in evening and weather conditions.

(Means for Solving the Problem) Therefore, in the present invention, when the output voltage of the solar cell falls below a predetermined voltage, a discrimination circuit is provided to discriminate this, and a chime is emitted based on the result determined by the discrimination circuit. It is equipped with a drive circuit that drives the.

(For I) Therefore, when the level of light and darkness in the evening changes depending on the season, the chime will not be activated unless the brightness falls to a certain level, and if it reaches that brightness, The chime will be activated early to remind you to go home.

(Example) Hereinafter, an example of the present invention will be specifically described with reference to the drawings. A first embodiment is shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. Here, the symbol ] is a support supporting the chime device 2, and is installed outdoors in a park or the like. This chime device 2 employs a panel-shaped solar cell 3. This may be, for example, a single-crystal silicon solar cell having a light-receiving area of 40.6×121.6 cm 2 and a conversion efficiency of about 10%. Further, it is preferable that the chime device 2 be mounted on two sides of the chime device 2. In the evening, the sun's position approaches the horizon, so the amount of incident light is significantly reduced.

The internal structure of the chime device 2 is as shown in FIG. When the switch is turned on, the chime drive circuit 7 is energized and the chime 8 is sounded. On the other hand, the output voltage of the solar cell 3 is measured by the voltage measuring means 6b in the solar radiation determination circuit 6. Above solar radiation detection port 1
A reference voltage is supplied to i'86 from the battery 5, and the result measured by the voltage measuring means 6b is compared with the reference voltage via the comparison circuit 6c, and if the voltage falls below a predetermined value, the switch section 6a is turned on. That is to say.

In such a configuration, during the day when sunlight is shining strongly, the battery 5 is charged with the power obtained by the solar cell 3 through photoelectric conversion. In this case, since backflow is prevented by the function of diode 4, even if the voltage of solar cell 3 drops, backflow from battery 5 to solar cell 3 is prevented. When the sun goes down and the output voltage of the solar cell 3 decreases to below the reference voltage, the solar radiation discrimination circuit 6 detects the switch part 6a.
is turned on, current flows from the battery 5 to the chime drive circuit 7, and the chime 8 sounds. in this case,
Since it uses solar cells as a power source and does not use commercial AC power, equipment costs and running costs are eliminated. However, the chime drive timing is automatically adjusted to an appropriate time depending on the season or weather conditions.

The embodiment shown in FIG. 3 shows a specific example of a solar radiation discrimination circuit, in which an excitation coil 61 is energized by the output voltage of the solar cell 3, and a switch 62 that opens and closes thereby is controlled by the output voltage. It is configured to be elastically supported by a predetermined spring force so that it will not turn on unless the value is below a certain value.

Therefore, when the amount of light irradiated from the sun is sufficient, the switch 62 is off, but in the evening the amount of light decreases.
When the output voltage of the solar cell 3 falls below a predetermined value, the switch 62 is turned on to discharge the battery 5, activate the chime drive circuit 7, and sound the chime 8. In this embodiment, the chime drive circuit 7 needs to be configured to stop driving after a certain period of time. Furthermore, if a charging capacitor is used instead of the battery 5, the chime 8 can be stopped when the discharge is completed. In this case, the chime drive circuit 7 can be composed of a simple excitation coil or the like.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, a solar cell 3a as a power source for driving the chime and a solar cell 31) as an output voltage source for determination by the solar radiation determination circuit 6 are separately configured. The advantage of using a separate power source is that it prevents errors in determining solar radiation due to direct light. The solar cells used as the chime drive power source should be placed so that they can receive sunlight for as long as possible.
On the other hand, it is necessary to take measures such as arranging the solar cell for determining solar radiation, for example, facing the east, so as to remove the direct 9.I light and accurately control the brightness of the environment. There are some advantages. In this case, the solar cell for identification does not need to obtain power to drive the chime 8, so it is small and
A small output one is sufficient. For example, 3X3cm2. A polycrystalline silicon solar cell with a conversion efficiency of 10% is used.

(Effects of the Invention) The present invention has been described in detail above, and when used in a system for announcing the time to return home, it is possible to determine an appropriate time based on the brightness of sunlight at a low cost and according to the season and weather. hand,
Since the chime is not an ID, it is possible to realize a sufficiently detailed time announcement.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is an external view showing one embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the same, and FIGS. 3 and 4 are block diagrams of other embodiments. 1... Strut, 2... Gu Yaino\ device, 3... Solar cell, 5... Battery, 6... Solar radiation discrimination circuit,
7... Chime drive circuit, 8... Chime.

Claims (1)

[Claims] The present invention is characterized by comprising a determination circuit that determines when the output voltage of the solar cell drops below a predetermined voltage, and a drive circuit that drives a chime based on the result determined by the determination circuit. chime device.