JPH0694323A - Method for controlling thermoelectric refrigerator - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To reduce the power consumption of the thermoelectric refrigerator as much as possible for a control method of a thermoelectric refrigerator to cool the control panel of a device which is driven by a battery such as an automatic carrier. CONSTITUTION:The temperature of an upper part in a control panel 1 is detected by a temperature sensor 17, and when the detected temperature is, e.g. at 40 deg.C or lower, the operation of a thermoelectric refrigerator 3 in the control panel 1 is stopped. When the temperature is higher than 40 deg.C and not more than 45 deg.C, only a fan 10 on the cooling side of the thermoelectric refrigerator 3 is operated, and when the temperature exceeds 45 deg.C, the whole of the thermoelectric refrigerator 3 is operated. Therefore, only when it is especially necessary, the whole of the thermoelectric refrigerator 3 is operated, and normally, only the fan 10 of the thermoelectric refrigerator 3 is operated, and therefore, the consumption power of the thermoelectric refrigerator 3 can be reduced. Also, since the operation of the thermoelectric refrigerator 3 is controlled by the temperature at an upper part of the control panel 1, an overheated part is hard to take place in the control panel 1.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method for controlling an electronic cooler used for cooling a control panel of a storage battery driven device such as an automatic carrier, a solar type power supply system, and a moving measuring instrument.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A control panel for controlling various machines and devices is
The self-heating of the electrical components inside the panel and the heat received from the atmosphere outside the panel tend to overheat the inside of the panel. When the inside of the panel is overheated, troubles such as malfunction and failure of the control circuit occur.

For this reason, in the past, a method has been used in which outside air is introduced into the control panel by a fan and forcedly cooled. However, according to this method, the inside of the board is contaminated by dust or mist outside the board, which may cause another trouble.

In order to avoid this, various types of coolers have been attached to the control panel to cool the inside of the control panel (see, for example, Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 63-49421).
An electronic cooler is used as one of them, and the electronic cooler has a structure in which a cooling heat sink and a heat radiating heat sink are connected to the cooling surface and the heat generating surface of the thermoelectric module, respectively, and the air inside the panel is cooled by the cooling heat sink. ing.

Recently, however, many unmanned automatic carriers have been used in factories and the like. This unmanned automatic carrier is equipped with a control panel containing a microcomputer to control the operation of the carrier. Since many of these automatic carriers are driven by a storage battery, if the electric power consumed by the electronic cooler driven by the storage battery is large, the storage battery will be consumed and the cruising time of the automatic carrier will be shortened. there were.

An object of the present invention is to provide a control method for an electronic cooler for cooling a control panel of a device driven by a storage battery such as an automatic carrier, in which the electric power consumed by the electronic cooler itself is reduced as much as possible. The purpose is to do.

[0007]

The structure of the present invention is a method for controlling an electronic cooler mounted on a control panel of an apparatus driven by a storage battery, wherein the temperature in the upper part of the control panel is below a predetermined value. Stops the operation of the electronic cooler, and when the temperature is within a certain range beyond a predetermined value, only the cooling side fan of the electronic cooler is operated, and the temperature exceeds the temperature range in which only the fan is operated. At one time, the entire electronic cooler is operated.

[0008]

It has been found that a temperature difference of, for example, 20 ° C. or more occurs between the upper part and the lower part of the control panel without forced convection. In such a case, if the temperature of the upper part locally overheated is lowered by forced convection inside the panel, there is often no need for forced cooling by the electronic cooler. According to the present invention, the operation of the electronic cooler is controlled by the temperature of the upper portion in the control panel, so that a local overheated portion is unlikely to occur. The entire electronic cooler is operated only when necessary, and usually only the cooling side fan of the electronic cooler is operated, so that the power consumption is low.

[0009]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An electronic cooler 3 described later is provided with a control panel 5 shown in FIG.
The heater 51 of 40 W was arranged inside the panel and the temperature inside the panel was measured by the temperature sensors A to G.
The dimensions and the like of the control panel 50 are as follows. Material and dimensions of control panel 50: Material: Steel Width x depth x height x thickness: 600 x 140 x 350 x 1
(Mm) Type, length, and position of heater 51 Type: Nichrome heater Length: 240 mm Position: Horizontally arranged at the central position in the vertical direction, and the right end is located 70 mm from the right side surface. Positions of the temperature sensors A to G: A, B, C: 65 mm below the upper surface, the distance between the sensors is 160 mm, and A is 55 mm away from the right side surface. D: Intermediate position between C and E. E, F, G: Vertically symmetrical positions with A, B, C, 65 mm above the lower surface, and the distance between the sensors is 160 mm,
G is located 55 mm away from the right side surface. Main specifications of the electronic cooler 3: Thermoelectric module rating: Current: 2.6 A Voltage: DC 24 V Cooling side fan: Air volume: 2 m ³ / min Wind pressure: 5 mmAq Electric power: 5 W Electronic cooler 3 width: 150 mm (electronic The cooler 3 is arranged on the left side of the control panel 50.)

The results obtained are shown in FIG. According to FIG. 4, when the electronic cooler 3 is not operated at all, the temperature detected by the temperature sensor B above the control panel is 24 ° C. higher than the temperature outside the panel. On the other hand, the temperature detected by the temperature sensor E below the control panel was only 7 ° C. higher than the temperature outside the panel.

At this time, if only the cooling side fan of the electronic cooler 3 is operated, the air in the panel is forcedly convected,
The temperature of each part inside the board is made uniform to a degree higher by 10.5 ° C to 14 ° C than the temperature outside the board. Further, when the entire electronic cooler 3 is operated, the temperature of each part inside the panel can be cooled to a level higher by 3 to 6 ° C. than the temperature outside the panel.

[0012] Here, the temperature inside the panel is always 50
In order to keep the temperature below ℃, considering that the temperature does not exceed 5 ℃ above the temperature at any position in the upper part of the panel in Fig. 4 under any operating condition and position (for example, when only the cooling side fan is operated). , The temperature difference between the temperature detected by the upper temperature sensor A and the temperature detected by the lower temperature sensor F is about 4 ° C., and when the entire electronic cooler 3 is operated,
The temperature difference between the temperature detected by the upper temperature sensor C and the temperature detected by the lower temperature sensor F is about 3 ° C., and the temperature of the lower part is several ° C. higher than the temperature of the upper part. ), If a temperature sensor is placed on the upper part of the control panel, it is safe if the temperature at the start of operation of the entire electronic cooler is 45 ° C.

Further, in order to reduce the power consumption, it is preferable to stop the operation of only the cooling side fan at a low temperature where it is not necessary to operate the entire electronic cooler. As for the temperature at which the cooling side fan starts operating, the higher the temperature, the lower the power consumption.However, considering the above-mentioned temperature variations and disturbances, the temperature should not overlap with the operating temperature of the entire electronic cooler. Therefore, the temperature is preferably 40 ° C. Then, at a temperature below this, the cooling fan is also stopped.

The power consumption when electronically cooling the control panel by this control method was as follows when compared with the power consumption by other control methods. Test conditions: Temperature outside the panel 25 ° C to 40 ° C Control method A: The present invention B: When the temperature at the top of the panel is 45 ° C or higher The entire electronic cooler is operated. C: The entire electronic cooler is operated regardless of the temperature inside the panel. As described above, according to the present invention, the temperature inside the panel can be maintained at 50 ° C. or lower with extremely low power consumption as compared with other control methods.

FIG. 1 is a vertical sectional view showing a control panel accommodating an electronic cooler and a temperature sensor, and FIG. 2 is a vertical sectional view of the electronic cooler. In FIG. 1, a control device 2 for controlling the operation of the automatic carrier is housed in the control panel 1, and the control device 2 is configured to be driven by a storage battery (not shown). Further, an electronic cooler 3 for cooling the control device 2 is housed in the control panel 1, and the electronic cooler 3 is also configured to be driven by a storage battery for driving the control device 2. ing.

The structure of the electronic cooler 3 will be described below with reference to FIG. 2. A thermoelectric module 5 is arranged in the case 4 of the electronic cooler 3 at a substantially central portion thereof. The thermoelectric module 5 has a cooling surface. The cooling heat sink 6 is heat-conductively connected, and the heat radiation heat sink 7 is heat-conductively connected to the heating surface. The heat radiation heat sink 7 is configured as a partition wall that divides the inside of the case 4 into two chambers.
Thus, the case 4 is partitioned into a cooling chamber 20 facing the cooling heat sink 6 and a heat radiating chamber 30 facing the heat radiating heat sink 7.

The cooling chamber 20 has an upper surface one step lower and a lower surface one step higher than the heat radiating chamber 30, and the lower surface is further stepped so that the outer portion of the cooling heat sink 6 is lower than the lower portion thereof. It is formed higher. Cooling room 2
A cooling air discharge port 8 is formed at a substantially central portion in a vertical direction of a side wall facing the cooling heat sink 6 of No. 0, and an air intake port 9 is formed on an upper surface wall and a lower surface wall of the cooling chamber 20. There is. The fan 10 is installed in the case 4 at the outlet 8. Therefore, the air taken into the cooling chamber 20 from the air intake 9 by the fan 10 is cooled through the cooling heat sink 6 and is discharged from the discharge port 8. The lower surface wall portion directly below the cooling heat sink 6 is inclined so that the inner surface thereof becomes lower toward the central portion, and the drainage port member 11 for dehumidified water is attached to the central portion so as to project from the lower surface wall. Has been.

An inlet 12 for the outside air is formed in the central portion of the side wall of the heat dissipation chamber 30 facing the heat sink 7 in the vertical direction, and an outlet 13 is formed above and below the intake 12. The fan 14 is installed in the case 4 at the inlet 12. Therefore, the air taken into the heat dissipation chamber 30 from the outside air intake 12 by the fan 14 cools the heat dissipation heat sink 7, and the upper and lower exhaust ports 13 are provided.
Released into the atmosphere. Outside air intake 12 of heat dissipation chamber 30
Mounting flanges 15 are provided on the upper and lower ends of the side wall where the exhaust port 13 is formed, and an air filter 16 is installed on the outer surface of the side wall so as to cover the entire surface.

Therefore, the air filter 16 is fixed to the outside of the opening formed in the one side wall of the control panel 1, the electronic cooler 3 is arranged inside, and the upper and lower mounting flanges 15 are attached.
The electronic cooler 3 is installed on one side of the control panel 1 by screwing and fixing it to the side surface of the control panel 1.

Further, a temperature sensor 17 is installed at an upper position in the control panel 1 above the control device 2 arranged beside the electronic cooler 3 in the control panel 1. The temperature output detected by the temperature sensor 17 is configured to be sent to the control device 2, and when the detected temperature is high, the control device 2 causes the fan 10 on the cooling side of the electronic cooler 3 and the electronic cooler 3 as a whole. Are configured to operate. The control device 2 is configured to control the operation of the automatic carrier and also the electronic cooler 3.

The operation will be described below. A storage battery (not shown) activates the control device 2 in the control panel 1 to control the operation of the automatic carrier. On the other hand, the temperature sensor 17 detects the temperature in the upper part of the control panel 1, and the output is the control device 2
Sent to. At this time, if the detected temperature is 40 ° C or lower,
The control device 2 controls the electronic cooler 3 not to operate.

The temperature inside the control panel 1 rises due to heat generated from the control device 2 or heat received from the atmosphere outside the panel, and the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 17 exceeds 40 ° C. and 45 ° C.
In the following, the control device 2 controls the fan 10 on the cooling side of the electronic cooler 3 to operate by the output of the temperature sensor 17.

When the cooling-side fan 10 is operated, the air in the control panel 1 is taken into the cooling chamber 20 from the air intake 9 of the cooling chamber 20 of the electronic cooler 3 and from the exhaust port 8 into the control panel 1. Is discharged to. In this way, the upper and lower air in the control panel 1 is agitated, the temperature in the upper section in the control panel 1 is lowered, the temperature in the control panel 1 is made uniform, and the temperature in the control panel 1 becomes Fall to. Due to the operation of the fan 10 on the cooling side, the temperature of the upper part in the control panel 1 is lowered, and the temperature sensor 1
When the output of 7 becomes 40 ° C. or lower, the controller 10 stops the fan 10 on the cooling side of the electronic cooler 3.

When the temperature inside the control panel 1 rises due to heat generated from the control device 2 or heat received from the atmosphere outside the panel, and the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 17 exceeds 45 ° C., the temperature sensor 1
The output of 7 controls the control device 2 to operate not only the cooling side fan 10 of the electronic cooler 3 but also the heat radiation side fan 14 and the thermoelectric module 5.

When the thermoelectric module 5 is energized, the cooling heat sink 6 is cooled by the thermoelectric module 5.
The cooling chamber 2 of the electronic cooler 3 is controlled by the cooling fan 10.
The air in the control panel 1 taken into the cooling chamber 20 through the 0 air inlet 9 contacts the cooling heat sink 6 to be cooled, and is discharged into the control panel 1 through the discharge port 8. In this case, if the cooling heat sink 6 is cooled below the dew point temperature of the air, the air contacting the cooling heat sink 6 will be cooled and will be condensed on the surface of the cooling heat sink 6. The condensed water then drops by its own weight, passes through the drainage port member 11 and is stored in a water storage tank (not shown). On the other hand, the fan 14 on the heat radiation side passes through the air filter 16 and the intake 12 for the outside air.
The outside air taken into the heat radiation chamber 30 from the above cools the heat radiation heat sink 7 and is discharged to the outside air from the upper and lower outlets 13. In this way, the air in the control panel 1 is transferred to the electronic cooler 3
Is cooled by the temperature of the upper part inside the control panel 1,
When the output of the temperature sensor 17 becomes 45 ° C. or less, the control device 2 stops energizing the thermoelectric module 5 and the fan 14 on the heat radiation side, and operates only the fan 10 on the cooling side.

As described above, the temperature (T) of the upper portion of the control panel 1 is detected by the temperature sensor 17, and the control device 2 controls the electronic cooler 3 according to the output, 40 ° C. <T ≦ 45. ℃
In the case of, only the fan 10 on the cooling side of the electronic cooler 3 is operated, and in the case of 45 ° C <T, the temperature of the control panel 1 can be kept at 50 ° C or lower by operating the entire electronic cooler 3. . In this case, since the power consumption of the electronic cooler 3 is small, it is possible to maintain a long cruising time of a device such as an automatic carrier driven by the same storage battery.

[0027]

As described above, according to the present invention, since the operation of the electronic cooler is controlled by the temperature of the upper part in the control panel, a local overheated portion is unlikely to occur and the operation of the entire electronic cooler is prevented. It is performed only when necessary, and usually only the cooling side fan of the electronic cooler is operated, so that power consumption is low. Therefore, it is suitable for a control method of an electronic cooler that cools a control panel of a device such as an automatic carrier driven by a storage battery, and this method enables a longer cruising time of the device driven by the storage battery. To do.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a vertical sectional view showing a control panel accommodating an electronic cooler and a temperature sensor according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a vertical sectional view of an electronic cooler.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a test control panel accommodating an electronic cooler, a temperature sensor, and a heater.

FIG. 4 is a graph showing test results.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Control Panel 2 Control Equipment 3 Electronic Cooler 4 Case 5 Thermoelectric Module 6 Cooling Heat Sink 7 Radiating Heat Sink 8 and 13 Discharge Port 9 and 12 Intake 10 Cooling Side Fan 11 Drain Port Member 14 Radiating Side Fan 15 Mounting Flange 16 Air Filter 17 Temperature sensor 20 Cooling chamber 30 Radiating chamber

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A method of controlling an electronic cooler mounted on a control panel of a storage battery driven device, wherein the operation of the electronic cooler is stopped when the temperature in the upper part of the control panel is below a predetermined value. When the temperature exceeds a predetermined value and is within a certain range, only the cooling side fan of the electronic cooler is operated, and when the temperature exceeds the temperature range in which only the fan is operated, the entire electronic cooler is operated A method for controlling an electronic cooler, which comprises: