CN113631869B - Remote controller and air conditioning system - Google Patents

Remote controller and air conditioning system Download PDF

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Publication number
CN113631869B
CN113631869B CN201980094811.3A CN201980094811A CN113631869B CN 113631869 B CN113631869 B CN 113631869B CN 201980094811 A CN201980094811 A CN 201980094811A CN 113631869 B CN113631869 B CN 113631869B
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remote controller
operation signal
signal
divided
remote
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CN113631869A (en
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渡边良
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Mitsubishi Electric Corp
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Mitsubishi Electric Corp
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    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F24—HEATING; RANGES; VENTILATING
    • F24F—AIR-CONDITIONING; AIR-HUMIDIFICATION; VENTILATION; USE OF AIR CURRENTS FOR SCREENING
    • F24F11/00—Control or safety arrangements
    • F24F11/50—Control or safety arrangements characterised by user interfaces or communication
    • F24F11/56—Remote control
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04Q—SELECTING
    • H04Q9/00—Arrangements in telecontrol or telemetry systems for selectively calling a substation from a main station, in which substation desired apparatus is selected for applying a control signal thereto or for obtaining measured values therefrom

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  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Human Computer Interaction (AREA)
  • Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
  • Combustion & Propulsion (AREA)
  • Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
  • General Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Computer Networks & Wireless Communication (AREA)
  • Selective Calling Equipment (AREA)
  • Air Conditioning Control Device (AREA)

Abstract

An operation signal for controlling all or a part of 1 or more air conditioners is transmitted and received between a remote controller and 1 or more other remote controllers in an air conditioning system including a plurality of remote controllers, or the operation signal is divided into a plurality of divided signals. The remote controller samples the intensity of the radio wave emitted by 1 or more other remote controllers when at least one of the operation signal and the division signal is not transmitted or received, and calculates the communication frequency and the index value indicating the soundness of the radio wave of each of the 1 or more other remote controllers based on the sampling result. The remote controller determines whether or not to divide the operation signal transmitted to another remote controller based on at least one of the communication frequency and the index value. The remote controller transmits an operation signal or a division signal obtained by dividing the operation signal to another remote controller based on the determination result of the presence or absence of the division.

Description

Remote controller and air conditioning system
Technical Field
The invention relates to a remote controller and an air conditioning system.
Background
As a remote controller for controlling an air conditioner, a remote controller is known which has a wireless communication function and can perform wireless communication with an external wireless communication device such as a smartphone, a tablet computer, and a mobile terminal (see, for example, patent document 1). The remote controller receives an operation signal for operating the air conditioner from the wireless communication device, and controls the air conditioner based on the operation signal. Thereby, the operation of the air conditioner can be realized from the external wireless communication device.
However, when a plurality of air conditioners are to be controlled simultaneously, the wireless communication device needs to transmit an operation signal to each of the plurality of remote controllers of the plurality of air conditioners when the remote controller is used. In order to eliminate such a trouble, a remote controller capable of communicating with another remote controller, transmitting an operation signal from 1 wireless communication apparatus to another remote controller, and receiving an operation signal from another remote controller is required.
Patent document 1: japanese laid-open patent publication No. 2015-224858
However, when the remote controller communicates with the wireless communication apparatus and other remote controllers, there is a possibility that the communication of the operation signal cannot be appropriately performed depending on the communication status of the remote controller to which the operation signal is to be transmitted. In a communication situation where the radio wave intensity of the remote controller is unstable, the remote controller may fail to communicate the operation signal having a large data amount.
In addition, in many cases, the remote controller processes the operation signals in the order received. Therefore, the remote controller cannot receive the next operation signal until the operation signal processing is completed, and the necessary processing may be delayed when the priority of the next operation signal processing is high.
Disclosure of Invention
The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object thereof is to provide a remote controller and an air conditioning system that can realize communication that flexibly cope with communication conditions.
The remote controller according to the present invention is 1 remote controller out of 1 or more remote controllers for controlling 1 or more air conditioners, respectively, and includes: a communication means for transmitting and receiving an operation signal for controlling all or a part of the 1 or more air conditioners to and from 1 or more other remote controllers or for dividing the operation signal into a plurality of divided signals, and for detecting radio waves emitted from the 1 or more other remote controllers during a period other than a period during which at least one of the operation signal and the divided signals is transmitted and received; a wireless path management unit for storing the intensity of the radio wave transmitted from each of the 1 or more other remote controllers detected by the communication unit; and a main control unit that calculates at least 1 of an index value indicating soundness of the radio wave transmitted by each of the 1 or more other remote controllers and a communication frequency at which each of the 1 or more other remote controllers transmits and receives the operation signal and the division signal, based on an intensity of the radio wave transmitted by each of the 1 or more other remote controllers stored in the wireless path management unit, wherein when the operation signal is transmitted to the other remote controller, the main control unit determines whether to divide the operation signal based on at least one of the index value indicating soundness of the radio wave transmitted by the other remote controller and the communication frequency of the other remote controller, and the communication unit transmits the operation signal or the division signal obtained by dividing the operation signal into a plurality of pieces to the other remote controllers based on the determination.
An air conditioning system according to the present invention is an air conditioning system including 1 or more remote controllers for controlling 1 or more air conditioning apparatuses, respectively, wherein the 1 or more remote controllers transmit and receive an operation signal for controlling all or a part of the 1 or more air conditioning apparatuses or a division signal dividing the operation signal into a plurality of signals to and from 1 or more other remote controllers, respectively, detect radio waves emitted by the 1 or more other remote controllers during a period other than a period in which at least one of the operation signal and the division signal is transmitted and received, store intensities of the radio waves emitted by the 1 or more other remote controllers, respectively, calculate an index value indicating integrity of the radio waves emitted by the 1 or more other remote controllers, respectively, and at least 1 of communication frequencies at which the 1 or more other remote controllers transmit and receive the operation signal and at least one of the division signal, respectively, based on the stored intensities of the radio waves emitted by the 1 or more other remote controllers, respectively, and determine whether or not to divide the remote controllers, based on the operation signal, whether or the operation signal is divided, when the operation signal is transmitted to the other remote controllers, respectively.
According to the air conditioning system and the remote controller of the present invention, the communication means detects the intensity of the radio wave transmitted from the other remote controller in a period other than a period in which at least one of the operation signal and the division signal is transmitted and received, the radio path management means stores the intensity of the radio wave, and the main control means determines the presence or absence of division of the operation signal transmitted to the other remote controller, using the intensity of the radio wave stored in the radio path management means and based on at least one of the index value of soundness of the radio wave of the other remote controller and the communication frequency at which the other remote controller transmits and receives at least one of the operation signal and the division signal. The communication means transmits the operation signal or a divided signal obtained by dividing the operation signal to another remote controller based on the determination of the main control means. This enables communication between remote controllers that flexibly copes with the communication status.
Drawings
Fig. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of an air conditioning system according to an embodiment.
Fig. 2 is a diagram illustrating functional modules included in the remote controller according to the embodiment.
Fig. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the form of divided data in the embodiment.
Fig. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the format of data of a response signal from a remote controller to another remote controller in the embodiment.
Fig. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of sampling the radio wave intensity of another remote controller by the remote controller according to the embodiment.
Fig. 6 is a flowchart showing an example of a process for determining the presence or absence of division and the number of divisions of an operation signal by the main control unit in the embodiment.
Fig. 7 is a diagram showing an example of transmission processing of the division data by the remote controller according to the embodiment.
Fig. 8 is a diagram showing an example of data reception processing performed by the remote controller according to the embodiment.
Fig. 9 is a diagram for explaining a specific operation example of the air conditioning system according to the embodiment.
Fig. 10 is a diagram for explaining a specific operation example of the air conditioning system according to the embodiment.
Fig. 11 is a diagram for explaining a specific operation example of the air conditioning system according to the embodiment.
Detailed Description
Hereinafter, embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings. The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described below. In the following drawings, the relationship between the sizes of the respective components may be different from the actual configuration.
Provided is an implementation mode.
Fig. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of an air conditioning system according to an embodiment. The air conditioning system 100 is installed in a building, and includes a plurality of air conditioners 30, a plurality of remote controllers 10 for controlling the plurality of air conditioners 30, and the like. Fig. 1 shows a case where the air conditioning system 100 includes 3 air conditioners 30 and 3 remote controllers 10, but the number of the air conditioners 30 and the remote controllers 10 included in the air conditioning system 100 is not limited to these.
The air conditioner 30 performs an air conditioning operation of the air conditioning target space. The 1 air conditioner 30 is controlled by the 1 remote controller 10. The remote controller 10 is wirelessly connected to the wireless communication device 20 and other remote controllers 10 according to a communication standard such as Bluetooth (registered trademark) or ZigBee (registered trademark). The range in which wireless connection is possible differs depending on the above-described standard, communication conditions, and the like. Each remote controller 10 is assigned an ID (Identification) as an example of unique Identification information for self-Identification with respect to other remote controllers 10.
The wireless communication device 20 is, for example, a smartphone, a tablet terminal, or a mobile terminal. The wireless communication device 20 receives an input of information for operating the air conditioner 30 from a user or manager of the air conditioner 30, and transmits a signal corresponding to the information to the remote controller 10. Even if a signal is transmitted to 1 or more remote controllers 10 designated by the ID, the wireless communication device 20 can transmit a signal to any remote controller 10 within a communicable range.
The wireless communication device 20 includes a wireless communication device 20 operated by a user and a wireless communication device 20 operated by a manager. Therefore, the signal transmitted from the wireless communication device 20 to the remote controller 10 includes an operation signal a indicating the content of the instruction from the user and an operation signal B indicating the content of the instruction from the administrator. The operation signal a and the operation signal B are examples of operation signals for controlling the air conditioner 30. The information (instruction information a) corresponding to the operation signal a is information including values of parameters that can be controlled by the user, such as a set temperature, an operation mode, and a wind speed. The operation mode refers to any operation mode such as cooling, heating, or dehumidifying. The information (instruction information B) corresponding to the operation signal B is, for example, information relating to an operation schedule of the air conditioner 30.
The remote controller 10 according to the embodiment includes: a function of "normal mode" for changing only the setting of the air conditioner 30 to be controlled when an operation signal for changing the setting of the air conditioner 30 is received from the wireless communication device 20; and a function of "collective setting mode" for transmitting an operation signal to another remote controller 10 while changing the setting of the air conditioner 30 to be controlled, and for changing the setting of the air conditioner 30 to be controlled by the remote controller 10 to be transmitted. Each remote controller 10 has the following functions for realizing these functions.
The plurality of remote controllers 10 transmit and receive the operation signal C to and from another remote controller 10 in a communicable range. The operation signal C is an example of an operation signal. The information corresponding to the operation signal C is information including a value of a parameter controllable by the user, which is the same as the instruction information a, or information indicating an instruction from the administrator, which is the same as the instruction information B. The remote controller 10 may specify the remote controller 10 of the transmission destination based on the ID and transmit the operation signal C, or may transmit the operation signal C to any remote controller 10 in a communicable range.
The remote controller 10 includes an input unit, not shown, such as a button, and receives an input of instruction content from a user. The instruction contents are instructed with respect to the set temperature, the operation mode, the wind speed, and the like. When the operation signal a or the operation signal B is received from the wireless communication device 20, when the operation signal C is received from another remote controller 10, or when an input of instruction contents is received via the input unit, the remote controller 10 transmits the operation signal D to the air conditioner 30 to be controlled. The information corresponding to the operation signal D is the same as the instruction information a or the instruction information B.
The remote controller 10 that has received the operation signal a or the operation signal B from the wireless communication device 20 or the operation signal C from another remote controller 10 transmits the operation signal D to the air conditioner 30 to be controlled in the collective setting mode, and transmits the operation signal C corresponding to the received operation signal to another remote controller 10. The remote controller 10 that has received the operation signal C transmits an operation signal D to the air conditioner 30 to be controlled, and transmits the operation signal C to the remote controller 10 when there is another communicable remote controller 10.
When receiving the operation signal C or a division signal described later from another remote controller 10, the remote controller 10 transmits a response signal E. The remote controller 10 may receive a signal (not shown) indicating an operation state from the air conditioner 30 to be controlled. The remote controller 10 that has received the operation signal a or the operation signal B from the wireless communication device 20 can transmit a response signal F indicating the operation state or the like to the wireless communication device 20 of the transmission side. The response signal E may include information indicating the operation state of the air conditioner 30 to be controlled by another remote controller 10, and the response signal F may include information indicating the operation state of the air conditioner 30 to be controlled by another remote controller 10. The response signal E is an example of a response signal.
In the air conditioning system 100, each of the plurality of remote controllers 10 transmits and receives signals not only to the air conditioning apparatus 30 to be controlled but also to other remote controllers 10 and wireless communication apparatuses 20 located in a communicable range. When the remote controller 10 to which the operation signal C is transmitted is in a communication state with another remote controller 10, the wireless communication device 20, or the air conditioner 30, or when the intensity of the emitted radio wave is low, the remote controller 10 to which the operation signal C is transmitted may not receive the operation signal C, and a delay may occur in the process to be executed quickly. The remote controller 10 according to the embodiment has the following functions in order to more reliably transmit the operation signal C to the remote controller 10 of the transmission destination without interfering with the processing of the remote controller 10 of the transmission destination.
The remote controller 10 always monitors the presence or absence of a radio wave transmitted from another remote controller 10. When various signals such as an operation signal or a divided signal described later are not transmitted and received, the remote controller 10 transmits a radio wave including its own ID. On the other hand, when the various signals are being transmitted and received, the remote controller 10 does not emit the radio waves. Hereinafter, unless otherwise specified, "radio wave" refers to a radio wave including its own ID transmitted from the remote controller 10 other than during transmission and reception of the various signals. The remote controller 10 detects the intensity of the radio wave (radio wave intensity) from another remote controller 10 in a communicable range, and calculates a value (index value) serving as an index of soundness of the radio wave from the fluctuation of the radio wave intensity in the 1 st time. The 1 st time is an example of a predetermined time. The soundness of the radio wave is determined by the number of times the radio wave intensity lower than the reference intensity is detected in the 1 st time, the ratio of the time the radio wave intensity lower than the reference intensity is detected in the 1 st time to the 1 st time, and the like. The reference intensity is a predetermined intensity, and is, for example, a radio wave intensity that is minimally required to ensure a communication speed required by a user or a manager of the air conditioner 30. If the number of times of detecting the radio wave intensity lower than the reference intensity is large or the ratio of detecting the radio wave intensity lower than the reference intensity is large in the 1 st time, the index value of soundness is small.
The remote controller 10 calculates the frequency (communication frequency) at which the other remote controllers 10 perform the transmission/reception processing of the various signals. The communication frequency is determined by the number of times the radio wave cannot be detected in the 1 st time, the ratio of the time in which the radio wave cannot be detected in the 1 st time to the 1 st time, and the like. The greater the number of times the radio wave cannot be detected in the 1 st time or the greater the ratio of times the radio wave cannot be detected, the higher the communication frequency. The index value and the communication frequency indicate the communication status of the other remote controllers 10. Therefore, the index value and the communication frequency of the remote controller 10 are included in the information indicating the communication status of the remote controller 10. When the operation signal C is transmitted to another remote controller 10, the remote controller 10 determines whether or not to divide the operation signal C based on the communication status of the other remote controller 10, and determines the number of divisions when dividing the operation signal C.
When the index value of the other remote controller 10 is smaller than a predetermined reference value, the remote controller 10 increases the number of divisions of the operation signal C to be transmitted to the other remote controller 10 from the original number of divisions. When the communication frequency of another remote controller 10 is higher than the predetermined reference frequency, the remote controller 10 increases the number of divisions of the operation signal C to be transmitted to the another remote controller 10 from the original number of divisions. Hereinafter, the number of divisions of data and signals that are not divided is 1.
In the embodiment, the index value is 1 value out of 3 values of 0, 1 and 2, for example. "0" indicates that the radio wave is low in soundness and poor in communication state. "2" indicates that the radio wave is high in soundness and good in communication state. "1" may be used as the reference value, and indicates that the degree of soundness of the radio wave is higher than "0" or lower than "2". These index values are determined by the number of times or the ratio of the radio wave intensity to be smaller than the reference intensity in the 1 st time. For example, the index value is determined to be "2" when the ratio of the time during which the radio wave intensity is less than the reference intensity in the 1 st time is 10% or less, "1" when the ratio is 10% to 50%, or "0" when the ratio is 50% or more. The correspondence between the index value and the proportional value is an example, and is not limited thereto.
In the remote controller 10 according to the embodiment, for example, the number of divisions of the data of the operation signal C for each of the cases 0, 1, and 2 having the index value as described above is set in advance. For example, 10 is set as the number of divisions when the index value is 0, 3 is set as the number of divisions when the index value is 1, and 1 is set as the number of divisions when the index value is 2. In this case, the index value is 0, the original 1 data is divided into 10 times as many data, the index value is 1, the original 1 data is divided into 3 times as many data, and the index value is 2, the original 1 data is not divided. The above-mentioned 3 index values and the number of divisions corresponding to each index value are examples, and are not limited to the above-mentioned case.
In the embodiment, 3 levels of "low", "medium", and "high" are set as the communication frequency, for example. These communication frequencies are determined by the number of times or the ratio of times radio waves are not detected in the 1 st time. "low" indicates a case where the communication frequency is low, such as a case where the ratio of the time during which no radio wave is detected in the 1 st time is, for example, 10% or less, and "high" indicates a case where the communication frequency is high, such as a case where the ratio of the time during which no radio wave is detected in the 1 st time is, for example, 30% or more. The term "medium" may be used as a reference frequency, and indicates an operation frequency between "low" and "high" communication frequencies, such as a case where the ratio of the time during which no radio wave is detected in the 1 st time is, for example, greater than 10% and 30% or less.
In the remote controller 10 according to the embodiment, for example, the number of divisions of the data of the operation signal C is set in advance for each of the cases of "low", "medium", and "high" communication frequencies as described above. For example, 1 is set as the division number in the case of "low" communication frequency, 5 is set as the division number in the case of "medium" communication frequency, and 15 is set as the division number in the case of "high" communication frequency. In this case, the original 1 data is not divided in the case of the "low" communication frequency, the original 1 data is divided into 5 times as many data in the case of the "medium" communication frequency, and the original 1 data is divided into 15 times as many data in the case of the "high" communication frequency. The above-described 3-level communication frequency and the number of divisions corresponding to each level are examples, and are not limited to the above-described case.
The number of divisions may be set according to the specifications of the remote controller 10, assumed specification conditions, or the like. The number of divisions may be set based on the size of the transmission data, and the transmission data may be divided into a plurality of pieces of data each having a certain size. For example, when a radio wave is detected at regular intervals in the 1 st time and the communication frequency is determined by the number of times the radio wave is detected in the 1 st time, if the remote controller 10 to which data is to be transmitted cannot complete the data reception process for the fixed intervals when receiving data of 2 bytes or more at a time, and thus the communication frequency of the other remote controllers 10 becomes equal to or higher than the reference frequency, the data may be divided into units of data of 2 bytes or less.
The data obtained by dividing the data of the operation signal C in the embodiment includes information indicating the priority of the instruction content indicated by the data of the operation signal C before division. In the following, data obtained by dividing data of the operation signal C may be referred to as divided data, and signals corresponding to the divided data may be referred to as divided signals. The data with high priority is data that needs to be processed more quickly. By setting the priority to each of the divided signals, when 1 remote controller 10 continuously receives the divided signals from a plurality of remote controllers 10, the 1 remote controller 10 can select the divided signal to be processed more quickly. Thus, when the divided signals from the plurality of remote controllers 10 are received successively, each remote controller 10 can process data in descending order of priority. Therefore, the processing speed of the entire air conditioning system 100 can be improved. The priority may be determined according to the instruction content, or may be determined by analyzing data of the operation signal, or the like.
The remote controller 10 that continuously receives the divided signals from the plurality of other remote controllers 10 waits for the transmission processing of the other remote controllers 10 that transmit the divided signals including the data of low priority. Thus, the remote controller 10 processes the data having the high priority first, and suppresses collision of the data to be received, thereby suppressing loss of the data to be received. Hereinafter, a configuration of the remote controller 10 for realizing the above-described function will be described.
Fig. 2 is a diagram illustrating functional modules included in a remote controller according to an embodiment. The remote controller 10 includes a 1 st communication unit 11, a 2 nd communication unit 12, a wireless path management unit 13, a main control unit 14, a display control unit 15, and a display unit 16.
The 1 st communication unit 11 performs wireless communication with the air conditioner 30 to be controlled, for example, using infrared rays or the like, transmits an operation signal D to the air conditioner 30, and receives a signal indicating an operation state or the like from the air conditioner 30. The 1 st communication unit 11 includes a 1 st communication control unit 11A and a 1 st communication interface unit 11B. The 1 st communication control unit 11A transmits the operation signal D to the air conditioner 30 to be controlled via the 1 st communication interface unit 11B, and receives a signal indicating the operation state from the air conditioner 30 via the 1 st communication interface unit 11B.
The 1 st communication unit 11 may perform wired communication instead of wireless communication with the air conditioner 30 to be controlled. The 1 st communication control unit 11A may not receive a signal indicating an operation state from the air conditioner 30 to be controlled.
The 2 nd communication unit 12 is an example of a communication unit. The 2 nd communication unit 12 wirelessly communicates with the wireless communication device 20 or another remote controller 10 in a communicable range, receives the operation signal a or the operation signal B from the wireless communication device 20, and transmits and receives the operation signal C or the divided signal to and from the other remote controller 10. The 2 nd communication unit 12 transmits a response signal E to the remote controller 10 of the sender of the operation signal C or the division signal. The 2 nd communication unit 12 may transmit the response signal F to the wireless communication device 20 on the transmission side of the operation signal a or the operation signal B. The 2 nd communication unit 12 includes a 2 nd communication control unit 12A, a wireless device detection unit 12B, and a 2 nd communication interface unit 12C. The 2 nd communication control unit 12A transmits the operation signal C, the division signal, or the response signal E to another remote controller 10 via the 2 nd communication interface unit 12C. The 2 nd communication control unit 12A receives an operation signal, a division signal, a response signal, and the like from the wireless communication device 20 or another remote controller 10 via the 2 nd communication interface unit 12C.
The wireless device detection unit 12B detects another remote controller 10 via the 2 nd communication interface unit 12C. The wireless device detection unit 12B detects radio waves through the 2 nd communication interface unit 12C to detect IDs, radio wave intensities, and the like of the other remote controllers 10. The radio path management unit 13 stores the ID of the other remote controller 10 detected by the radio device detection unit 12B, the value of the radio wave intensity, and the like.
The display control unit 15 controls the display unit 16, and the display unit 16 displays various information in accordance with an instruction from the display control unit 15. The main control unit 14 controls the 1 st communication unit 11, the 2 nd communication unit 12, and the display control unit 15.
The main control unit 14 stores the ID included in the radio wave detected by the radio device detection unit 12B at time 1 and the intensity of the radio wave in the radio path management unit 13. The main control unit 14 calculates an index value of soundness of the radio wave from the remote controller 10 having the ID stored together with the radio wave intensity, a communication frequency of the remote controller 10, and the like, based on the radio wave intensity stored in the radio path management unit 13 at time 1. The main control unit 14 sets the number of divisions of the data of the operation signal C to be transmitted to the remote controller 10 based on the calculated index value and the communication frequency. In addition, the main control section 14 appropriately sets the transmission intervals between the divided signals.
The main control unit 14 controls the 2 nd communication unit 12 to transmit the division signal to the remote controller 10C of the transmission destination. The operation of dividing the data of the operation signal C may be performed by the main control unit 14, or may be performed by the 2 nd communication control unit 12A under the control from the main control unit 14.
When the divided signals from the plurality of other remote controllers 10 are continuously received, the main control unit 14 refers to the priority of the divided signal from each of the plurality of other remote controllers 10 and performs the processing of dividing the data in the order corresponding to the priority. The main control unit 14 generates data for instructing the transmission side of the divided signal having a low priority to wait for the transmission process, and controls the 2 nd communication unit 12 to transmit a response signal E including the data for instructing the waiting to the remote controller 10 of the transmission side of the divided signal having a low priority.
When receiving the response signal E instructing the waiting of the transmission process from the transmission destination of the divided signal via the 2 nd communication unit 12, the main control unit 14 controls the 2 nd communication unit 12 to wait the transmission process of the divided signal for a predetermined fixed time period, and transmits the divided signal after the fixed time period has elapsed. The length of the fixed time period may be determined according to the priority of the divided signal.
The remote controller 10 according to the embodiment may be configured by, for example, a processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or MPU (Micro Processing Unit), a Memory such as a ROM (Read Only Memory) or RAM (Random Access Memory), a communication interface circuit, a storage device such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive), and a display device such as a liquid crystal display or CRT (Cathode Ray Tube). The function of the 1 st communication interface 11B can be realized by a communication interface circuit for communication using infrared rays or the like. The 2 nd communication interface section 12C is implemented by a communication interface circuit for communication based on Bluetooth (registered trademark), zigBee (registered trademark), or the like. The function of the display unit 16 can be realized by a display device. The function of the radio path management unit 13 can be realized by a memory or a storage device. The functions of the main control unit 14, the 1 st communication control unit 11A, the 2 nd communication control unit 12A, the wireless device detection unit 12B, and the display control unit 15 can be realized by a processor reading and executing various programs and data stored in a memory or a storage device. The remote controller 10 may have all or a part thereof as dedicated hardware. For example, the main control unit 14 may be configured using a circuit device that realizes the function thereof.
Fig. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the form of divided data in the embodiment. As shown in fig. 3, the partition data includes a data number, a total number, a priority, a Payload (Payload), and the like. The total number is the total number of divided data generated by division of data of 1 operation signal C. The data number indicates that the divided data is the several data among the data of the operation signal C. For example, when the data of the operation signal C is divided into 10 pieces, the data number and the total number included in the 5 th divided data are 5 and 10, respectively.
The divided data is sequentially transmitted from the first data having a data number of, for example, 1 to the remote controller 10 of the transmission destination. The remote controller 10 of the transmission destination receives all the divided data from the first divided data to the last divided data having the data number equal to the total number among the data of the operation signal C. The remote controller 10, after receiving the divided data of all the operation signals C, combines the divided data to restore the data of the operation signals C.
As described above, the priority indicates the priority of the divided data, and the priority is set higher as the data should be processed more quickly. The payload is the body portion of the data.
Fig. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the format of data of a response signal from a remote controller to another remote controller in the embodiment. As shown in fig. 4, the data of the response signal E includes a Wait (Wait) flag, a flag in split communication, a payload, and the like. In the following, the data of the response signal E may be described as response data. The standby flag is an example of information indicating a standby instruction for the transmission process of the divided signal to another remote controller 10. The wait flag is a flag for causing the remote controller 10 having a low transmission priority to wait for transmission of the next divided signal for a certain period of time while the remote controller 10 is receiving the divided signals from a plurality of other remote controllers 10.
The split communication flag is information indicating that the remote controller 10 is in the continuous reception of the split signal to all the remote controllers 10 of the transmission sides of the split signal while the remote controller 10 continues to receive the split signal.
Hereinafter, the operation of the remote controller 10 according to the embodiment will be described in detail. The operations of the remote controller 10 described below are 4 operations as follows. The 1 st operation is a sampling operation of the radio wave intensity. The 2 nd operation is an operation for determining the presence or absence of division of the operation signal C. The 3 rd operation is a split signal transmission operation. The 4 th operation is a reception operation of the division signal and the operation signal. The sampling of the radio wave intensity in the embodiment refers to the acquisition process and the storage process of the radio wave intensity.
The operation of sampling the radio wave intensity will be described in detail below with reference to fig. 5. Fig. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of sampling the radio wave intensity of another remote controller by the remote controller according to the embodiment. The sampling operation of the radio wave intensity is started by the remote controller 10 which is not transmitting or receiving the operation signal, the division signal, or the like. In step S101, the remote controller 10 waits until the 2 nd communication unit 12 of the remote controller 10 detects a radio wave having an intensity equal to or higher than the reference intensity from another remote controller 10 (no in step S101). When the 2 nd communication unit 12 detects a radio wave having an intensity equal to or higher than the reference intensity from another remote controller 10 in step S101 (yes in step S101), the 2 nd communication control unit 12A of the 2 nd communication unit 12 notifies the main control unit 14 of the ID of the remote controller 10 that has transmitted the radio wave, and the process of the remote controller 10 proceeds to step S102.
In step S102, the main control unit 14 stores the ID of the remote controller 10 of the transmission source of the radio wave having the intensity equal to or higher than the reference intensity detected in step S101 and the radio wave intensity in the radio path management unit 13. In the next step S103, the main control unit 14 samples the radio wave intensities of all the remote controllers 10 whose IDs are stored in the radio path managing unit 13. In step S104, the remote controller 10 stands by for a predetermined period of time up to the 2 nd time (step S104: NO). Wherein the 2 nd time is shorter than the 1 st time.
When the 2 nd time has elapsed in step S104 (yes in step S104), in step S105, the main control unit 14 samples again the radio wave intensities of all the remote controllers 10 in which the wireless path managing unit 13 stores the IDs.
In step S106, the main control unit 14 determines whether or not sampling has been performed a predetermined number of times. The main controller 14 performs this determination by, for example, checking the number of samples of the radio wave intensity value of each ID stored in the radio path manager 13. The time when the number of times of sampling completed reaches the predetermined number corresponds to the time when the 1 st time has elapsed from the start of sampling in step S103.
When the main control unit 14 determines in step S106 that the number of times of sampling has been performed has not reached the predetermined number of times (no in step S106), the process of the remote controller 10 returns to step S104. When the main control unit 14 determines in step S106 that the number of times of sampling performed has reached the predetermined number of times (yes in step S106), in step S107, the main control unit 14 calculates the index value of the soundness of radio wave and the communication frequency of the remote controller 10 for each ID from the values of the radio wave intensity of all IDs stored in the radio path management unit 13, and stores the index value and the communication frequency in the radio path management unit 13.
In one example of this processing, the index value of the soundness of the radio wave is calculated using the number of times the radio wave intensity lower than the reference intensity is detected out of the total number of samples at the 1 st time. That is, the index value in this example is smaller as the number of times the radio wave intensity lower than the reference intensity is detected in the 1 st time is larger.
In one example of this processing, the communication frequency of the remote controller 10 is calculated based on the number of times radio waves are not detected in a predetermined number of samples. That is, the greater the number of times the radio wave cannot be detected in the predetermined number of times of sampling, the higher the communication frequency in this example.
After the process of step S107, the main control unit 14 repeats the processes from step S103 onward until a new ID of the remote controller 10 is not detected (no in step S108). When a new ID of the remote controller 10 is detected (YES in step S108), the main control unit 14 repeats the processing from step S102 onward. Wherein these processes may be interrupted in the transmission and reception of the operation signal. In step S107, the main control unit 14 updates the index value and the communication frequency associated with each ID stored in the radio path managing unit 13 in step S107 executed immediately before to the newly calculated index value and the communication frequency of the soundness of the radio wave intensity of the remote controller 10 for each ID. Alternatively, the main control unit 14 may store the new index value and the communication frequency together with the previously stored index value and communication frequency without performing the update.
Hereinafter, a determination process of the presence or absence of division and the number of divisions of the operation signal C of another remote controller 10 by the remote controller 10 according to the embodiment based on the soundness of the radio wave intensity and the communication frequency of the other remote controller 10 will be described. Fig. 6 is a flowchart showing an example of a process of determining the presence or absence of division and the number of divisions of an operation signal by the main control unit in the embodiment. When an event triggering the transmission process of the operation signal C to another remote controller 10 occurs in step S201, the main control unit 14 refers to the radio path management unit 13 and reads the index value of the soundness of the radio wave intensity and the communication frequency of the remote controller 10 to be transmitted in step S202. The event that triggers the transmission process of the operation signal C to another remote controller 10 includes, for example, a case where an operation signal is received from the wireless communication device 20 or another remote controller 10.
In step S203, the main control unit 14 determines whether or not the index value of the soundness of the radio wave of the remote controller 10 to be transmitted is equal to or less than a reference value. If the index value is equal to or less than the reference value (yes in step S203), the main control unit 14 sets the number of data divisions of the operation signal C based on the index value in step S204.
Next to step S204, the main control unit 14 determines whether or not the communication frequency of the remote controller 10 to be transmitted is equal to or higher than a reference frequency in step S205. When the communication frequency of the remote controller 10 of the transmission destination is equal to or higher than the reference frequency (yes in step S205), the main control unit 14 further sets the division number based on the communication frequency in step S206. The setting may be such that the number of divisions is changed stepwise from the number of divisions set in step S204 based on the level of the communication frequency, or a number several times the number of divisions set in step S204 may be set as a new number of divisions. The number of divisions corresponding to the combination of the index value and the communication frequency may be determined in advance and stored in the wireless path management unit 13, and the main control unit 14 may set the number of divisions based on the index value and the communication frequency of the remote controller 10 of the transmission destination with reference to the wireless path management unit 13.
After the process of step S206, in step S207, the 2 nd communication unit 12 divides the data of the operation signal C into the number of divisions set in step S206 in accordance with the instruction from the main control unit 14, and transmits the divided data to the remote controller 10 of the transmission destination.
When it is determined in step S205 that the communication frequency is lower than the reference frequency (no in step S205), in step S207, the 2 nd communication unit 12 divides the data of the operation signal C into the number of divisions set in step S204 in accordance with an instruction from the main control unit 14, and transmits the divided data to the remote controller 10 of the transmission destination.
When it is determined in step S203 that the index value is larger than the reference value (no in step S203), the main control unit 14 determines in step S208 whether or not the communication frequency of the remote controller 10 to which the transmission is to be directed is equal to or higher than the reference frequency. When the communication frequency of the remote controller 10 of the transmission destination is equal to or higher than the reference frequency (yes in step S208), the main control unit 14 sets the division number based on the communication frequency in step S209.
After the process of step S209, in step S207, the 2 nd communication unit 12 divides the data of the operation signal C into the number of divisions set in step S209 in accordance with the instruction from the main control unit 14, and transmits the divided data to the remote controller 10 of the transmission destination.
When it is determined in step S208 that the communication frequency is lower than the reference frequency (no in step S208), the 2 nd communication unit 12 transmits the operation signal C to the remote controller 10 to be transmitted without dividing it in accordance with an instruction from the main control unit 14 in step S210.
Fig. 7 is a diagram showing an example of a process of transmitting the division data by the remote controller according to the embodiment. In step S301, the main control unit 14 stores 1 in i indicating the data number. In step S302, the main control unit 14 controls the 2 nd communication unit 12 to transmit the i-th piece of divided data to the remote controller 10 to be transmitted. In step S303, the main control unit 14 determines whether or not all the divided data are transmitted. This determination is made, for example, based on whether i is equal to the total number of divided data. When the transmission of all the divided data is not completed (no in step S303), the main control unit 14, which has received the response data to the transmission of the i-th divided data via the 2 nd communication unit 12, determines whether or not the wait flag is set in the response data in step S304.
If the wait flag is not set (no in step S304), the main control section 14 proceeds to step S306. If the wait flag is set (yes in step S304), the main control unit 14 waits for a predetermined time period in step S305, and then proceeds to step S306. In step S306, the main control unit 14 stores the value obtained by adding 1 to the value of i in i.
When the main control unit 14 determines in step S303 that the transmission of all the divided data is completed (yes in step S303), the divided data transmission process ends.
Fig. 8 is a diagram showing an example of data reception processing by the remote controller according to the embodiment. In step S401, the main control unit 14 receives an operation signal, a division signal, or the like via the 2 nd communication unit 12. The main control unit 14 analyzes the received data such as the operation signal or the division signal, and determines whether or not the total number is 1. In this example, the data of the operation signal that is not divided has an area for storing the total number of data, and 1 is stored in this area, similarly to the divided data. When the total number of data received in step S402 is 1 (step S402: yes), in step S403, the remote controller 10 ends the data reception process after the process of the received data. When the total number of pieces of data received in step S402 is not 1 (no in step S402), the main control unit 14 performs a reception process of the divided data in step S404.
In step S405, the main control unit 14 refers to the radio path management unit 13 to determine whether or not the ID of the remote controller 10 that is the sender of the divided data is stored in the ID of the remote controller 10 that is the communication target of the divided data. If the ID of the remote controller 10 of the sender of the divided data is not stored in the wireless path management unit 13 as the ID of the remote controller 10 of the communication destination of the divided data (no in step S405), the main control unit 14 stores the ID of the remote controller 10 of the sender and the priority of the divided data in the wireless path management unit 13 in step S406. The radio path management unit 13 stores the ID of the remote controller 10 of the sender of the divided data and the priority of the divided data in the continuation of the reception process of the divided data by the process of the main control unit 14 in step S406.
If the ID of the remote controller 10 of the sender of the divided data is stored in the radio path managing unit 13 as the ID of the remote controller 10 to which the divided data is to be communicated in step S405 (yes in step S405), or after the process in step S406, the process of the main control unit 14 proceeds to step S407. In step S407, the main control unit 14 determines whether or not the divided data from the plurality of remote controllers 10 is being continuously received. The main control unit 14 refers to the number of IDs of the remote controllers 10 to be communicated of the divided data stored in the radio path management unit 13 to make this determination. If the reception of the divided data from the plurality of remote controllers 10 is not being continued (no in step S407), the main control unit 14 proceeds to step S409.
If the reception of the divided data from the plurality of remote controllers 10 is continuing (yes in step S407), the main control unit 14 determines in step S408 whether or not the priority of the divided data subjected to the reception processing in step S404 is higher than the priority of the divided data from the other remote controllers 10. When the priority of the divided data subjected to the reception processing in step S404 is the highest among the priorities of the divided data from the plurality of remote controllers 10 (yes in step S408), the main control unit 14 transmits response data without setting the wait flag to the remote controller 10 of the sender of the divided data subjected to the reception processing in step S404 in step S409. If the priority of the divided data subjected to the reception processing in step S404 is not the highest among the priorities of the divided data from the plurality of remote controllers 10 (no in step S408), the main control unit 14 transmits the response data with the wait flag set thereto to the remote controller 10 of the sender of the divided data subjected to the reception processing in step S404 in step S410. After the process of step S409 or the process of step S410 is executed, the process of the main control section 14 proceeds to step S411.
In step S408, the main control unit 14 may determine whether or not the priority of the divided data subjected to the reception processing in step S404 is equal to or higher than a reference priority. In this case, the processing of step S409 may be performed when the priority of the divided data is equal to or higher than the reference priority, and the processing of step S410 may be performed when the priority of the divided data is lower than the reference priority.
In step S411, the main control unit 14 refers to the total number of pieces of divided data subjected to the reception process in step S404 and the data number. Then, the main control unit 14 determines whether or not the data number is equal to the total number, that is, whether or not the divided data subjected to the reception processing in step S404 is the last divided data. If the data number is not equal to the total number (no in step S411), the reception process of the data by the remote controller 10 returns to step S401.
When the data number is equal to the total number (yes in step S411), in step S412, the main control unit 14 deletes the ID of the remote controller 10 that is the sender of the divided data that has been subjected to the reception processing in step S404, from the IDs of the remote controllers 10 stored as the communication destinations of the divided data by the radio path managing unit 13. After the process of step S412, the reception process of the data ends.
A specific operation example of the air conditioning system 100 according to the above embodiment will be described below. Fig. 9 is a diagram for explaining a specific operation example of the air conditioning system according to the embodiment. Fig. 9 is a diagram in which the administrator updates the data of the operation schedule with respect to the remote controller 10B via the wireless communication device 20B when the user sets the temperature or the operation mode with respect to the remote controller 10A via the wireless communication device 20A. While the remote controller 10A is not transmitting and receiving the operation signal or the divided signal, the remote controller 10A transmits the radio wave, and the remote controller 10B samples the radio wave intensity of the remote controller 10A.
Next, the operation signal a is transmitted from the wireless communication device 20A to the remote controller 10A by the user's operation. The remote controller 10B detects that the remote controller 10A is transmitting and receiving the operation signal based on the interruption of the radio wave from the remote controller 10A by the remote controller 10A receiving the operation signal a. The remote controller 10B stores, in the radio path management unit 13, information indicating that the radio wave of the remote controller 10A is not detected (for example, radio wave intensity = 0) in the sampling of the radio wave intensity. The remote controller 10B calculates an index value of soundness of radio waves of the remote controller 10A and a communication frequency in the 1 st time.
The administrator starts the update process of the data of the operation schedule using the wireless communication device 20B. The administrator first transmits an operation signal B including schedule data to the remote controller 10B through the wireless communication device 20B. Upon receiving the operation signal B, the remote controller 10B sets the number of divisions of the data of the operation signal C to be transmitted to the remote controller 10A based on the index value of the soundness of radio waves of the remote controller 10A and the communication frequency. Here, the number of divisions is set to 2 or more. The remote controller 10B divides the data of the operation signal C into the set number of divisions, and transmits the divided data to the remote controller 10A.
When the calculated communication frequency of the remote controller 10A is high, for example, equal to or higher than the reference frequency, the remote controller 10B may transmit the next communication data after a predetermined time is set after the transmission of 1 piece of divided data. However, the remote controller 10B may not set the above-described certain time period while the response signal E having the wait flag set therein is not received. When the remote controller 10A starts the reception processing of the divided data, the display control unit 15 may control the display unit 16 to display the content indicated as being in the process of receiving the divided data. This is to notify the user that the processing speed of the remote controller 10A may be low. In addition, the remote controller 10A may transmit a response signal F including data indicating that it is receiving divided data to the wireless communication apparatus 20A with respect to the operation signal a received from the wireless communication apparatus 20A. The wireless communication device 20A that has received the response signal F may display, on a screen not shown, a content indicating that the communication of the remote controller 10A is congested, and may indicate that the reflection of the setting of the remote controller 10A on the air conditioner 30 to be controlled is delayed.
Next, in the air conditioning system 100 shown in fig. 9, the operations of the remote controller 10A, the remote controller 10B, and the like in the case where at least one of the index value satisfying the soundness of the radio wave intensity of the remote controller 10A is smaller than the reference value and the case where the communication frequency is higher than the reference frequency will be described. The remote controller 10B samples the radio wave from the remote controller 10A to grasp the communication status (index value and communication frequency) of the remote controller 10A. Then, the manager starts the update process of the data of the operation schedule via the wireless communication device 20B. The administrator first transmits an operation signal B including schedule data to the remote controller 10B through the wireless communication device 20B. Upon receiving the operation signal B, the remote controller 10B sets the number of divisions of the data of the operation signal C to be transmitted to the remote controller 10A based on the index value of the soundness of radio waves of the remote controller 10A and the communication frequency. Here, the number of divisions is set to 2 or more. The remote controller 10B divides the data of the operation signal C into the set number of divisions and transmits the divided data to the remote controller 10A. When the priority of the divided data is high, the remote controller 10B may transmit the divided data to the remote controller 10A without leaving a time interval therebetween, or may transmit the next divided data at a short time interval so as not to intrude communication from another remote controller 10.
In addition to the above specific operation examples of the remote controller 10, the remote controller 10 may exclude the remote controller 10 having a high communication frequency, for example, a frequency equal to or higher than a reference frequency, from the transmission target of the operation signal C or the divided signal in the collective setting mode. The remote controller 10 may transmit the operation signal C or the division signal only to the remote controller 10 having a communication frequency lower than a reference frequency, for example. The operation of the remote controller 10 will be specifically described below with reference to fig. 10.
Fig. 10 is a diagram for explaining a specific operation example of the air conditioning system according to the embodiment. The air conditioning system 100 includes a remote controller 10A, a remote controller 10B, and a remote controller 10C. The remote controller 10B samples the radio wave intensities of the remote controllers 10A and 10C, and calculates an index value of soundness of the radio wave intensities of the remote controllers 10A and 10C and a communication frequency.
Next, the operation signal a is transmitted from the wireless communication device 20A to the remote controller 10A by the user's operation to the wireless communication device 20A. Thereby, the remote controller 10B detects that the communication frequency of the remote controller 10A becomes higher than the reference frequency, for example. Note that the communication frequency of the remote controller 10C is, for example, lower than the reference frequency. Next, the operation signal B is transmitted from the wireless communication device 20B to the remote controller 10B by the operation of the wireless communication device 20B by the administrator. The remote controller 10B may exclude the remote controller 10A from the transmission target of the operation signal C or the division signal based on the communication status of the remote controllers 10A and 10C, and may transmit the operation signal C or the division signal to the remote controller 10C.
Next, a specific example of the transmission/reception operation of the division signal between the remote controllers 10 based on the priority in the air conditioning system 100 according to the embodiment will be described with reference to fig. 11. Fig. 11 is a diagram for explaining a specific operation example of the air conditioning system according to the embodiment. The air conditioning system 100 includes a remote controller 10A, a remote controller 10B, and a remote controller 10C. While the remote controller 10B is transmitting the division signal to the remote controller 10A, the remote controller 10C starts transmission of the division signal having a higher priority to the remote controller 10A than the division signal transmitted from the remote controller 10B to the remote controller 10A. At this time, the remote controller 10A transmits a response signal E with a wait flag set to the remote controller 10B. The remote controller 10B waits for a certain time until the next divided data is transmitted. On the other hand, since the priority of the division signal transmitted from the remote controller 10C to the remote controller 10A is higher, the remote controller 10A transmits the response signal E in which the waiting flag is not set to the remote controller 10C. Thereby, the remote controller 10C can continuously transmit the division signal without setting the waiting time. Therefore, the remote controllers 10A and 10C can transmit and receive data with higher priority.
The remote controller 10 according to the embodiment includes a 2 nd communication unit 12, a wireless path management unit 13, a main control unit 14, and the like. The 2 nd communication unit 12 transmits and receives an operation signal C for controlling all or a part of the 1 or more air conditioners 30 or a divided signal obtained by dividing the operation signal C into a plurality of pieces from the 1 or more other remote controllers 10. The 2 nd communication unit 12 detects radio waves emitted during a period other than a period during which at least one of the operation signal and the divided signal is transmitted and received by 1 or more other remote controllers 10. The radio path management unit 13 stores the intensity of the radio wave transmitted from each of the 1 or more other remote controllers 10 detected by the 2 nd communication unit 12. The main control unit 14 calculates an index value indicating the soundness of the radio wave of each of the 1 or more other remote controllers 10 and the communication frequency based on the intensity of the radio wave emitted from each of the 1 or more other remote controllers 10 stored in the wireless path management unit 13. When the operation signal C is transmitted to another remote controller 10, the main control unit 14 determines whether or not to divide the operation signal C based on at least one of the index value indicating the soundness of radio waves and the communication frequency of the other remote controller 10. The 2 nd communication unit 12 transmits the operation signal C or the division signal to the other remote controllers 10 based on the determination of the main control unit 14. This enables communication between the remote controllers 10 that flexibly corresponds to the communication status of the remote controllers 10.
The main control unit 14 of the remote controller 10 according to the embodiment determines to divide the operation signal C into a plurality of divided signals when at least one of an index value indicating the soundness of the radio wave transmitted from another remote controller 10 to which the operation signal C is transmitted is equal to or less than a predetermined reference value and a communication frequency of the other remote controller 10 is equal to or more than a predetermined reference frequency. This makes it possible to divide the operation signal C transmitted to another remote controller 10 as necessary according to the communication status of the other remote controller 10.
When the operation signal C is divided into the divided signals, the main control unit 14 of the remote controller 10 according to the embodiment determines the number of divisions of the operation signal C based on at least one of the index value and the communication frequency. This makes it possible to suppress unnecessary division processing according to the communication status of another remote controller 10 and to suppress loss of data transmitted to the another remote controller 10.
The main control unit 14 of the remote controller 10 according to the embodiment calculates an index value indicating the soundness of the radio waves emitted from each of the 1 or more other remote controllers 10 based on the number of times the intensity of the radio waves emitted from each of the 1 or more other remote controllers 10 is smaller than a predetermined reference intensity or the ratio of the time during which the intensity of the radio waves emitted from each of the 1 or more other remote controllers 10 is smaller than the reference intensity to a predetermined time with reference to the radio path management unit 13. The main control unit 14 calculates the communication frequency of each of the 1 or more other remote controllers 10 based on the number of times the 2 nd communication unit 12 cannot detect the radio waves emitted from each of the 1 or more other remote controllers 10 in a predetermined time period or the time period in which the 2 nd communication unit 12 cannot detect the radio waves emitted from each of the 1 or more other remote controllers 10. This makes it possible to more accurately calculate the index value and the communication frequency indicating the communication status of another remote controller 10 using the sampling result.
When the divided signals are received from 1 or more other remote controllers 10, the radio path management unit 13 of the remote controller 10 according to the embodiment stores the priorities included in the divided signals. When the 2 nd communication unit 12 is in the process of continuing to receive the divided signals from the plurality of other remote controllers 10, the main control unit 14 determines the order of the divided signals to be processed based on the priority of the divided signals from each of the plurality of other remote controllers 10. The main control unit 14 causes the 2 nd communication unit 12 to transmit the response signal E to some of the other remote controllers 10 for a predetermined period of time in order to wait for the transmission of the divided signals, based on the priorities of the divided signals from the other remote controllers 10. Thus, the remote controller 10 that is in the continuation of the reception process of the divided signals among the plurality of remote controllers 10 can execute the process of the divided signals having a high priority, and can suppress the loss of data transmitted from other remote controllers 10.
When the 2 nd communication unit 12 detects radio waves from a plurality of other remote controllers 10, the main control unit 14 of the remote controller 10 according to the embodiment controls the 2 nd communication unit 12 so as not to transmit the operation signal C or the divided signal to the other remote controller 10 having a high communication frequency among the plurality of other remote controllers 10, and controls the 2 nd communication unit 12 so as to transmit the operation signal C or the divided signal to the other remote controller 10 having a low communication frequency. This makes it possible to omit wasteful use of transmitting the divided signals for the remote controller 10 that may have the possibility of discarding the transmitted divided signals or may have the possibility of delaying the processing. Further, by transmitting the division signal only to the remote controller 10 having a low communication frequency, it is possible to speedup the transmission processing, and the operation of the remote controller 10 of the transmission destination is speeded up in reflection.
When transmitting the divided signal, the main control unit 14 of the remote controller 10 according to the embodiment determines the transmission interval of the divided signal based on at least 1 of the priority of the divided signal, the communication frequency of another remote controller 10 to which the divided signal is to be transmitted, and the index value of the soundness of the radio wave from another remote controller 10 to which the divided signal is to be transmitted. After the transmission of 1 divided signal, the 2 nd communication unit 12 transmits the next divided signal with the determined transmission interval left. Thus, the remote controller 10 of the transmission side of the divided signal can perform transmission processing in accordance with the communication status of the remote controller 10 of the transmission destination and the priority of the divided signal, and the air conditioning system 100 as a whole can perform flexible processing in accordance with the communication status of each remote controller 10.
The remote controller 10 according to the embodiment further includes a display unit 16, and the display unit 16 displays that the divided signal is being received while the remote controller 10 receives the divided signal from another remote controller 10. This allows the user of the remote controller 10 to know the delay in the reflection of the operation in advance.
The air conditioning system 100 according to the embodiment includes 1 or more remote controllers 10 that control 1 or more air conditioning devices 30, respectively. The remote controller 10 transmits and receives an operation signal C for controlling all or a part of 1 or more air conditioners 30 from 1 or more other remote controllers 10 or divides the operation signal C into a plurality of divided signals. The remote controller 10 detects radio waves emitted from 1 or more other remote controllers 10 in a period other than a period in which at least one of the operation signal and the division signal is transmitted and received. The remote controller 10 stores the intensity of the detected radio wave. The remote controller 10 calculates an index value indicating the soundness of the radio wave of each of the 1 or more other remote controllers 10 and the communication frequency based on the stored radio wave intensities of each of the 1 or more other remote controllers 10. When the operation signal C is transmitted to another remote controller 10, the remote controller 10 determines whether or not to divide the operation signal C based on at least one of the index value indicating the soundness of the radio wave and the communication frequency of the another remote controller 10, and transmits the operation signal C or the divided signal to the another remote controller 10 based on the determination. This enables communication between the remote controllers 10 of the air conditioning system 100 to flexibly cope with the communication status of the remote controllers 10.
Description of reference numerals:
10. 10A, 10B and 10C 823030and a remote controller; 11, 82301 st communication part; 11A 8230, the 1 st communication control part; 11B \ 82301 and a 1 st communication interface part; 12 \ 8230and 2 nd communication part; 12A 8230, a 2 nd communication control part; 12B 8230and a wireless device detection part; 12C 8230, 2 nd communication interface; 13 8230a wireless path management part; 14 \ 8230and a main control part; 15 8230and a display control part; 16 8230j, a display part; 20. 20A, 20B 8230a wireless communication device; 30 \ 8230and air-conditioning device; 100 \ 8230and air conditioning system; A. b, C, D8230operating signals; E. f8230and response signal.

Claims (8)

1. A remote controller 1 remote controller among 1 or more remote controllers for controlling 1 or more air conditioners, respectively, comprising:
a communication means for transmitting and receiving an operation signal for controlling all or a part of the 1 or more air conditioners to and from 1 or more other remote controllers or for dividing the operation signal into a plurality of divided signals, and for detecting radio waves emitted from the 1 or more other remote controllers during a period other than a period during which at least one of the operation signal and the divided signals is transmitted and received;
a wireless path management unit that stores the intensities of the radio waves transmitted from the 1 or more other remote controllers detected by the communication unit; and
a main control means for calculating at least 1 of an index value indicating soundness of the radio wave transmitted from each of the 1 or more other remote controllers and a communication frequency at which each of the 1 or more other remote controllers transmits and receives the operation signal and at least one of the division signals, based on the intensity of the radio wave transmitted from each of the 1 or more other remote controllers stored in the radio path management means,
when the operation signal is transmitted to the other remote controller, the main control means determines whether or not to divide the operation signal based on at least one of the index value indicating the soundness of the radio wave transmitted from the other remote controller and the communication frequency of the other remote controller, and the communication means transmits the operation signal or the divided signal obtained by dividing the operation signal into a plurality of parts to the other remote controller based on the determination,
the main control means may be configured to divide the operation signal into a plurality of divided signals when the index value indicating the soundness of the radio wave transmitted by the other remote controller to which the operation signal is transmitted is equal to or lower than a predetermined reference value, or when the communication frequency of the other remote controller to which the operation signal is transmitted is equal to or higher than a predetermined reference frequency.
2. The remote control of claim 1,
when the operation signal is divided into a plurality of the divided signals, the main control means determines the number of divisions of the operation signal based on at least one of the index value and the communication frequency.
3. The remote controller according to claim 1 or 2,
the main control means calculates the index value indicating the soundness of the radio wave emitted from each of the 1 or more other remote controllers based on the number of times the intensity of the radio wave emitted from each of the 1 or more other remote controllers is less than a predetermined reference intensity in a predetermined time period or a ratio of the time during which the intensity of the radio wave emitted from each of the 1 or more other remote controllers is less than the reference intensity to the predetermined time period with reference to the wireless path management means,
the main control means calculates the communication frequency of each of the 1 or more other remote controllers based on the number of times the communication means cannot detect the radio waves emitted from each of the 1 or more other remote controllers in the predetermined time period or the time period in which the communication means cannot detect the radio waves emitted from each of the 1 or more other remote controllers.
4. The remote controller according to claim 1 or 2,
the wireless path managing means stores the priority of the divided signal included in the received divided signal when the divided signal is received from the 1 or more other remote controllers,
when the communication means continues to receive the divided signals from the plurality of other remote controllers, the main control means determines the processing order of the divided signals from the plurality of other remote controllers based on the priority included in the divided signal from each of the plurality of other remote controllers, and causes the communication means to transmit a response signal to a part of the plurality of other remote controllers for a predetermined period of time to wait for transmission of the divided signal.
5. The remote controller according to claim 1 or 2,
when the communication means detects the radio waves from the plurality of other remote controllers, the main control means controls the communication means so as not to transmit the operation signal or a divided signal obtained by dividing the operation signal to the other remote controller having a high communication frequency among the plurality of other remote controllers, and controls the communication means so as to transmit the operation signal or a divided signal obtained by dividing the operation signal to the other remote controller having a low communication frequency.
6. The remote controller according to claim 1 or 2,
when the divided signals are transmitted, the main control means determines the transmission interval of the divided signals based on at least 1 of the priority of the divided signal, the communication frequency of the other remote controller to which the divided signal is transmitted, and the index value indicating the soundness of the radio wave from the other remote controller to which the divided signal is transmitted, and the communication means transmits the next divided signal with the transmission interval left after transmission of 1 divided signal.
7. The remote controller according to claim 1 or 2,
the remote controller further includes a display unit that displays that the remote controller is receiving the divided signal while the remote controller is receiving the divided signal from the other remote controller.
8. An air conditioning system having 1 or more remote controllers for controlling 1 or more air conditioning devices, respectively,
the 1 or more remote controllers respectively transmit and receive an operation signal for controlling all or a part of the 1 or more air-conditioning apparatuses to and from 1 or more other remote controllers or divide the operation signal into a plurality of divided signals,
detecting radio waves emitted from the 1 or more other remote controllers during a period other than a period during which at least one of the operation signal and the division signal is transmitted and received,
storing the intensity of the electric wave emitted by each of the 1 or more other remote controllers,
calculating at least 1 of an index value indicating soundness of the radio wave transmitted from each of the 1 or more other remote controllers and a communication frequency of each of the 1 or more other remote controllers for transmitting and receiving at least one of the operation signal and the division signal based on the stored intensity of the radio wave transmitted from each of the 1 or more other remote controllers,
when the operation signal is transmitted to the other remote controller, whether or not to divide the operation signal is determined based on at least one of the index value indicating the soundness of the radio wave transmitted by the other remote controller and the communication frequency of the other remote controller,
transmitting the operation signal or the division signal dividing the operation signal into a plurality of parts to the other remote controller based on the determination,
the operation signal is divided into a plurality of divided signals when the index value indicating the soundness of the radio wave transmitted by the other remote controller to which the operation signal is transmitted is equal to or lower than a predetermined reference value, or when the communication frequency of the other remote controller to which the operation signal is transmitted is equal to or higher than a predetermined reference frequency.
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