JP2000209668A - Living monitor system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To allow a monitor means at the outside of a home to register destination information to a central management means by communication without mistake and without cost increase. SOLUTION: A central management section 2 stores and manages operation information of an electric appliance 1 in a home and transmits the operation information to a monitor section 3 at the outside of the home to monitor a state of living in this monitor system. The monitor section 3 transmits destination information to the central management section 2, the central management section 2 returns the received destination information to the monitor section 3, the monitor section 3 compares the transmitted destination information with the returned destination information and transmits a signal approving registration to the central management section 2 when they are coincident. At the time of receiving the approval signal, the central management section 2 sets and registers the destination information.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a life monitor system capable of monitoring the safety of an elderly person or a physically handicapped person living alone over a long distance.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a living monitor system of this kind has been used to transmit information such as the operation of a predetermined electric appliance in a home, for example, the on / off operation of a hot water supply switch of an electric pot, to a dedicated signal transfer path or a home. The information is transmitted to centralized management means located in the home using the internal power line, and the centralized management means stores and manages the operation information and the like. Then, at a predetermined time, the information stored in the centralized management means dials the destination data (telephone number) registered in the centralized management means, and together with information such as a code for specifying a user,
The information is sent to a monitor such as a personal computer installed in a monitoring center such as a clinic outside the home via a telephone line, so that the safety of an elderly person or a physically handicapped person living alone can be monitored according to the usage status of electric appliances. .

[0003]

As a method of registering destination information such as a telephone number of a monitor means and a scheduled transmission time registered in the central management means, an input device such as a keyboard is provided in the central management means. This is done by directly inputting information through an input device.

However, in this case, when rewriting is required, such as when the centralized management means used once is installed in another home, or when information such as the scheduled transmission time is changed, a visit to the home should be made every time. There is a disadvantage that the destination information must be updated via the input device.

In consideration of the workability and convenience in updating the destination information of the centralized management means, a method of registering the destination information by communication from the monitoring center is conceivable.

However, when setting and registering the destination information by communication from the monitoring center, the destination information may change from the information set by the monitor means due to noise or the like during communication. The means requires an error detection function such as a parity check for the received transmission destination information. Here, the parity check is a method in which extra information for determination is added to the information transmitted by the monitor means, and the central management means checks whether there is an error based on the information. In this way, when an error detection function is installed on the central management means side,
This has not been realized because the burden on both software and hardware increases, and the cost of centralized management increases.

[0007] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to make it possible to register destination information without error by communication from a monitor outside the home to a central management unit without increasing costs.

[0008]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a life monitoring system according to the present invention stores and manages operation information of electric appliances arranged in a home by centralized management means, and stores the operation information outside the home. In a living monitoring system for monitoring a living situation by transmitting to a monitoring means, transmission destination information is transmitted from the monitoring means to the central management means, and the central management means returns the received transmission destination information to the monitoring means. Then, the destination information transmitted by the monitor means is compared with the reply information, and when they match, a signal for approving the registration is transmitted to the central management means, and when the approval signal is received by the central management means, the destination information is returned. Is configured to be registered.

According to the life monitoring system, destination information to be registered in the central management means is set by the monitoring means, and the destination information is transmitted / received to / from the central management means by communication, and is compared with the reply information to determine that they match. Since the transmission destination information is registered by the centralized management means, it is not necessary to add an error detection function to the transmission destination information such as a parity bit whose information increases. Therefore, the centralized management means does not increase the burden on both the software side and the hardware side, so that the cost can be reduced.

[0010] In the life monitoring system, when the monitor means receives the periodic transmission from the central management means, it transmits new destination information to the central management means, and the central management means When a signal that approves is received, the new destination information is updated and registered. If the centralized management means used once is installed in another home, or information such as scheduled transmission time is changed. Thus, it is possible to improve workability and convenience.

[0011] In the life monitoring system, it is preferable that the monitor means be configured to retransmit the destination information when the destination information and the reply information do not match.

It is preferable that the central management means performs a logical check on the transmission destination information received from the monitoring means, and does not register when an error is detected. Here, the logic check refers to checking whether there is clearly incorrect information, for example, when the scheduled transmission time is specified at 25:00. In this way, it is possible to reduce the communication cost when registering the transmission destination information in the central management unit.

[0013]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a life monitoring system of the present invention. This life monitoring system includes an electric appliance 1 and a centralized management unit 2 installed in a home to be monitored, and a monitor unit 3 installed in a monitoring center such as a clinic outside the home. In the present embodiment, a home power line 4 is used as a signal transport path as a means for connecting the electric appliance 1 and the central management unit 2, and an exchange (not shown) is used as a means for connecting the central management unit 2 and the monitor unit 3. A wired telephone line 5, which is a normal public telephone line connected via the Internet, is used.

As shown in FIG. 2, the electric appliance 1 includes a normal electric appliance 1 including a load control circuit 10 and a display panel 11, a control unit 12 including a microcomputer, a program storage unit 13, a timer 14, A detection unit 15, a modulation unit 16, and a transmission unit 17 are added. In the present embodiment, an electric pot is illustrated as the electric product 1, but in addition to this electric pot, any electric product 1 used at home, such as a rice cooker, an air purifier, an air conditioner, and an electric vacuum cleaner, may be used. It goes without saying that it can be applied.

The control unit 12 includes a program storage unit 13
In accordance with the program stored in the operation information obtained by detecting through the detection unit 15 that the electric appliance 1 has been operated. The operation information of the electric product 1 is transmitted to the central management unit 2 as a predetermined signal wave via the control unit 12, the modulation unit 16, and the transmission unit 17.

Here, as an operation switch for detecting the operation information, for example, in the case of an electric pot, a boiling switch, a hot water supply switch, a heat insulation switch and the like can be mentioned. Also, as load components for detecting operation information,
By operating the operation switch to turn on, a light-emitting diode that turns on, blinks, and the like, a motor that operates,
Load components such as heaters are included.

The information signal of each electric appliance 1 is, for example,
As shown in FIG. 3, it is represented by 6 bits in a binary system. Among them, b6 indicates elapsed time information, where 1 indicates regular information when no operation has been performed for a predetermined time or more, and 0 indicates other operation information. b5 to b3 indicate product information, depending on whether it corresponds to an electric pot or any other electric product 1, 1 if applicable, and 0 if not applicable.
Indicated by b2 indicates operation information, in which 1 indicates that the load component is operating, and 0 indicates that it is not operating. b1 indicates operation information, and indicates 1 when the operation switch is operated and 0 when the operation switch is not operated. For example, when the hot water supply switch of the electric pot is operated, the operation information “000101” is sent to the central management unit 2. The information signal can be variously modified, such as amplification of transmission information.

In this embodiment, when the operation information is transmitted to the central management unit 2, the operation information is not transmitted to the central management unit 2 no matter how many times the operation is performed intermittently for 16 minutes thereafter. Have been. In addition, a central management unit 2 described later
Also, for 16 minutes after receiving the information, even if the same information is received, it is not stored (saved).

The detection unit 15 detects operation information of various switches via the load control circuit 10 and detects operation information of the electric appliance 1 according to the operation state of the heater.
The information is output to the control unit 12.

The modulation section 16 frequency-modulates the signal wave of the information signal input from the control section 12 into a predetermined high-frequency current, and transmits the modulated wave to the domestic power line 4 via the transmission section 17. Thus, a signal is superimposed on the domestic power line 4 and transmitted to the central management unit 2.

The central management unit 2 receives and stores and manages operation information from the electric appliance 1 via the domestic power line 4 and, when a predetermined scheduled transmission time comes, a monitor (to be described later) via a telephone line 5. This is transmitted to the unit 3. Specifically, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, the centralized management unit 2 includes a power supply circuit unit 19,
Control unit 20, program storage unit 21, information storage unit 22,
Clock 23, receiver 24, demodulator 25, modem 26, DP
A (dial pulse) circuit section 27, a transmission terminal section 28, a reception terminal section 29, a switch 30, and a timer 33 are provided. The casing 18 is provided with a lamp 31 for displaying the state of the central management unit 2, a registration switch 32a, and a reset switch 32b, and also provided with the modular units 34a and 34b of the switch 30. .

The control unit 20 includes a program storage unit 21
Analysis of the received data according to the program stored in the
It stores (writes) various information in the information storage unit 22 and transmits the stored information. In the present embodiment, the control unit 20 shares an input port from the demodulation unit 25 and an input port from the modem 26, which are described later, and switches information by a switch (not shown) to input information from both. .

The information storage unit 22 stores an ID code for identifying a user, a time of regular transmission to the monitor unit 3, a day of the week (date and time) to be transmitted, a destination telephone number, a DP line or PB (push tone). It stores transmission destination information such as a selection signal type for selecting a line and operation information of the electric product 1. The information other than the operation information of the electric product 1 is registered by communication from the monitor unit 3 via the telephone line 5. In addition, a predetermined number of operation information of the electric appliance 1 can be registered, for example, 16 or the like. If the operation information exceeds the predetermined number, the storage date and time is rewritten from old data.

In the present embodiment, the two destination telephone numbers are registered, and if the first destination cannot communicate due to busy or no answer, the second destination is redialed. The setting is made so that the operation information in the information storage unit 22 is not cleared unless the operation information is transmitted to both transmission destinations.

The receiving section 24 receives the operation information of the electric product 1 superimposed on the electric current of the domestic power line 4.

The demodulation unit 25 demodulates the operation information input from the reception unit 24 into a predetermined signal wave and outputs the signal wave to the control unit 20.

The modem 26 transmits the telephone number of the monitor unit 3 and the operation information of the electric product 1 input from the control unit 20 to the telephone line 5 via a transmission terminal unit 28 described later.
And sends it to the monitor unit 3. Also,
It demodulates information input via the telephone line 5 and the receiving terminal unit 29 and outputs the information to the control unit 20.

The DP circuit section 27 outputs the data to the telephone line 5 when the telephone line 5 at home is registered as a DP line.

The transmission terminal unit 28 transmits information input from the control unit 20 via the modem 26 to the monitor unit 3 via the switch 30 and the telephone line 5.

The receiving terminal unit 29 transmits information from the monitor unit 3 input via the switch 30 and the telephone line 5 to the control unit 20 via the modem 26.

The switch 30 has one modular 34a.
Is connected to a modular jack 35 from a telephone line 5, and the other modular 34b is connected to a modular jack 37 from a telephone 36, so that the telephone line 5 is shared with the telephone 36. Normally, the switch 30 is set so that the telephone line 5 is connected to the telephone 36 side, and when the scheduled transmission time comes, the operation of the registration switch 32a, which will be described later, is performed by the instruction of the control unit 20. Central Management 2
Is connected to the telephone line 5.

The lamp 31 indicates the operating state of the central management unit 2. For example, as shown in Table 1 below, if the lamp blinks rapidly, the transmission destination information to the monitor unit 3 has not been registered. If it blinks slowly, telephone line 5
Indicates that the destination information has been registered and that the operation information of the electric appliance 1 has not been received, and if it is lit for only one second, indicates that the operation information has been received. If the light is turned off, it indicates that the destination information has been registered and the operation information has been received, or that the power is not supplied.

[0033]

[Table 1]

When the centralized management unit 2 is installed in a specific home, the registration switch 32a pushes for about one second to receive transmission destination information from the monitor unit 3 to be described later via the telephone line 5. Then, the information is stored in the information storage unit 22. Also, if the destination information has been registered,
Further, by performing a push operation for two seconds or more, a test transmission is performed to the monitor unit 3 based on the stored transmission destination information.

The reset switch 32b is for erasing all information stored in the information storage unit 22 and returning it to an initial state, for example, for reusing the centralized management unit 2 used in another home. .

The monitor section 3 is, as shown in FIG.
Power supply circuit section 38, control section 39, program storage section 4
0, an information storage unit 41, a clock 42, an input unit 43,
It comprises a display unit 44 and a modem 45. As the monitor unit 3, a personal computer is suitably applied.

The control unit 39 includes a program storage unit 40
In accordance with the program stored in the storage unit, the operation information input from each home is stored, and the transmission destination information to the monitor unit 3 is set and registered in the newly installed central management unit 2. As the control of the control unit 39,
There are three types of operation information reception processing, data display processing, and destination information registration processing. And these programs
The supervisor of the monitoring center activates and uses them sequentially. When the personal computer which is the monitor unit 3 is used exclusively for monitoring and the modem 45 is not used by other software,
It is preferable that the program for the operation information receiving process is set to be a so-called resident mode, and is automatically activated when operation information is transmitted from each home.

The information storage unit 41 is for centrally managing and storing operation information and operation information of the electric appliance 1 transmitted from each home to be monitored.

The input section 43 is for inputting information of the newly installed central management section 2 and a home user ID to be displayed when displaying data. As the input information of the central management unit 2, for example, as shown in FIG. 6, the user ID number, name, date of birth, gender, address, postal code, family structure, telephone number, dial classification, transmission available day, There are two scheduled transmission times, two destination phone numbers, emergency contacts, emergency contact phone numbers, notes, and the like. When the destination information registration processing is executed, the user ID number, dial classification, transmission day of the week, two scheduled transmission times, and two destination telephone numbers of the input information are transmitted. Note that the two destination phone numbers are
For example, the first destination telephone number is a monitoring center,
The second destination telephone number is a relative's house of the monitored home.
These information can be arbitrarily changed as desired, but the change operation (destination information registration processing)
Should be performed only on the monitoring center side.

The display section 44 is a monitor, and when the data display processing is executed, displays the information and displays an input screen corresponding to each processing.

The modem 45 modulates the transmission destination information and transmits it to the centralized management unit 2 installed in each home via the telephone line 5.
And demodulates the operation information received via the control unit 39 and outputs it to the control unit 39.

In the life monitoring system having the above-described configuration, the centralized management unit 2 is installed in a specific home to be monitored, the telephone 36 is used to contact the monitoring center, and the destination information is set and registered via the monitoring unit 3. . After that, electrical products 1
After the communication state between the electric product 1 and the central management unit 2 is confirmed, a test transmission process to the monitor unit 3 is performed, thereby completing the installation work.

When the electric appliance 1 is installed, the household power line 4 is divided into two main wirings in the home, and the electric power supply 1 and the electric power supply G2 on one wiring side are centrally managed by the electric power supply 1 and the power supply G2. The centralized management unit 2 can receive operation information from the electrical product 1 by connecting it to the unit 2. However, if the electrical product 1 or the centralized management unit 2 is connected to a power supply G3 of a different wiring, the centralized management unit 2 The unit 2 cannot receive operation information from the electric appliance 1 even in one home. Therefore, when the electric appliance 1 is connected, it is confirmed whether or not the lamp 31 of the central management unit 2 is turned on for one second when the electric appliance 1 is connected.

Next, information communication by the life monitor system of the present invention will be specifically described. First, as shown in FIG. 7, the control unit 12 of the electric pot, which is the electric product 1, inserts a connection cord into a power source by an installing worker or user. Is transmitted to the central management unit 2 via the domestic power line 4.

Then, after starting the timer 14 in step S2, it is detected in step S3 whether or not a hot water supply operation has been performed. If the operation has been detected, the process proceeds to step S4. If the operation has not been detected, the process proceeds to step S4. Goes to step S7.

In step S4, the timer 14 is reset. In step S5, the timer 14 is restarted. In step S6, an operation information signal indicating that a hot water supply operation has been performed is transmitted via the domestic power line 4. The data is transmitted to the central management unit 2 and the process returns to step S3.

On the other hand, in step S7, it is detected whether or not a predetermined time has elapsed without any operation, and if it has elapsed, the process proceeds to step S4, the timer 14 is reset, and in step S5, the timer is reset. After starting 14, in step S <b> 6, information indicating that the electric product 1 is energized (in the case of an electric pot, keeping heat) is transmitted to the central management unit 2 via the domestic power line 4, It returns to step S3. If the predetermined time has not elapsed, step S
Return to 3.

Then, steps S3 to S
The operations up to 7 are repeated until the connection cord is unplugged from the power supply and is turned off.

Next, the operation of the control unit 20 of the central management unit 2 will be described. As shown in FIG. 8, when the connection cord is connected to the power supply, the control unit 20 of the centralized management unit 2 first detects in step S10 whether or not the transmission destination information to the monitor unit 3 has been registered. In the case of registration, the process proceeds to step S11, and in the case of registration, the process proceeds to step S16.

In step S11, it is detected whether or not there is an incoming call on the telephone line 5 via the receiving terminal unit 29. If an incoming call is detected, the process proceeds to step S12. If no incoming call is detected, the process proceeds to step S10. Return.

In step S12, it is detected whether or not a registration operation has been performed by the installing operator operating the registration switch 32a. If the operation has been detected, the process proceeds to step S13. If the operation has not been detected, the process proceeds to step S13. Step S1
Return to 0. That is, the central management unit 2 does not transmit and receive the operation information unless the destination information registration processing by the monitor unit 3 described below is performed. In this state, the central management unit 2
Lamp 31 is blinking at a fast cycle.

In step S13, after the destination information registration processing is performed, it is detected in step S14 whether or not the power has been cut off by the user disconnecting the connection cord from the power supply. Proceeds to step S15, cancels the determination of the selected signal type, and then proceeds to step S10
Return to On the other hand, if it is determined in step S14 that the power supply has not been cut off, step S15 is skipped and the process returns to step S10.

In step S16, it is detected whether or not the monitor unit 3 has already been accessed (transmitted) once after the central management unit 2 is connected to the power source. If not, the process proceeds to step S17. If so, the process proceeds to step S19. That is, when the connection cord of the central management unit 2 is unplugged from the power supply and re-inserted, the test transmission processing described later can be executed any number of times.

In step S17, it is detected whether or not a test transmission instruction has been issued by the operator operating the registration switch 32a for two seconds or more. If a test transmission instruction has been detected, the flow advances to step S18 to perform test transmission. If no instruction is detected, the process proceeds to step S19.

In step S18, after the test transmission processing is performed, the process proceeds to step S14, where the presence or absence of power interruption is detected in the same manner as described above.
In step 15, after the selection signal type is released from being determined,
Return to 10.

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S16 that the monitor unit 3 has already been accessed,
If no test transmission instruction is detected in step S17,
After performing the operation information transmission / reception processing at 19, the process proceeds to step S14 in the same manner as described above.

The destination information registration processing, test transmission processing, and operation information transmission / reception processing are performed by transmitting / receiving information to / from the monitor unit 3.

More specifically, the transmission destination information registration processing is performed by connecting the centralized management unit 2 to the power supply and the telephone line 5, then calling the monitoring center by the telephone 36 to transmit a ready completion comment, Hang up once. When the destination information registration process described later is performed by the monitor unit 3 of the monitoring center, a telephone call arrives at the home to be monitored, and after confirming whether or not the telephone is from the monitoring center, the registration is performed. This is performed by operating the switch 32a for one second.

The destination information registration processing by the control unit 20 of the central management unit 2 will be described below. In the destination information registration process, as shown in FIG. 9, first, in step S20, the switch 30 is switched to connect the telephone line 5 to the central management unit 2 by operating the registration switch 32a. . Thereby, the lamp 31 of the central management unit 2
Shifts from blinking with a fast cycle to blinking with a slow cycle.

Next, at step S21, the monitor unit 3
After transmitting an answer tone indicating that the telephone line 5 has been connected to, in step S22, the process waits until all the transmission destination information transmitted from the monitor unit 3 is received.

Next, at step S23, the received information is logically checked. Here, this logic check is
When information changes due to noise during transmission, for example,
This means checking whether there is clearly incorrect information, such as when the scheduled transmission time is specified at 25:00.

If it is determined in step S24 that there is no error based on whether the received information has an error, the process proceeds to step S25. On the other hand, if it is determined that there is an error, the process proceeds to step S30, where the monitor unit 3
After transmitting the error code, the process returns to step S22 to receive the transmission destination information again.

In step S25, the destination information received for confirmation is returned to the monitor 3, and
At 26, the process waits until an answer signal from the monitor unit 3 is received.

When the answer signal is received, it is detected in step S27 whether or not the signal is an OK signal (ACK) for acknowledging the registration. If the signal is an OK signal (ACK), the flow advances to step S28 to proceed to step S28. If the signal is a signal (STX), the process returns to step S22, and the subsequently transmitted operation information is received again.

In step S28, after the destination information is registered in the information storage unit 22, in step S29, the telephone line 5
And return.

As a result, the central management unit 2
Shifts from a slow blinking state to a lighting state, and a state where transmission of operation information to the monitor unit 3 and reception of operation information from the electric product 1 are enabled is achieved.

The test transmission processing of the present embodiment is performed by transmitting actual operation information of the electric appliance 1.
That is, from the above state, the connection cord of the electric pot as the electric product 1 is connected to the power source, and the hot water supply switch is operated, so that the lamp 31 of the central management unit 2 is turned on for one second, Check that reception is possible. Thus, the lamp 31 of the central management unit 2 is turned off.

In this state, after confirming that the program for performing the operation information receiving process by activating the telephone by calling the monitoring center by the telephone 36 has been activated, and then disconnecting the telephone, the operator sets the registration switch 32a to two. Keep pushing for more than a second.

The test transmission processing by the control unit 20 of the central management unit 2 will be described below. As shown in FIG. 10, the control unit 20 of the centralized management unit 2 first executes step S40.
Then, it is detected whether or not the telephone line 5 is disconnected. If the telephone line 5 is disconnected, the process proceeds to step S41. If the telephone line 5 is connected (the telephone 5 is being used), the process proceeds to step S66 in FIG. .

In step S41, the selected selection signal type is selected, and in step S42, the registered first signal type is selected.
After dialing the telephone number of the monitor unit 3, which is the transmission destination information, the process proceeds to step S43.

In step S43, it is detected whether or not the monitor section 3 and the telephone line 5 are connected. If the connection is made, the process proceeds to step S44 in FIG. On the other hand, if not connected, the process proceeds to step S59 to start the timer 33. In step S60, it is detected whether or not the timer 33 has counted up. If not, the process returns to step S43 to return to step S43. If it has, the process proceeds to step S66 in FIG. The timer 33
Is about 50 seconds.

As shown in FIG. 11, in step S44, an ID code is added to the operation information stored in the information storage unit 22, and in step S45, transmission of the operation information signal is started.

Next, in step S46, it is detected whether or not all the operation information has been transmitted. If the transmission has been completed, the process proceeds to step S47. Step S66
Proceed to.

In step S47, the process waits until an answer signal from the monitor unit 3 is received. When the answer signal is received, in step S48, it is detected whether or not the signal is an OK signal (STX). If it is, the process proceeds to step S49. On the other hand, if the signal is an NG signal (NACK), the process proceeds to step S61, where 1 is added to the number of retransmissions. In step S62, it is detected whether the number of retransmissions is the fourth time. Is the step S4
Returning to step 4, the operation information is transmitted again, and if it is the fourth time, the process proceeds to step S66 in FIG. That is, the operation information can be transmitted four times in total.

In step S49, the OK signal (ST
The time information transmitted along with X) is temporarily stored, and the time information is logically checked in step S50.

Next, in step S51, it is detected whether or not there is an error by a logic check. If there is no error, the process proceeds to step S52. On the other hand, if there is an error, the process proceeds to step S63, where an error code is transmitted to the monitor unit 3, and the process returns to step S47 to receive the time information transmitted again.

In step S52, after the received time information is returned to the monitor unit 3 for confirmation, as shown in FIG. 12, the process waits in step S53 until an answer signal is received.

When the answer signal is received, it is detected in step S54 whether or not the signal is an OK signal (ACK). If the signal is an OK signal (ACK), the flow advances to step S55. On the other hand, if it is an NG signal (STX), the process proceeds to step S64.

In step S55, the temporarily stored time information is updated to the time of the clock 23 of the central management unit 2, and in step S56, the type of the selected signal is determined.
Then, the operation information stored in the information storage unit 22 is cleared, and in step S58, the telephone line 5 is cut off, and the process returns.

On the other hand, in step S54, the NG signal (ST
X), the number of retransmissions is set to 1 in step S64.
In step S65, it is detected whether or not the number of retransmissions is the fourth time. If it is not the fourth time, the process returns to step S49 in FIG. 11 and is transmitted along with the NG signal (STX). Temporarily saves the time information that comes, and step S50
The subsequent steps are repeated, and if it is the fourth time, step S6
Proceed to 6. That is, transmission and reception of time information can be performed four times in total similarly to the operation information.

In step S66, the set selection signal type is switched, the flow advances to step S58, and after the telephone line 5 is cut off, the flow returns. That is, when the operation information cannot be transmitted to the monitor unit 3 normally, the operation information is stored until it is transmitted normally unless rewritten by the subsequent operation information.

The operation information transmission / reception processing of the control unit 20 of the central management unit 2 will be described below. As shown in FIG. 13, the control unit 20 of the centralized management unit 2 first executes step S70.
Then, it is detected whether or not the operation information from the electric appliance 1 has been received. Then, when the operation information is received, in step S71, a time is added to the received operation information and stored in the information storage unit 22, and then the process proceeds to step S72. On the other hand, if the operation information has not been received, the process skips step S71 and proceeds to step S72.

In step S72, it is detected whether or not there is a redial request. If there is no redial request, the flow advances to step S73 to detect whether or not the scheduled transmission time has come, and determines that the scheduled transmission time has come. If so, the process proceeds to step S75, and if it is determined that the scheduled transmission time has not been reached, the process returns. On the other hand, step S7
If there is a redial request in step 2, step S74
It is determined whether or not the redial timer has counted up, and if it has counted up, the process proceeds to step S75.
If not, return.

In step S75, it is detected whether or not the telephone line 5 is disconnected. If the telephone line 5 is disconnected, the process proceeds to step S76. If the telephone line 5 is connected, the process proceeds to step S105 in FIG.

In step S76, the set selection signal type is selected. In step S77, the set destination telephone number is dialed, and the flow advances to step S78. Here, the selection signal type is a fixed selection signal type when the test transmission processing is completed normally, and when the test transmission processing is not completed normally due to some trouble, the step S66 is performed. Is the selection signal type switched in step (1). If the test transmission process is not being performed, the selected signal type is set by the monitor unit 3. Further, the set destination is 1
In the case of the second dial, the telephone number of the monitor unit 3 which is the first destination, and in the case of the second dial (including the first redial), the telephone number of the relative's home which is the second destination It is.

In step S78, it is detected whether or not the monitor section 3 and the telephone line 5 are connected. If the connection is made, the process proceeds to step S79 in FIG. On the other hand, if the connection is not established, the process proceeds to step S98 to start the timer 33. In step S99, it is detected whether or not the timer 33 has counted up. If it is up, the process proceeds to step S105 in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 14, in step S79, an ID code is added to the operation information stored in the information storage unit 22, and in step S80, transmission of an operation information signal is started.

Next, in step S81, it is detected whether or not all the operation information has been transmitted. If the transmission has been completed, the process proceeds to step S82. If the transmission has been completed halfway due to some trouble, FIG. Step S10
Go to 5.

In step S82, the process waits until an answer signal from the monitor unit 3 is received. When the answer signal is received, in step S83, it is detected whether or not the signal is an OK signal (STX). If it is, the process proceeds to step S84. On the other hand, if it is an NG signal (NACK), the process proceeds to step S100, and the number of retransmissions is set to 1
In step S101, it is detected whether or not the number of retransmissions is the fourth time. If it is not the fourth time, the process returns to step S79, and the operation information is transmitted again. Proceed to step S105 of No. 15.

In step S84, the OK signal (ST
The time information transmitted along with X) is temporarily stored, and the time information is logically checked in step S85.

Next, in step S86, it is detected whether or not there is an error by a logic check. If there is no error, the process proceeds to step S87. On the other hand, if there is an error, the process proceeds to step S102, where an error code is transmitted to the monitor unit 3 and the process returns to step S82 to receive the time information transmitted again.

In step S87, the received time information is transmitted to the monitor unit 3 for confirmation, and then, as shown in FIG. 15, the process waits in step S88 until an answer signal is received.

When the answer signal is received, in step S89, the OK signal (A
CK), and if it is an OK signal (ACK), the process proceeds to step S90. On the other hand, if it is an NG signal (STX), the process proceeds to step S103.

In step S90, the temporarily stored time information is updated to the time of the clock 23 of the central management unit 2, and in step S91, the selected signal type is determined.

Then, as shown in FIG.
At 92, it is detected whether or not the operation information has been transmitted to the other transmission destination. If the operation information has been transmitted, the operation information stored in the information storage unit 22 is cleared at step S93, and the redial is performed at step S94. After clearing the number of times, step S
At 95, the telephone line 5 is cut off and the routine returns. Also,
If it is determined in step S92 that the operation information has not been transmitted to the other destination, the telephone number to be dialed is set to the other destination telephone number in step S96, and the redial timer is set in step S97. Thereafter, in step S95, the telephone line 5 is cut off, and the routine returns.

On the other hand, the NG signal (S
TX), as shown in FIG.
In step 103, 1 is added to the number of retransmissions, and step S104
Then, it is detected whether or not the number of retransmissions is the fourth time. If it is not the fourth time, the process returns to step S84 in FIG. 14 and the time information transmitted along with the NG signal (STX) is temporarily determined. The step S85 is repeated after the saving, and if it is the fourth time, the process proceeds to the step S105.

In step S105, it is detected whether or not the selection signal type has been determined. If the selection signal type has been determined, the flow advances to step S107. On the other hand, if the selection signal type has not been determined, the process proceeds to step S106, switches the selection signal type, and proceeds to step S107.

In step S107, it is detected whether or not the number of redials for one destination is the fourth time. If it is the fourth time for one destination, step S108
Then, the number of redials is cleared, and in step S95, the telephone line 5 is cut off and the process returns. On the other hand, if the number of redials for one destination is not the fourth,
As shown in FIG. 16, in step S109, it is detected whether or not the operation information has been transmitted to the other destination. If the operation information has been transmitted, the process proceeds to step S111. If not, the process proceeds to step S110. Then, the telephone number to be dialed is switched to the other destination, and the process proceeds to step S111.

In step S111, 1 is added to the number of redials. In step S112, a redial timer is set. In step S95, the telephone line 5 is cut off, and the routine returns.

As described above, in the present embodiment, when transmission has not been completed to any of the two transmission destinations,
In the first redial, the user dials the second transmission destination. If the operation information cannot be transmitted in the first redial, the telephone number to be dialed to the first transmission destination is switched again in the second redial. That is, the telephone numbers to be dialed are sequentially switched until transmission to any of them is completed, and when transmission to any of them is completed, the telephone number is redialed only to an uncompleted transmission destination. If the transmission of the operation information is not completed to both transmission destinations, the operation information in the information storage unit 22 is set so as not to be cleared. As a result, even if one of the transmission destinations becomes unable to communicate for some reason, the other monitor unit 3 can surely monitor a specific home.

Next, the operation of the control section 39 of the monitor section 3 will be described. As shown in FIG. 17, the control unit 39 of the monitor unit 3 first detects whether or not a transmission request for transmission destination information has been made in step S120, and if not, proceeds to step S121 to make a request. Otherwise, the process proceeds to step S124.

In step S121, it is detected whether or not there is any incoming call on the telephone line 5. If an incoming call is detected, the process proceeds to step S122. If no incoming call is detected, the process proceeds to step S125.

In step S122, it is detected whether or not the incoming call is from the central management unit 2 of each home. And
If there is an incoming call from the centralized management unit 2, step S1
Proceeding to 23, and after performing the operation information receiving process, the process returns to step S120. On the other hand, if the call is not a call from the central management unit 2 but a normal telephone call, the process skips step S123 and returns to step S120.

On the other hand, if the transmission request of the transmission destination information is made in step S120, step S124
After executing the destination information registration process, the process proceeds to step S12.
Return to 0.

If no incoming call is detected through the telephone line 5 in step S121, the process proceeds to step S12.
In step 5, it is detected whether or not there has been a data display request for the operation information of each household that has been received. If the request has been detected, the process proceeds to step S126. If the request has not been detected, the process returns to step S120. .

In step S126, the ID code of a specific home requested to be displayed through the input unit 43 is identified.
In step S127, the searched data is displayed on the display unit 44, and the process returns to step S120.

The operation information receiving process by the control section 39 of the monitor section 3 will be described below. As shown in FIG. 18, the control unit 39 of the monitor unit 3 first executes step S13.
0, the telephone line 5 is connected, and in step S131,
Then, it waits until all the transmitted operation information from the home to be monitored is received.

When all the operation information is received, it is determined in step S132 whether or not there is clearly incorrect information, for example, the reception time of the operation information is 25:00, as in the centralized management unit 2. Is logically checked.

Then, in step S133, it is detected whether or not there is an error by the logic check. If there is no error, the flow advances to step S134. On the other hand, if there is an error, the process proceeds to step S140, and 1 is added to the number of errors. Then, in step S141, it is determined whether or not the number of errors is the fifth. Proceeding to S142, the error code is transmitted to the central management unit 2, and the process returns to step S131 to receive the operation information transmitted from the central management unit 2 again. If it is determined in step S141 that the number of errors is the fifth, the process proceeds to step S139, which will be described later, and returns after cutting off the telephone line 5.

If it is determined in step S133 that there is no error, in step S134, the OK signal (ST
X), after adding time information to the central management unit 2,
In step S135, the process waits until the time information is returned. Here, as reply information from the central management unit 2, time information is returned when communication is normally performed, and an error code is returned when time information cannot be transmitted normally due to some trouble. Come.

Next, in step S136, the returned time information is compared with the transmitted time information, and in step S1
If it is determined in step 37 that there is no error, step S1
Proceed to 38. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S137 that there is an error, the process proceeds to step S143, where 1 is added to the number of errors. If not, the process returns to step S134, and the OK signal (ST
X) with time information added and transmitted to the central management unit 2. If it is determined in step S144 that the number of errors is the fifth, the process proceeds to step S139, in which the telephone line 5 is cut off, and the process returns.

If it is determined in step S137 that there is no error, an OK signal (ACK) is transmitted to the central management unit 2 in step S138, and then step S139 is performed.
Then, after the telephone line 5 is cut off, the process returns.

The transmission of the operation information from the central management unit 2 to the monitor unit 3 is interrupt processing, and when these are connected via the telephone line 5, the central management unit 2 cuts off the telephone line 60 after 60 seconds. Then, after 5 seconds, the monitor section 3 cuts off the telephone line 5.

Hereinafter, the destination information registration processing by the control section 39 of the monitor section 3 will be described. This transmission destination information registration processing is executed by the monitor of the monitoring center after inputting the information shown in FIG. 6 and then clicking the transmission button on the screen of the display unit 44.

When the destination information registration process is executed, the control unit 39 of the monitor unit 3 first waits at step S150 until the telephone line 5 is shut off, as shown in FIG. If it is shut off, step S151
Then, dial the registration destination (specific home).

Then, in step S152, the process waits until an answer tone from the central management unit 2 is detected. When an answer tone is detected, the destination information is transmitted to the central management unit 2 in step S153.
, And waits until reply information from the central management unit 2 is received. Here, as the reply information, when the communication is normally performed, the transmission destination information to be registered which is transmitted is returned,
If the transmission failed due to some trouble, an error code is returned.

Then, in step S155, the reply information is compared with the transmitted information. In step S156, if it is determined that there is no error, the flow advances to step S157 to transmit an OK signal (ACK) for approving the registration. In step S158, the telephone line 5 is cut off, and the process returns. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S156 that there is an error, the process proceeds to step S159, and after adding 1 to the number of errors, it is determined in step S160 whether or not the number of errors is the fifth. If not, the process returns to step S153, and the transmission destination information to be registered is transmitted to the central management unit 2 again. Then, the step S160
If it is determined that the number of errors is the fifth, the process proceeds to step S158, where the telephone line 5 is cut off and the process returns.

As described above, according to the life monitoring system of the present invention, the safety of an elderly person or a physically handicapped person in a specific home can be monitored over a long distance based on the operation information of the electric appliance 1, and the monitor unit 3 can collectively monitor the safety. Transmission destination information to be registered in the management unit 2 can be set, and the transmission destination information can be set and registered in the centralized management 2 by communication. If the destination information is returned by returning the destination information received by the central management unit 2 and comparing the reply information with the transmitted information, if the destination information matches, the central management unit 2 registers the destination information. With this configuration, it is not necessary to add a parity bit or the like whose information increases to the transmission destination information. As a result, the central management unit 2 does not increase the burden on both the software side and the hardware side, and can reduce the cost.

Since the transmission day of the week including the scheduled transmission time and the transmission date and time can be arbitrarily set according to the user's request, the transmission of the operation information is not performed on the day or date when the user is going out. be able to. As a result, erroneous determination of safety due to the unused state can be prevented, and unnecessary communication costs can be reduced.
Further, the time is adjusted so that the time of the centralized management unit 2 coincides with the time of the monitor unit 3 at the time of scheduled transmission, so that a deviation of the scheduled transmission time can be prevented.

FIGS. 20 and 21 show an operation information receiving process by the control unit 39 of the monitor unit 3 according to the second embodiment. In the second embodiment, when a person at the monitoring center wants to change the destination information of the centralized management unit 2 of a specific home,
It can be changed when the regular transmission from the home is received. In this centralized management unit 2, step S82
Therefore, the only difference is that new destination information accompanying the OK signal (STX) is received instead of the time information.
Detailed description is omitted.

At the monitoring center, new destination information is first input via the input unit 43 from the home whose destination information is to be changed, before the scheduled transmission time. Then, for example, when the regular transmission is received from the home, the destination information is updated by executing a registration instruction of the destination information.

Specifically, the control section 39 of the monitor section 3
As shown in FIG. 20, first, as in the first embodiment, in step S130, the telephone line 5 is connected, and in step S131, all operation information transmitted from the monitored home is transmitted. After receiving, in step S132,
Perform a logic check.

Next, in step S133, it is detected whether or not the received operation information has an error. If there is no error, the process proceeds to step S134-1, while if there is an error, the same as described above. , Steps S140 to S1
At 42, if the number of errors is not the fifth time, an error code is transmitted to the centralized management unit 2. If it is determined that the number of errors is the fifth time, the telephone line 5 is cut off and the process returns.

In step S134-1, it is detected whether or not a person at the monitoring center has made an update registration request for destination information. If an update registration request has been detected, step S13 is performed.
At 4-2, new transmission destination information is added to the OK signal (STX) to set a transmission signal, and the process proceeds to step S134-4. On the other hand, if no registration request is detected in step S134-1, the process proceeds to step S134-3, and the process proceeds to step S134-3.
A transmission signal is set by adding time information to the signal (STX), and the process proceeds to step S134-4.

In step S134-4, after transmitting the transmission signal set in step S134-2 or step S134-3 to the centralized management unit 2, step S135.
Wait until the transmitted information is returned. here,
The reply information from the centralized management unit 2 is stored in step S134
If the new transmission destination information is transmitted in step S-2, the transmission destination information is the transmission destination information. If the time information is transmitted in step S134-3, the transmission destination information is the transmission time information. If the information cannot be normally transmitted to the central management unit 2, an error code is transmitted.

Then, in step S136, the transmitted information is compared with the return information. If it is determined in step S137 that there is no error, the flow advances to step S138 to transmit an OK signal (ACK) for approving the registration. , Step S
At 139, the process returns after the telephone line 5 is cut off. As a result, the central management unit 2 is updated and registered with the new destination information. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S137 that there is an error, in step S143, the number of errors is set to 1
Is added, and if the number of errors is not the fifth in step S144, the process returns to step S134-4, adds the information set to the OK signal (STX) again, and transmits the OK signal (STX) to the central management unit 2, and then returns to step S144. If it is determined that the number of errors is the fifth error, the telephone line 5 is cut off and the process returns.

As described above, by making the destination information changeable at the time of regular transmission from the centralized management unit 2, when the user of the monitored home goes out for some reason, when the user goes out, the regular Since it can be easily changed, such as not to perform transmission, convenience in use can be improved.

[0128]

As is apparent from the above description, the life monitoring system of the present invention can monitor the safety and living conditions of a specific home by operating information on electric appliances, and can register the information in the centralized management means. Since the destination information can be set and registered from the monitor means through communication, the convenience can be improved. Further, by making it possible to update the destination information at the time of regular transmission from the centralized management means, the convenience in use can be further improved.

Further, the destination information to be registered is transmitted / received between the monitor means and the central management means, and when the monitor means matches with the reply information from the central management means by matching, the destination information is stored in the central management means. Is registered, it is not necessary to add an error detection function to the transmission destination information such as a parity bit whose information increases. Therefore, the centralized management means does not increase the burden on both the software side and the hardware side, and the cost can be reduced.

If the central management means is configured to logically check the destination information received from the monitoring means and not register when an error is detected, the communication when registering the destination information in the central management means is performed. Costs can be reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a life monitor system of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a circuit diagram of electric appliances installed in each home and a central management unit.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing information transmitted by an electric product.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a central management unit.

FIG. 5 is a circuit diagram of a monitor unit.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating information input by a monitor unit.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an operation of the electric product.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the operation of the central management unit.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of a destination information registration process of the central management unit.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of a test transmission process of the central management unit.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart continued from FIG. 10;

FIG. 12 is a flowchart continued from FIG. 11;

FIG. 13 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of an operation information transmission / reception process of the central management unit.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart continued from FIG. 13;

FIG. 15 is a flowchart continued from FIG. 14;

FIG. 16 is a continuation of the flowchart in FIG. 15;

FIG. 17 is a flowchart showing the operation of the monitor unit.

FIG. 18 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of an operation information receiving process of the monitor unit.

FIG. 19 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of a destination information registration process of the monitor unit.

FIG. 20 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of an operation information receiving process of the monitor unit according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 21 is a flowchart continued from FIG. 20.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Electric products, 2 ... Central management unit (Central management means), 3 ...
Monitor part (monitor means), 4 ... household power line, 5 ...
Telephone line, 18 ... casing, 31 ... lamp, 32a ...
Registration switch (test transmission switch), 32b reset switch, 36 telephone set, 45 modem.

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Kuniwa Eba 1-20-5 Temma, Kita-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka Elephant-in-Mahobin Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Ken Yamane 1 Tenma, Kita-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka No. 20-5, Elephant Seal, Mahobin Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Hiroki Yamada 1-20-5, Tenma, Kita-ku, Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture Elephant Seal, Mahobin Co., Ltd. DD03 DD24 DD37 DD38 EE06 EE12 FF01 FF02 FF10 FF19 FF20 FF23 GG09 GG12 GG21 GG23 GG29 GG30 GG32 GG36 GG43 GG51 GG57 GG67 GG73 5K048 AA06 BA12 BA13 DC06 DC07 EB03 EB12 FA08 FA01 U01 HA01

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A life monitor system for storing and managing operation information of electric appliances arranged in a home by a central management unit and monitoring the living situation by transmitting the operation information to a monitor unit outside the home. While transmitting the destination information from the means to the centralized management means, the centralized management means returns the received destination information to the monitor means, compares the destination information transmitted by the monitor means with the reply information, A living monitor system characterized in that a signal for approving registration is transmitted to the central management means when these match, and the destination information is set and registered when the central management means receives the approval signal. 2. The monitor means, upon receiving a scheduled transmission from the centralized management means, transmits new destination information to the centralized management means, and the centralized management means transmits a signal for acknowledging the registration. 2. The life monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein upon receiving the information, the new destination information is updated and registered. 3. The life monitor according to claim 1, wherein the monitor unit retransmits the destination information when the destination information and the reply information do not match. system. 4. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the central management unit performs a logical check on the destination information received from the monitor unit, and does not register when an error is detected. Life monitoring system according to the paragraph.