JP2001241759A - Signal transmission system in bathroom - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a bath remote controller inexpensive and excellent in handling in a bathroom planning wherein wiring can be simplified and the designing of the bathroom is emphasized. SOLUTION: An infrared ray transmitting and receiving unit 31 is mounted on a bath remote controller 3 in a bathroom B, while an infrared ray transmitting and receiving device 4 is provided in the ceiling part B1 of the bathroom to transmit signals between the unit 31 and the device 4 by infrared ray signals through wireless telecommunication. Further, signal transmission between the infrared ray transmitting and receiving device 4 and a hot-water supplier 1 as well as a kitchen remote controller 2 is effected by wire telecommunication employing a two-core wire 5.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a signal transmission system in a bathroom, and more particularly to a modification of a signal transmission system of a remote control device provided in a bathroom for remote control of a water heater.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a hot water supply system having a function of supplying hot water to a bathtub, a remote control device (hereinafter, a bath remote control) for remotely controlling a water heater is provided in a bathroom. Such a bath remote controller is usually connected to the control unit of the water heater by a wire via a two-core wire, and transmits and receives control data to and from the water heater via the two-core wire.

[0003] In recent years, many hot water heaters have a remote control device (hereinafter referred to as a kitchen remote control) in addition to the above-mentioned bathroom (eg, kitchen). A voice remote unit, an image receiving unit, an image capturing unit, etc. are mounted on a bath remote control and a kitchen remote control that constitutes a remote control. In addition, calls and image transmission between the remote controls may be performed. In the same manner as described above, there have been provided devices capable of performing telephone calls and image transmission.

[0004]

However, such a conventional remote control system has the following problems, and improvement thereof has been desired.

That is, in a conventional bathroom, particularly in a system bath, since the design of the bathtub and the wall are designed in total, the mounting position of the bath remote controller is determined in advance for such a design reason. Often done. Therefore, depending on the mounting position of the bath remote controller, wiring to the bath remote controller may be complicated and construction may be difficult. On the other hand, there is a problem in actual use of the bath remote controller (for example, the display panel is difficult to see or the operation is easy). Problems such as not being positioned).

Further, as described above, in a recent hot water supply system, various information (for example, audio signals, image data, etc.) may be taken into a remote control device (particularly, a bath remote control). In the wired connection method, the wiring becomes complicated, and in the case of using wireless communication with a specific low power, malfunction of electronic devices due to jamming radio waves,
There was a problem that production costs would rise.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned conventional problems, and has as its object to simplify the wiring and to provide a low-cost and easy-to-use bath in a design-oriented bathroom design. An object of the present invention is to provide a bathroom signal transmission system that can provide a remote control.

[0008]

In order to achieve the above object, a bathroom signal transmission system according to the present invention is a bathroom signal transmission system which constitutes a part of a remote control system for a water heater. An infrared transmitter / receiver wired to the remote control system and capable of signal transmission is provided on the ceiling, and the infrared transmitter / receiver wirelessly transmits signals to the remote control device of the water heater disposed in the bathroom. An infrared transmitting / receiving unit for performing the operation is provided.

That is, according to the present invention, a signal transmission system in a bathroom is provided with an infrared transmission / reception unit mounted on a bath remote controller in the bathroom and an infrared transmission / reception device for wirelessly transmitting a signal to / from the infrared transmission / reception unit on a ceiling of the bathroom. The signal transmission in the bathroom (specifically, the signal transmission from the bathroom ceiling to the bath remote controller) is made wireless by connecting the infrared transmission / reception device and the remote control system of the water heater by wire. . Therefore, if the bathroom signal transmission system of the present invention is used, a bath remote controller can be provided at an arbitrary position in the bathroom. In addition, since the bathroom side terminal of the signal line (wired) from the water heater or the like is the infrared transmission / reception device provided on the ceiling of the bathroom, the back side of the bathroom wall surface (that is, the wall surface on which the bath remote control is mounted) This eliminates the need for wiring to the device, thereby simplifying wiring work and the like.

[0010]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of a bathroom signal transmission system according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to FIGS.

Embodiment 1 FIG. 1 shows a schematic configuration of a water heater remote control system employing a bathroom signal transmission system according to the present invention.
This remote control system is a system including a kitchen remote control 2 and a bath remote control 3 as remote control devices of the water heater 1, and the water heater 1 and the kitchen remote control 2 as main parts.
And a remote controller 3 in common with the conventional remote control system, but the bathroom B
Is different from the conventional remote control system in that a signal is wirelessly transmitted between the bath remote controller 3 and the infrared transmitter / receiver 4.

Therefore, in the following description, such differences will be mainly described. In the drawing, reference numeral 5 denotes a two-core wire 5 for performing signal transmission between the water heater 1, the kitchen remote controller 2, and the infrared transceiver 4, and the signal transmission between them is performed by wire connection as in the conventional case. Signal transmission.

[0013] The bath B is a form of a so-called unit bus, the infrared transceiver 4 is attached to the ceiling portion B ₁ of the unit bus. The infrared transmitting / receiving device 4 performs wired communication with the water heater 1 and the kitchen remote controller 2 to a known type of infrared signal transmitting / receiving device that transmits and receives signals by emitting and receiving light using infrared as a medium. Interface for the application. That is, the infrared transmitting / receiving device 4 converts control data (electric signal) transmitted from the water heater 1 or the kitchen remote controller 2 into an infrared signal and outputs the infrared signal to the outside of the device (in the bathroom B).
And converts the received infrared signal into an electric signal (control data) and transmits it to the water heater 1 or the kitchen remote controller 2.

When the infrared transmitting / receiving device 4 is mounted, an infrared light emitting portion and a light receiving portion (not shown) are arranged so as to be exposed in the bathroom B. Moreover, the infrared transceiver 4, as easy connection work of the two-core 5 is provided removably ceiling access door near or above the access hole provided in the ceiling portion B ₁ of the unit bus off It is installed on a lid (not shown).

On the other hand, the bath remote controller 3 is equipped with an infrared transmitting / receiving unit 31 so as to be able to wirelessly transmit signals with the infrared transmitting / receiving device 4. The infrared transmission / reception unit 31 also includes a transmission / reception device of an infrared signal having a known form, similarly to the infrared transmission / reception device 4, and an interface for converting an infrared signal transmitted / received by the transmission / reception device into an electric signal. Then, through the interface, the electric signal (control data) transmitted from the bath remote controller 3 is converted into an infrared signal and transmitted to the outside of the apparatus, and the infrared signal received from the outside is converted into an electric signal. It is supplied to the control center of the bath remote controller 3.

In this embodiment, the bath remote controller 3 equipped with the infrared transmitting / receiving unit 31 is of a battery-driven type. That is, in the bath remote controller 3 of the present embodiment,
Since the control data is transmitted and received wirelessly (infrared signals) as described above, by using the internal power source as the driving power source, the restriction on the mounting position of the bath remote controller 3 accompanying the power supply is released and the bath remote controller 3 is moved to the bathroom. It is possible to carry around freely in B.

In this connection, it is preferable that the bath remote controller 3 be entirely waterproofed, and that the bath remote controller 3 be processed so as not to sink even if it is accidentally dropped into the bathtub. preferable.

In the remote control system configured as described above, the water heater 1 in the bath remote controller 3 is used.
Is performed, the control data associated with this operation is transmitted from the infrared transmitting / receiving unit 31 into the bathroom B as an infrared signal. The infrared transceiver 4 The transmitted infrared signal is provided in the ceiling portion B ₁ of the bath B
And transmitted to the water heater 1 and the kitchen remote controller 2 via the two-core wire 5. Similarly, control data transmitted from the water heater 1 or the kitchen remote controller 2 is transmitted to the infrared transmitter / receiver 4 via the two-core wire 5, transmitted as an infrared signal in the bathroom B, and transmitted and received by the bath remote controller 3. The unit 31 receives the infrared signal.

As described above, according to the present invention, while the signal transmission in the bathroom B is performed wirelessly by the infrared signal, the infrared transmitter / receiver 4 is provided on the ceiling B ₁ of the bathroom B. A signal can be transmitted between the infrared transmitter / receiver 3 and the infrared transmitter / receiver 4 without obstacles, and therefore, a high quality signal can be transmitted without deterioration of transmission quality.

Embodiment 2 Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The remote control system shown in FIG. 2 is a system in which an intercom (indoor telephone) system is connected to the system. In this case, the kitchen remote controller 2 and the bath remote controller 3 each have an interphone function. The communication units 22 and 32 are mounted.

In the figure, reference numeral 6 denotes an entrance unit which constitutes a part of the intercom system. The entrance unit 6 is also connected to the remote control system via the two-core wire 5. You. In addition, since other configurations, for example, the water heater 1 and the infrared transmitting / receiving device 4 and the connection form thereof are the same as those of the above-described embodiment, the same reference numerals are given to the same points and the description is omitted. (The same applies to the following embodiments).

Each of the communication units 22 and 32 is a known type of intercom communication unit having a microphone, an audio amplifier, a call detector, a chime oscillator, a speaker, and the like. And in this case,
For example, by operating a call switch (not shown) of the above-mentioned entrance cordless handset 6, an electric signal indicating this call operation is transmitted via the two-core wire 5 (for the bath remote control 3, further via the infrared transmission / reception device 4) and the kitchen remote control. 2 and the communication units 22 and 32 of the bath remote controller 3, and the chime oscillator of each unit operates to output a ringing tone.

After the start of a predetermined call operation with the kitchen remote controller 2 and the bath remote controller 3, for example, in the bath remote controller 3, a voice signal (electric signal) output from the communication unit 32 is transmitted to the infrared transmitter / receiver unit 31 through the infrared transmitter / receiver 31. The signal is converted into a signal, and is output to the entrance device 6 via the infrared transmitting / receiving device 4. Similarly, the audio signal from the entrance cordless handset 6 is also converted to an infrared signal by passing through the infrared transmitting / receiving device 4 via the two-core wire 5 and transmitted to the communication unit 32 via the infrared transmission / reception unit 31. The voice is amplified at 32 and output.

As described above, according to the second embodiment of the present invention, the kitchen remote controller 2 and the bath remote controller 3 are provided with the communication units 22 and 23 for realizing the intercom function, The audio signal (electric signal) output from the mobile device 6 and the communication units 22 and 23 is converted into an infrared signal (or the infrared signal is converted into an audio signal), so that the communication between the bath remote controller 3 and the entrance device 6 can be performed. A call with the kitchen remote controller 2 can be realized. That is, it becomes possible to realize the intercom function, which has been realized in the bath remote controller conventionally connected by wire, in the wireless signal transmission.

Embodiment 3 Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The remote control system shown in FIG. 3 is configured such that the bath remote controller 3 includes an image receiving unit 33 in addition to the infrared transmitting / receiving unit 31 and the communication unit 32 described above.

More specifically, the image receiving unit 33 is constituted by a display device such as a liquid crystal display, and is capable of displaying image data received via the infrared transmitting / receiving unit 31. That is, in the present embodiment, for example, in a case where the imaging unit 61 configured by a CCD camera or the like is mounted on the entrance device 6, an image captured by the entrance device 6 is received by the image receiving unit 33. It can be displayed.

More specifically, in this case, the image data (electric signal) photographed by the imaging unit 61 is transmitted to the infrared transmitting / receiving device 4 via the two-core wire 5, where it is converted into an infrared signal. The infrared transmission / reception unit 31
Sent to. The infrared transmitting / receiving unit 31 converts the received infrared signal into an electric signal (image data) and supplies the electric signal to the image receiving unit 33. Therefore, the image receiving unit 3
In 3, the image taken by the image pickup unit 61 of the entrance slave unit 6 is displayed, and a so-called TV intercom is realized.

As described above, in the remote control system of the present embodiment, since the bath remote controller 3 includes the image receiving unit 33, even if there is a visitor during bathing, for example, the visitor is displayed on the screen of the image receiving unit 33. You can talk on the intercom while checking above. Further, if the imaging unit is provided on the kitchen remote controller 2, for example, it is possible to have a conversation with the intercom while watching the face of the person in the kitchen.

Fourth Embodiment Next, a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. In the remote operation system shown in FIG. 4, the bath remote controller 3 includes an imaging unit 34 in addition to the infrared transmission / reception unit 31, the communication unit 32, and the image reception unit 33 described above.
It is comprised including.

More specifically, the image pickup unit 34 is a camera for photographing the inside of the bathroom B, and a CCD camera can be adopted similarly to the image pickup unit 61 of the above-mentioned entrance device 6. However, here, a so-called artificial retina, that is, a camera having a small number of pixels is suitably employed. This is because the imaging unit 34 mounted on the bath remote controller 3 is different from the imaging unit 61 of the entrance cordless handset 6 and the object to be imaged is in the bathroom B, so that it is not preferable to shoot a very clear image. Therefore, if the privacy of the bather can be protected from this viewpoint, it is of course possible to adopt another image sensor.

In this case, for example, by providing the image receiving unit 23 on the kitchen remote controller 2, it is possible to visually confirm the safety of the bather from the kitchen remote controller 2 when the bather is an infant or an elderly person, for example. Becomes In this case, it is preferable that the bath remote controller 3 is fixedly provided on a wall surface of the bathroom B or the like. In addition, kitchen remote control 2
By providing the imaging unit 24 also, it is possible to have a conversation between the kitchen and the bathroom B with the interphone while confirming each other's face and the like.

The above-described embodiment shows a preferred embodiment of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to this and can be variously modified within the scope of the present invention.

For example, in the above embodiment, an example was shown in which two remote control devices, a kitchen remote control 2 and a bath remote control 3, were used as a remote control system for the water heater 1.
The number of remote control devices is not limited to this and can be changed as appropriate. That is, if transmission and reception of control data and the like can be performed via the two-core wire 5, three or more units can be connected. Further, as long as an infrared signal can be transmitted to and from the infrared transmitting / receiving device 4, a plurality of bath remote controllers 3 can be used.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the configuration in which the entrance unit 6 is provided for connection with the intercom system is shown. However, the intercom system is not provided with the entrance unit 6 and the kitchen remote controller 2 and the bath Remote control 3
It is also possible to make a call only between the user and the terminal.

[0035]

As described in detail above, according to the bathroom signal transmission system of the present invention, the infrared transmission / reception device connected to the remote operation system by wire is provided on the ceiling of the bathroom, so that the remote operation system is provided. The wiring connection between the camera and the bathroom is limited to the ceiling of the bathroom, so that the wiring connection is facilitated.

In addition, since wireless signal transmission is performed by infrared rays between the infrared transmitting / receiving device and the bathroom remote controller, and the bathroom remote controller is driven by a battery, there is no need to fix the bathroom remote controller. It is possible to design a bathroom with emphasis on design, regardless of the factors.

In addition, since the infrared light receiving section is located on the ceiling of the bathroom, there is no obstacle in transmitting and receiving the infrared light, so that the transmission quality is not degraded. Since the power consumption is low and the cost is low as compared with the transmitting and receiving device, a remote control system can be provided at low cost.

Further, since an infrared signal transmitted between the infrared transmitting / receiving device and the bath remote controller can include an audio signal and image data in addition to the control data,
Various functions, such as the intercom function and the image receiving function, which have been conventionally used, can be realized by the bath remote controller.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a remote control system for a water heater to which a bathroom signal transmission system according to the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a second embodiment of the remote control system.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a third embodiment of the remote control system.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a fourth embodiment of the remote control system.

[Explanation of symbols]

 REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 hot water heater 2 kitchen remote controller 3 bath remote controller (remote control device) 4 infrared transmitter / receiver 5 two-core wire 6 entrance cordless handset 31 infrared transmitter / receiver unit 32 voice communication unit 33 image receiving unit 34 imaging unit

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page F term (reference) 3L024 CC06 DD43 EE05 EE09 EE10 5K038 AA03 CC12 DD15 5K048 AA01 AA04 BA12 BA14 DB04 DC01 DC03 EB02 EB14 EB15 FB02 FB10 HA04 HA06 HA23 HA37 5K101 KK11 LL01

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A bathroom signal transmission system which constitutes a part of a remote control system of a water heater, wherein an infrared transmitting / receiving device connected to the remote operation system by wire so as to be able to transmit signals is provided on a ceiling of the bathroom. A bathroom signal transmission system, wherein an infrared transmission / reception unit for wirelessly transmitting a signal with the infrared transmission / reception device is provided in a remote control device of a water heater disposed in the bathroom. 2. The bathroom signal transmission system according to claim 1, wherein the infrared transmission / reception device is attached to a ceiling inspection port detachably provided on a ceiling of the bathroom. 3. The bathroom signal transmission system according to claim 1, wherein the remote control device is of a battery-driven type. 4. The remote control device according to claim 3, wherein the remote control device includes a voice communication unit, and a voice communication with an indoor telephone connected to the remote control system is enabled. The bathroom signal transmission system as described in the above. 5. The remote control device includes an image receiving unit, and is capable of receiving and displaying an image transmitted from a call destination during a call with the indoor telephone. 5. The bathroom signal transmission system according to item 4. 6. The remote control device according to claim 5, wherein the remote control device includes an image pickup unit, and is capable of transmitting an image to a call destination during a call with the indoor telephone. Bathroom signal transmission system.