JP2002032156A - Home network system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a home network system capable of minimizing power consumption at the stand-by time and eliminating user's trouble for turning on/off the main power source of each equipment by controlling on/off operation of the main power source of the equipment connected to a home network. SOLUTION: In the home network system composed of an intra-home network and plural equipments having communication means which can realize two-way information communication through the intra-home network, at least one equipment is provided with a main power source restoration means consisting of a power switch circuit for turning off the main power source when the instruction of the turn-off of main power source supplied to the equipment is given, a timer device for counting a prescribed timer value until the on-command of main power source to the power switch circuit from the turn-off of main power source and a power backup device for backing up the supply of power to the power switch circuit and the timer device when main power source is turned off.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention [0002] The present invention relates to a home network system in which a plurality of household equipments are connected to a home network so that information communication is possible.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, between a plurality of devices in a home and STB
There is known a home network system in which a (set-top box) is connected so as to enable two-way information communication and an STB performs centralized control of the operation of these devices.

For example, in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 10-276478, a home appliance control device in which a plurality of home appliances are connected to a server via a remote controller is connected to a host from the server via the Internet and an intranet. By receiving information from the host via a server and setting the information in a home appliance via a remote control,
The home appliance can freely achieve a desired function according to the information.

[0004]

However, in such a conventional home network system, when a certain control device attempts to control each device connected to the network, each device always receives a signal to enable communication. The main power of each device must be kept on at all times for that purpose. For this reason, a plurality of devices in the home must be kept in the standby state of the main power at all times. Power consumption during standby has recently become an environmental problem of global warming.

[0005] In addition, the user may turn on / off the main power supply of a plurality of devices in the home when the user does not use the devices, for example, at night or when he goes out, worried about the standby consumption of these devices. However, this is a rather cumbersome task for the user. Further, when a device with a reservation function is being reserved, the main power of the device cannot be turned off.

On the other hand, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2000-112578
In a network to which a plurality of devices are connected, there is a network system that minimizes standby power consumption when a device connected to the network is turned off.

In this network system, when an instruction to turn off the power is given to a device connected to the network, the internal information of the own device is transmitted to the device provided with the internal information storage means of another device through the network, and then stored in the device. Turn off the power switch and turn off the power to all circuits.
Alternatively, when a reservation is being made, the power consumption in the standby state is suppressed by turning on the power supply of only the receiving unit.

However, in this network system, when the power of the device is turned off and the power supply to all the circuits is turned off, all the functions of the device are stopped, and the user operates the power switch of the device to turn it on. There is no other means to turn on the power. Therefore, the trouble of the user turning on the power switch still exists. Also,
When only the receiving unit is energized, power is consumed in the communication circuit and the like, and the effect of suppressing power consumption cannot be expected much.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to control power on / off of a main power supply of a device connected to a home network to thereby reduce power consumption during standby. It is an object of the present invention to provide a home network system capable of minimizing the trouble of turning on / off a main power supply of each device by a user.

[0010]

Means for Solving the Problems and Action / Effect To achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 1 comprises a home network and a plurality of communication means capable of two-way information communication through the home network. In a home network system including at least one device, at least one of the devices includes a power switch circuit that turns off a main power when an instruction to turn off the main power to be supplied to the device is provided, and a main switch that is turned off after the main power is turned off. A timer device that counts a predetermined timer value until a power ON command is given to the power switch circuit, and a power backup device that backs up power supply to the power switch circuit and the timer device when main power is turned off. A home network system comprising a main power return unit is provided.

According to the present invention, at least one of the devices connected to the home network has a main power return means, and when the device is instructed to turn off the main power, the main power is turned off. The main power supply is turned on by counting a predetermined timer value by the power supply from the power supply backup device provided in the means.
F and the main power can be turned on after a lapse of a predetermined time,
The main power supply can be turned on / off by the device. As described above, since the main power supply can be turned on / off by the device, the main power supply can be frequently turned on / off, and as a result, the standby power of the home network system can be reduced. ON / OFF frequently
Troublesomeness can be eliminated.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, at least one of the devices connected to the home network is connected to a main power supply of the device provided with the main power return means with respect to another device provided with the main power return means. A home network system is provided, wherein the communication means transmits a signal including one or both of an OFF command and a predetermined timer value from when the main power is turned off to when the main power is restored.

According to the present invention, a device connected to the home network transmits a main power OFF command or a timer value until the main power is returned to another device which is also connected to the network and has main power return means. By transmitting, the other device can be controlled. This enables integrated management of the main power ON / OFF of the device.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, an apparatus comprising a main power supply restoring means further comprises a voltage detecting means for detecting a backup power supply voltage of a power supply backup device, and the voltage detecting means is provided with a main power supply by the power supply backup device. OFF
The home network system is characterized in that the power supply at the time is backed up, a backup power supply voltage is detected at a predetermined timing, and a main power supply is turned on by a power supply switch circuit when the detected voltage falls below the predetermined voltage.

According to the present invention, the voltage of the backup power supply voltage is detected while the main power supply of the device is turned off, and when the voltage falls below a predetermined voltage, the main power supply is turned on. It is possible to prevent the power supply to the return means from being disabled and the main power supply from being disabled. When the backup power supply is, for example, a primary battery,
When the main power is turned on, it becomes possible to notify the battery running out of the display device or the like of the own device, and to transmit the running out of the battery of the backup power source to other devices on the network by the communication means. Furthermore, if the backup power supply is, for example, a secondary battery or a super capacitor, the backup power supply can be charged by turning on the main power supply, so that a backup power supply having a relatively small capacity can be used.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, an apparatus provided with main power return means further comprises an input means for inputting an input signal which is assumed to be used by a user of the equipment, and the input means comprises: A home network system is provided, wherein the power supply when the main power is turned off is backed up by a power backup device, the input signal is detected at a predetermined timing, and the main power is turned on based on a result of the detection of the input signal. .

According to the present invention, there is provided input means for inputting an input signal which is assumed to be used by the user of the device, and the user has started using the device based on the result of the detection of the input signal. Can be detected. This input means can detect an input signal when the main power is off by backing up the power when the main power is off by the power backup device. If it is detected that the user has started using the device while the main power is off, the main power is turned off.
N to allow the device to operate normally. Thus, it is possible to prevent a problem that the device does not move when the user attempts to start using the main power supply while the main power is off.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a home network system, wherein a backup power supply of a power supply backup device of a device provided with a main power return means is a chargeable / dischargeable secondary battery or a super capacitor. provide.

According to the present invention, by using a chargeable / dischargeable secondary battery or a supercapacitor as a backup power source, even if the charge capacity of the backup power source is reduced, it is charged and reused by turning on the main power source. It is not necessary to replace the backup power supply every time the capacity is reduced.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in a home network compatible device having communication means capable of two-way information communication through a home network, an instruction to turn off the main power transmitted through the home network is provided. A power switch circuit for turning off a main power supply to a device when the power supply is turned on; a timer device for counting a predetermined timer value from when the main power supply is turned off to when a main power ON command is given to the power switch circuit; Main power return means comprising a power switch circuit and a power backup device for backing up power supply to the timer device when the main power is turned off is provided.

According to the present invention, similarly to the above-described home network system, at least one of the devices connected to the home network has main power return means, and when the device is instructed to turn off the main power, the main power is turned off. Since the main power supply is turned off by turning off the main power supply and counting a predetermined timer value by the power supply from the power supply backup device provided in the main power supply return means, the main power supply can be turned off after a predetermined time has elapsed. The main power can be turned on / off by the device. As described above, since the main power supply can be turned on / off by the device, the main power supply can be frequently turned on / off, and as a result, the standby power of the home network system can be reduced. The trouble of frequently turning on / off the device can be eliminated.

[0022]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a home network 1, an STB (set-top box) 2, equipment a3, equipment b4,
FIG. 5 shows a configuration diagram including the equipment c5. In the figure, the above-described four equipments are connected to the home network 1, but the number of equipments may be smaller or larger as long as the number is plural.

The home network 1 is composed of a communication medium such as a twisted pair line, a power line, and a wireless communication.
B2, equipment a3, equipment b4, and equipment c5 are connected so as to be capable of two-way communication, and transmit and receive control data and the like. Thus, for example, each equipment transmits its own status data to the STB 2, and the STB 2 manages the status of each equipment based on the received status data. STB
By transmitting control data to each equipment from 2
The operation of each equipment can be controlled from the STB 2.

According to the present invention, the effect of the present invention can be exhibited if at least one of the devices connected to the home network is provided with the main power return means. It is more desirable to have main power return means. Therefore, in this embodiment, all the equipment connected to the home network, ie, STB
2. It is assumed that each of the equipment a3, the equipment b4, and the equipment c5 is provided with a main power return unit.

FIG. 2 shows an example of a schematic circuit diagram of a device provided with a main power return means. In FIG. 2, AC 100 V is input to the power supply circuit 6 from a power line outside the device for powering the device. AC100V input to the power supply circuit 6 is D
It is converted to C5V and supplied as power to each circuit block of the device. Here, AC10 input to the power supply circuit 6
The main power switch 16 on the 0V line can turn on / off the power supply to the device.

The main microcomputer 8 executes a predetermined program and controls the entire device. That is, the communication circuit 9
To control data transmission / reception with other devices connected to the home network, and control device operation through a device control circuit.

Next, the configuration of the main power return means according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described. The main power return means in this embodiment is a diode 10, a sub-microcomputer 11, a resistor 12,
It comprises an external switch 13, a secondary battery 14, a self-holding power switch circuit 15, and a main power switch 16.

The secondary battery 14 is charged through the diode 10 when the main power of the device is turned on. When the main power is off, the sub-microcomputer 11, the resistor 12, the external switch 13, and the self-holding power switch circuit 1
5 is supplied with power. When the main power supply is turned off, the diode 10 prevents the electric charge charged in the secondary battery 14 from flowing backward. Here, in the present embodiment, a secondary battery is used as a backup power supply, but a supercapacitor or a primary battery having a large charge capacity can also be used.

By the signal input device including the resistor 12 and the external switch, it is possible to detect a signal which is assumed that the user uses the device. This switch can be used if it is expected to use the device, such as a toilet lid opening / closing detection switch of a hot water flush toilet seat device or a tableware entrance / exit of a dishwasher / dryer, but power consumption at the time of non-detection is possible. It is desirable to be as small as possible.

The self-holding power switch circuit 15 can control ON / OFF of the main power supply 16 in conjunction with the main power switch 16.

The sub-microcomputer 11 controls each part of the main power return means according to a predetermined program. From the signal input device including the resistor 12 and the external switch, a signal is input from which it is assumed that the user will use the device.
When the external switch 13 is OFF, the “Hi” signal is turned ON.
In this case, the "Lo" signal is input to the sub microcomputer. A main power OFF command and a set timer value are input from the main microcomputer. Also, the voltage of the secondary battery 14 is input. Further, the main power supply 1 is supplied through a self-holding type power switch circuit 15.
6 is turned on / off.

FIG. 3 shows an internal configuration diagram of the sub-microcomputer 11. The ROM 18 stores predetermined programs and control data. The RAM 19 temporarily stores control data. The input device 20 inputs a signal from a device external to the sub-microcomputer, which is assumed to be used, a main power OFF command from the main microcomputer, and a set timer value. The output device 21 outputs a signal to the self-holding type power switch circuit 15 outside the sub-microcomputer, and turns on the main power supply 16.
/ OFF control. The clock generator supplies a clock to the timer a23, the timer b24, and the CPU 17. TMa23 and TMb24 are CPU1
7 and notifies the CPU 17 when counting up. The A / D converter 25 inputs the voltage of the secondary battery 14 by A / D conversion. And CPU1
Reference numeral 7 executes a program stored in the ROM 18 and controls the peripheral devices of the CPU 17 described above.

The sub-microcomputer 17 has, as a function, a low-consumption mode in which the power consumption of the microcomputer can be greatly reduced, in addition to the normal mode in which the program is normally executed.
In the low-consumption mode, the clock supply to the CPU 17 is stopped, but the clock supply to the timers a23 and b24 is continued and time counting can be performed. The timer returns to the normal mode when the timer a23 or the timer b24 counts up during the low-consumption mode or when a signal is input to the input device 20 which is assumed to use the device.

Further, in this embodiment, as described above, the device including the main microcomputer 8 and the sub-microcomputer 11 is shown as the device provided with the main power return means. The main microcomputer 8 and the sub-microcomputer 11 can be integrated into one microcomputer as long as the power supply is backed up and standby power consumption can be reduced by a low-consumption mode or the like.

The operation of the present invention having the above configuration will be described below.

In the home network system of FIG. 1, the STB 2 manages and controls the main power ON / OFF of each of the equipment a3, equipment b4, and equipment c5.

Here, as an example, the equipment a3 is an STB
The operation of turning on / off the main power supply in accordance with the instruction from the control unit 2 will be described with reference to a flowchart.

The process starts from S1 in FIG. S1 is a state where the main power of the equipment a3 is turned on and the equipment is operating normally.

The normal operation of the device is performed in S2, and the network communication is performed in S3. STB2 of S3 network communication
Whether the main power OFF instruction has been received in response to the command from S4.
Is determined. If there is no main power OFF instruction, S4-NO
It returns to S2, and repeats the S2 normal operation and the S3 network communication. On the other hand, if the main power is off, S4-YE
It becomes S and proceeds to S5.

At S5, the timer value a is set to the timer a23. Here, the timer a23 is a timer that counts the time after the main power is turned off, and the timer value a is the main power OF
This is the time from when the main power is restored after F. Also,
The timer value a is data received from the STB 2 together with the main power OFF instruction in the S3 network communication. here,
For example, if it is currently 23:00 and it is not necessary to operate the equipment a3 until 7:00 of the next day, STB2 sets the timer value a to 8
The equipment a3 that has transmitted the time and received it
Set 8 hours at 23.

Next, the operation proceeds to S6, where the timer value b is set in the timer b24. Here, the timer a23 is a timer that counts the timing of detecting the voltage of the secondary battery 14 when the main power is turned off, and the timer value b is the time of the voltage detection interval. The timer value b is a predetermined value based on the capacity of the secondary battery 14 and the consumption of the circuit to be backed up. Here, for example, if voltage detection is to be performed at intervals of 30 minutes while the main power is off, 30 minutes is set in the timer b.

Next, the process goes to S7, where the timer a23, the timer b
24 and an external input interrupt setting. here,
Each of the interrupt requests is set by the timer a23 or the timer b24 having timed out or by inputting a signal from the input device 20 which is assumed to use the device by the user, thereby switching from the low-consumption mode to the normal mode. Set to be able to return.

Next, the process proceeds to S8, where the timer a23 and the timer b
Start counting 24. According to the above example,
The timer a23 starts counting the timer value a for 8 hours, and the timer b24 starts counting the timer value b for 30 minutes.

Then, the process proceeds to S9, where the main power switch 160 is connected to the self-holding power switch circuit 15 through the output device 21.
The main power is turned off by outputting the instruction of the FF. Here, even if the main power supply is turned off, the main power supply return means including the sub-microcomputer 11 can continue to function as the power supply backup by the electric charge charged in the secondary battery 14.

Next, the operation proceeds to S10, where the sub-microcomputer 11 switches to the low power consumption mode and stops the operation of the CPU, thereby reducing the power consumption of the sub-microcomputer 11. Here, the CPU operation is stopped, but the timers a23 and b24 are still counting the timer.

When the sub-microcomputer 11 is switched to the low-consumption mode in S10, the interrupt request of any one of the timers a23, b24 and the input device 20 is generated in S11 while the operation of the CPU 17 is stopped.
Until the process goes to S12 with YES, S11-NO again causes
Return to 1 and continue waiting for an interrupt.

When any of the above-described interrupts occurs, the sub-microcomputer 11 switches from the low-consumption mode to the normal mode in S12, and the CPU 17 starts operating.

When the mode is switched to the normal mode, it is determined whether or not the interrupt generated in S13 is caused by the timer b24. S13-YES if timer b interrupt
To S14, if not timer b interrupt, S13-NO
Then go to S17.

When the operation proceeds to S17 in S13-NO, the interrupt is not generated by the timer b24, and thus is generated by the timer a23 or the input device 20. According to the above-described example, the external switch 13 is turned on by the timer a23 counting up the eight hours, which is the timer value a specified by the STB2, or by the user trying to use the equipment a3, and the input device 20 is turned on. Means that the signal has been input to. In any case, since the equipment a3 must start the normal operation, S17
In step (1), an instruction to turn on the main power switch 16 is output to the self-holding power switch circuit 15 through the output device 21 to turn on the main power.

After the main power supply is turned on, network communication is started (S18), the apparatus normal operation is started (S19), and a series of main power ON / OFF operations is completed (S20).

Returning to S13-NO, the description will be continued. S
In the case of 13-NO, it means that the interruption by the timer b24 has occurred. According to the above-described example, the timer b24 has counted up the timer value b of 30 minutes. Since the count of 30 minutes of the timer b24 is an interval for detecting the voltage of the secondary battery 14, in S14,
The A / D converter 25 A / D converts the backup voltage of No. and detects it.

After detecting the voltage, the detected voltage is determined in S15. If the detected voltage is larger than the predetermined value Vs, S1
If NO in S16, and if the detected voltage is equal to or lower than Vs, S1
Go to S17 with 5-YES. Here, Vs is the secondary battery 1
4 is a predetermined value based on the capacity of No. 4 and the power consumption of the main power return means.

In the case of S15-NO, it is determined that the remaining capacity of the secondary battery 14 is still sufficient, the timer value b (30 minutes in the above-described example) is set in the timer b24, the process loops to S9, and the main power source is again turned on. Is turned off (S9) to switch to the low consumption mode (S10). Thus, the voltage of the secondary battery 14 can be detected at regular intervals (30 minutes in the above example) while the main power is off. Here, if the consumption required for voltage detection is relatively large, the main power supply is turned ON only during the voltage detection period.
It is better to do it.

On the other hand, in the case of S15-NO, the secondary battery 14
The main power is turned on in S17 because it is determined that the remaining capacity of the power supply becomes small and the main power return means cannot be backed up.
I do.

After the main power is turned on, network communication is started (S18), the device normal operation is started (S19), and a series of main power ON / OFF operations is ended (S20).

The operation of turning on / off the main power of the equipment a3 by the main power OFF instruction of the STB 2 has been described above. The same applies to the equipment b4 and the equipment c5. In this way, each device on the home network 1 can control ON / OFF of the main power supply by the management of the STB 2, and the power consumption during standby can be reduced. Further, the STB 2 sets the main power OFF instruction and the timer value a for the STB 2 itself and turns off the main power, thereby further reducing the consumption. As a result, it is possible to minimize the standby network consumption of the home network system including these devices. Further, it is possible to eliminate the trouble of the user turning on / off the main power supply of each device.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a home network system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a circuit of a device including a main power return unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a configuration of a sub-microcomputer constituting a main power return unit.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a control operation of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... House network, 2 ... STB, 3 ... Equipment a, 4 ... Equipment b, 5 ... Equipment c, 6 ... Power supply circuit,
7: Device control circuit, 8: Main microcomputer, 9: Communication circuit, 10: Diode, 11: Sub microcomputer, 12: Resistor, 13: External switch, 14: Secondary battery, 15: Self-holding power switch circuit, 16 ... Main power switch, 17
... CPU, 18 ROM, 19 RAM, 20 input device, 21 output device, 22 clock generator, 2
3: Timer a, 24: Timer b, 25: A / D converter

Continued on the front page F term (reference) 5B011 EA10 FF04 KK02 MA13 5G015 GB02 JA06 JA45 JA53 JA55 5G065 AA01 DA06 EA06 GA07 JA07 KA06 KA08 MA07 5K048 AA16 BA12 DA02 DC01 DC04 FC02 FC03 HA33 HA37

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. In a home network system including a home network and a plurality of devices including a communication unit capable of performing two-way information communication through the home network, at least one of the devices is a main device that supplies the devices. A power switch circuit for turning off the main power supply when the power supply is instructed;
A main power supply comprising a timer device for counting a predetermined timer value until an N command is given to the power switch circuit, and a power backup device for backing up power supply to the power switch circuit and the timer device when the main power is turned off. A home network system comprising a return unit. 2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the devices restores a main power supply to another device including the main power supply return unit after a main power supply OFF command of the device including the main power supply return unit and after the main power supply is turned off. 2. The home network system according to claim 1, wherein a signal including one or both of the predetermined timer values up to and including the predetermined timer value is transmitted by the communication unit. 3. The apparatus provided with the main power return unit further comprises a voltage detection unit for detecting a backup power supply voltage of the power supply backup device, wherein the voltage detection unit supplies power when the main power supply is turned off by the power supply backup device. And a backup power supply voltage is detected at a predetermined timing, and when the detected voltage falls below a predetermined voltage, the main power supply is turned on by the power supply switch circuit.
3. The home network system according to claim 1, wherein 4. The device provided with the main power return unit further includes an input unit for inputting an input signal which is assumed to be used by a user of the device, and the input unit is provided with a main power supply by the power backup device. The power supply at the time of OFF is backed up, the input signal is detected at a predetermined timing, and a main power is turned on by the power switch circuit based on a result of the detection of the input signal. Home network system described in 3. 5. The home network system according to claim 1, wherein the backup power supply is a chargeable / dischargeable secondary battery or a super capacitor. 6. A home network compatible device provided with communication means capable of two-way information communication through a home network, a main power supply to be supplied to the device when there is a main power OFF instruction transmitted through the home network. A power switch circuit for turning off the main power supply, a timer device for counting a predetermined timer value from when the main power supply is turned off to when the main power supply ON command is given to the power supply switch circuit, and a main device for at least the power supply switch circuit and the timer device. A home network compatible device, comprising: a main power return unit comprising a power backup device for backing up a power supply when the power is turned off.