JP2002156259A - Gas meter - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a gas meter employing a multistage sensing type earthquake sensor outputting a different signal corresponding to the intensity of a sensed earthquake and capable of controlling the cutting-off of gas corresponding to the intensity of a detected earthquake. SOLUTION: A gas cut-off controller 7 performs the cut-off control of gas so that a generated earthquake is regarded as a small one to perform the restorable cutting-off of gas, when only a first stage pulse signal is generated within a specific period according to incorporated gas cutting-off logic on the occurrence of an earthquake. The generated earthquake is regarded as a big earthquake when first and second stage pulse signals are generated to perform the non-restorable cutting-off of the gas. The generated earthquake is regarded as a shock when only the second stage pulse signal is generated to perform no cutting-off of the gas. By this constitution, the non-restorable immediate cutting-off of the gas is not performed by an insignificant earthquake and, when a person touches with gas piping or beats a carrying cargo against the gas piping, the immediate cutting-off of the gas by erroneous operation is prevented.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention relates to a multifunctional gas meter having a built-in microcomputer.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a built-in earthquake sensor and a microcomputer are used.
In a gas meter that shuts off gas by sensing an earthquake, the output of the earthquake sensor is only the first stage, and when the earthquake sensor detects a vibration and outputs a pulse signal, the microcomputer shuts off the gas.

Conventionally, a signal from a gas flow sensor together with a pulse signal from an earthquake sensor is also input to a microcomputer, and shutoff is performed when the flow sensor detects a gas flow before and after the vibration sensor detects a vibration and outputs a pulse signal. What is done is also known.

[0004]

However, in a conventional gas meter that performs gas shut-off control based on only a signal from an earthquake sensor, if the earthquake sensor detects vibration, it only outputs an earthquake detection pulse signal. Does not have a function to output pulse signals in multiple stages, so gas shutoff control cannot be performed according to the intensity of the earthquake, and even a weak earthquake shuts off immediately, as in the case of a large earthquake. However, there was a problem that frequent interruptions due to a weak earthquake that caused no problem in safety occurred frequently, and it took time to recover.

Conventionally, the output of a gas flow sensor is also monitored together with an earthquake sensor, and when a vibration is detected to perform a gas shut-off operation capable of resetting, if the flow sensor detects a gas flow rate, it is immediately shut off (returned). Although a gas meter controlled by a microcomputer having a function of shutting off gas is also known, in this case, although the gas is surely shut off by the resettable gas shutoff, the flow rate is so-called by pulsation. If the sensor erroneously detects the flow rate, the flow immediately switches to shutoff, and even if it is a small earthquake, it cannot be recovered, and there is a problem that it takes time to recover.

The present invention has been made in view of such a conventional problem, and employs a multi-stage sensing type seismic sensor which outputs a different signal according to the intensity of an earthquake to be detected. It is an object of the present invention to provide a gas meter capable of performing a gas shutoff control according to the above.

The present invention also provides a gas meter capable of monitoring a flow signal of a gas flow sensor together with an earthquake sensor at the time of gas shutoff, and performing an appropriate mode of gas shutoff according to the intensity of the earthquake by a combination of the outputs of the sensors. The purpose is to:

[0008]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a gas meter having a multistage output comprising a seismic sensor, a case supporting the seismic sensor, and a terminal for transmitting the output of the seismic sensor. If only a first-stage pulse signal is generated within a specific period and a small earthquake is detected, it is regarded as a small earthquake. It is equipped with a gas shutoff controller incorporating a gas shutoff logic that does not shut off the gas when the pulse signal of the second stage is generated and only the second stage pulse signal is generated. .

In the gas meter according to the first aspect of the present invention, when only a first-stage pulse signal is generated within a specific period according to a built-in gas cut-off logic when the gas cut-off controller generates an earthquake, it is regarded as a small earthquake. Recoverable gas is shut off. If the first and second pulse signals are generated, it is regarded as a large earthquake, and immediate recovery is impossible. If only the second pulse signal is generated, a shock is generated. The gas shutoff control is performed such that the gas shutoff is not performed.

[0010] With this, it is possible to prevent an instantaneous shut-off that cannot be performed due to a slight earthquake, and to prevent an immediate shut-off in the same manner only by a person touching the gas pipe or hitting a carrying luggage. Then, unnecessary return work is reduced by frequently and immediately shutting down.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the gas meter of the first aspect, a communication function with the monitoring center is provided, and the communication from the monitoring center is performed when the gas shut-off controller immediately shuts off the return impossible. As a result, even if a relatively large earthquake occurs or the immediate shutdown occurs due to other reasons, if the safety can be confirmed by the monitoring center, By releasing the immediate shutdown of the customer's gas meter,
The work of returning to the location where the gas meter is installed is reduced.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the gas meter of the first aspect, the gas meter has a communication function with a monitoring center, and the gas shutoff controller is capable of returning from an instantaneous shutoff which is not possible.
It is provided with a switching function of non-return, so that it is possible to switch between the reset and non-return by communication from the monitoring center. If a relatively large earthquake occurs or if the shut-off is activated immediately for other reasons, Also, if safety can be confirmed by the monitoring center, the gas meter of each customer can be reset remotely so that it can be reset immediately, so that each customer can return from the immediate shut-off state individually. This reduces the work of returning to the workplace at each installation location.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a gas meter, comprising: a seismic sensor, a case supporting the seismic sensor, a terminal for transmitting an output of the seismic sensor, and a multi-step output seismic sensor; A flow rate sensor for detecting a flow rate, a gas cutoff controller having a flow rate monitoring / immediate cutoff setting switching function, and performing a gas cutoff control in a different mode based on a combination of a multi-stage output of the earthquake sensor and an output of the flow rate sensor. When the flow rate monitoring setting, the gas cutoff controller performs a resettable gas cutoff when the flow rate sensor detects a gas flow rate before and after the earthquake sensor outputs the first-stage pulse signal. When the seismic sensor outputs a second-stage pulse signal, the non-return is immediately interrupted.

In the gas meter according to the present invention, when the earthquake occurs, the gas shut-off controller can reset the gas shut-off if the flow rate sensor detects the gas flow rate before and after the earthquake sensor outputs the first-stage pulse signal. Is performed, and when the earthquake sensor outputs the second-stage pulse signal, the gas shut-off control is performed to immediately shut off the motor. In other words, in the case of a minor earthquake, gas can be returned only to customers who are actually using the gas, and in the case of a large earthquake, the gas cannot be returned immediately.

[0015] In this way, in the case of a large earthquake, the safety of the entire customer is ensured by performing an immediate shut-off operation in which a return cannot be made. By performing the operation only for the gas meter in which the gas is used, the number of customers who force the return operation is reduced.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the gas meter of the fourth aspect, the gas shutoff controller shuts off immediately if the flow sensor detects a pulsation when detecting a first-stage pulse signal output at the time of flow rate monitoring setting. When there is a high possibility that a gas leak has occurred even after a resettable gas shutoff, the safety is enhanced by immediately shutting off the gas.

[0017]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a gas meter 100 according to one embodiment of the present invention. The gas meter 100 has a two-stage output seismic sensor 1 that outputs different pulse signals depending on the magnitude of the vibration to be sensed, a flow sensor 2 that detects gas flow, a shutoff valve 3 that shuts off gas supply, and a remote monitoring center 4. A communication interface 6 connected through a network 5 for communication, and calculates and displays gas consumption and a shutoff valve 3 according to the magnitude of the generated earthquake.
A controller 7 including a microcomputer (including a necessary memory, a timer, an input / output interface, etc.) for executing various arithmetic controls necessary for detecting gas usage and preventing gas leakage, The display unit 8 is configured to display usage information, an alarm, and other information.

As shown in FIG. 2, the seismic sensor 1 has two seismic units having different sensitivities to an applied vibration, a first seismic unit 1-1.
And a second seismic unit 1-2, and outputs two-stage pulse signals (first output and second output) according to the magnitude of the seismic intensity set in advance.

The shut-off valve 3 is installed in the middle of the pipe, and performs two modes of gas shut-off, ie, "cut-off" which can be returned by the controller 7 and "immediate shut-off" which cannot be returned. However, the shut-off valve 2 itself simply shuts off / opens the piping.
Whether or not the interruption operation can be canceled depends on whether or not a cancellation signal is received from the controller 7 side.
When the controller 7 immediately performs the shut-off control,
Control logic that can be reset only by inputting a special signal that is not known to ordinary consumers (that is, by operation of a qualified worker) is incorporated.

The term "shutdown" used in the present specification means a resettable shutoff, which is performed by a specific operation of an external switch installed in the gas meter, or by remote control from a monitoring center or by a controller. Automatic return by judgment. On the other hand, "immediate shut-off" means shut-off that cannot be restored by ordinary operation or remote operation or automatically.

Next, the operation of the gas meter having the above configuration will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 3 and the timing charts of FIGS.

<Minor Earthquake> When an earthquake occurs but the vibration is weak, as shown in FIG. 4, only the first seismic unit 1-1 having high sensitivity in the seismic device 1 receives a pulse signal ( 1st output), and does not output a signal to the second seismic unit 1-2 having low sensitivity. In such a state, the controller 7 counts a predetermined number (here, two) or more pulses within a predetermined time (here, T seconds) from the first output, and
It is determined that a minor earthquake has occurred, and the shutoff valve 3 is caused to perform a resettable shutoff (steps S05-S10-S1).
5).

In this case, when the earthquake subsides, the interruption can be released if the customer performs a return operation with reference to a return operation procedure attached to the gas meter 100. Alternatively, when a pulse signal is no longer input from the seismic sensor 1 to the controller 7, a control logic for automatically opening the shut-off valve 3 after a predetermined time may be incorporated, and the controller 7 may be automatically reset. Further, the return signal may be transmitted from the monitoring center 4 to each of the controllers 7 of the gas meters 100 that are shut off, and the controller 7 may receive the signals and open the shutoff valves 3 individually.

<In the case of a relatively large earthquake> In the case of a relatively large earthquake, both the first seismic unit 1-1 and the second seismic unit 1-2 sense the vibration and output the first output and the second output. Output to the controller 7. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 5 or FIG. 6, when the first output and the second output are input simultaneously or before or after within a predetermined time A, the controller 7 determines that a large earthquake has occurred, and 3 is performed (steps S05-S10-S20 or step S05).
-S25-S20).

However, in the case of this embodiment, in the case of an earthquake where there is no damage to the building, the monitoring center 4 immediately sends a shutdown release signal to the gas meter 100 of the customer whose safety has been confirmed. Upon receiving the release signal, the controller 7 of the gas meter 100 releases the immediate shut-off mode and automatically returns to the normal mode.

In this embodiment, the control logic of the controller 7 is provided with a function capable of immediately switching over between a possible and a non-returnable state by a signal from the monitoring center 4, and the function is immediately shut off by a relatively large earthquake. Later, when the safety is confirmed, the monitoring center 4 may transmit a switching signal to enable immediate shutdown and return. In this case, if the consumer performs a return operation with reference to a return operation procedure attached to the gas meter 100, the shutdown can be released. Alternatively, as in the case of a minor earthquake, if the controller 7 receives the immediate shutdown return enable signal,
When the pulse signal is no longer input from the seismic sensor 1,
A control for automatically opening the shutoff valve 3 after a predetermined time may be performed.

<When there is an external impact> As shown in FIG. 7, the first seismic unit 1-1 does not output the first output,
When only the seismic unit 1-2 outputs the second output, it is considered that only some external shock is applied to the gas meter 100, and the shutoff control is not performed (steps S05-S25).
-S30). This prevents the gas meter 100 from shutting off due to an impact other than an earthquake, and can reduce the time and effort of the return operation.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.
And FIG. 8 to FIG. Although the configuration of the second embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the cutoff control logic incorporated in the controller 7 is different from that of the first embodiment.

In the case of the second embodiment, the controller 7
Also monitors the flow signal of the flow sensor 2 (branch to YES in step S50 in the flowchart of FIG. 8), and as shown in the timing charts of FIG. 9 and FIG. If the instantaneous gas flow rate is detected either before or after the first output when receiving the first output, the shutoff valve 3 is shut off (steps S60-S70-S7).
5-S80-S85). On the other hand, if the gas flow rate is not detected even if the first output is received, it is considered that shutoff is not necessary, and shutoff control is not performed (steps S60-S70-S75-).
S80-S90).

On the other hand, when the first output and the second output are received from the seismic sensor 1 within the predetermined time B, the cutoff is performed immediately as in the first embodiment (steps S60-S70-S75).
-S95).

Thus, in the case of a relatively small earthquake, the gas can be shut off only for the gas meters 100 of the customers who are using gas, and the gas meters 100 of a large number of customers who have no problem in safety can be used. Without indiscriminately shutting down, it is possible to prevent the troublesomeness of the return operation from being imposed on the consumer. In addition, regarding the release method after immediate shutoff,
It can be the same as that of the embodiment.

In the case of the second embodiment, when pulsation is observed by the output of the flow sensor 2 with respect to the controller 7, the flow monitor after the output of the first output is not performed, and the controller 7 receives the first output. A control logic for immediately shutting down can be added (steps S60-S70-S100). As a result, if there is a pulsation in the gas flow rate, it becomes impossible to detect a minute gas flow rate. Therefore, by immediately shutting down, a malfunction (inactivation of the shut-off valve 3) can be prevented, and safety can be ensured. .

[0033]

As described above, according to the present invention, there is no need to immediately shut off the vehicle due to a slight earthquake, and the same operation can be performed only when a person comes into contact with the gas pipe or hits a carried baggage. In this way, it is possible to prevent the immediate shut-off, and to perform the unnecessarily frequent immediate shut-down, thereby reducing the required return work.

Further, a communication function with the monitoring center is provided.
The communication from the monitoring center allows the immediate shutdown that cannot be reset to be released, so that even if a relatively large earthquake occurs or the immediate shutdown occurs due to other reasons, safety can be confirmed at the monitoring center side. For example, the immediate shutoff of the gas meter of each customer can be released remotely, and the work of returning to the location where the gas meter is installed can be reduced.

Further, a communication function with the monitoring center is provided, and a switching function of a return / non-return from an immediate cut-off by the gas cut-off controller is provided, and the return / non-return is switched by communication from the monitoring center. Even if a relatively large earthquake occurs or an immediate shutdown occurs due to other reasons, if the safety can be confirmed at the monitoring center, the immediate shutdown of the gas meter of each customer can be restored remotely. It can be reset to, so that each customer can return from the shut-off state immediately,
It is possible to reduce the work of returning to the location where the gas meter is installed.

Further, according to the present invention, the safety of the entire customer is ensured by immediately shutting off in the event of a large quake, and the gas can be returned in the case of a small quake. By shutting off only the gas meter in which the gas is actually used, the number of customers who force a return operation can be reduced.

Further, when the gas cutoff controller detects the pulsation while the gas cutoff controller is performing the gas cutoff which can be returned by the pulse signal of the first stage, the cutoff is immediately performed so that the safety is improved. Can be.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the seismic sensor according to the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of gas cutoff control according to the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a timing chart showing a state in which the seismic sensor outputs only the first output in the above embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the first output of the seismic sensor according to the above embodiment;
9 is a timing chart showing one state in which the second output is output before and after the second output.

FIG. 6 shows a case where the seismic sensor has the first output,
9 is a timing chart showing another state in which the second output is output before and after the second output.

FIG. 7 is a timing chart showing a state in which the seismic sensor outputs only the second output in the above embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart of gas shutoff control according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a timing chart showing one detection timing of the output of the seismic sensor and the output of the flow sensor in the above embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a timing chart showing another detection timing of the output of the seismic sensor and the output of the flow sensor in the above embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Seismic sensor 1-1 1st seismic part 1-2 Second seismic part 2 Flow sensor 3 Shut-off valve 4 Monitoring center 6 Communication interface 7 Controller 100 Gas meter

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Ikko Ikko 1-5-20 Kaigan, Minato-ku, Tokyo Inside Tokyo Gas Co., Ltd. (72) Mamoru Suzuki 1-5-20 Kaigan, Minato-ku, Tokyo Tokyo Inside Gas Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Mitsunori Komaki 1-5-20 Kaigan, Minato-ku, Tokyo Inside Tokyo Gas Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Ken Tashiro 1-5-20 Kaigan, Minato-ku, Tokyo Tokyo Gas Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Mitsuhiro Nakamura 1-5-20 Kaigan, Minato-ku, Tokyo Inside Tokyo Gas Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Tomohiro Kataoka 801 Shidokoro, Shimogyo-ku, Kyoto Shimogyo (72) Naoko Kawabata Naoko Kawabata 801 Shidokoro-dori, Horikawa-Higashi-iri, Minami-Fudo-cho, Shimogyo-ku, Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture (72) Koji Shimomoto, Inventor, Koji Shimomoto, Kyoto, Kyoto 801 Shiouji-dori Horikawa-Higashi-iri Minami-Fudodou-cho OMRON Co., Ltd. 70, Yanagicho, Sachi-ku, Kawasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture Inside the Toshiba Yanagicho Works Co., Ltd. 70, Yanagicho-ku, Toshiba Yanagicho Office Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Ikuo Maeda 70, Yanagicho, Kochi-ku, Kawasaki City, Kanagawa Prefecture Co., Ltd. F-term in Toshiba Yanagicho Office (reference) 2F030 CC13 CF05 CF11 2F073 AA08 AB01 BB00 BC01 CC03 CC05 CC07 DD02 FG01 GG01 GG07 GG08

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A seismic sensor comprising a seismic part, a case supporting the seismic part, a terminal part for transmitting the output of the seismic part, capable of multi-step output, and a first-stage seismic sensor within a specific period. If only a pulse signal is generated, it is regarded as a small earthquake, and the gas can be reset. If the first and second pulse signals are generated, it is regarded as a large earthquake and an immediate non-recoverable shutoff is performed. A gas meter comprising: a gas shutoff controller incorporating a gas shutoff logic that does not shut off gas when a pulse signal of only the first stage is generated as an impact. 2. A communication function with a monitoring center, wherein the gas cutoff controller can release the non-returnable immediate cutoff by communication from the monitoring center when the non-returnable immediate cutoff is performed. The gas meter according to claim 1, wherein: 3. A communication function with a monitoring center, wherein the gas shut-off controller has a switching function of resettable / non-returnable from immediate shut-off of non-returnable, and the resettable / returnable by communication from the monitoring center. The gas meter according to claim 1, wherein the gas meter can be switched between inactive and inactive. 4. A seismic sensor capable of multi-stage output comprising a seismic sensor, a case supporting the seismic sensor, a terminal for transmitting the output of the seismic sensor, and a flow sensor for detecting a gas flow rate. A gas shutoff controller having a setting switching function of flow monitoring / immediate shutoff, and performing a gas shutoff control in a different mode based on a combination of a multi-stage output of the seismic sensor and an output of the flow sensor; Performs a gas shutoff that can be reset when the flow rate sensor detects the gas flow rate before and after the earthquake sensor outputs the first-stage pulse signal at the time of the flow rate monitoring setting. A gas meter that immediately shuts off when a pulse signal of an eye is output. 5. The gas shutoff controller according to claim 4, wherein when the flow rate sensor detects a pulsation when detecting a pulse signal output of the first stage at the time of setting the flow rate monitoring, the gas shutoff controller performs an immediate shutoff. Gas meter.