JP2002340634A - Electronic city water meter - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an electronic city water meter in which the visibility of a liquid crystal display part is excellent even in a dark place, and the generation of an abnormality in city water pressure and the like is confirmable without opening the meter lid. SOLUTION: This electronic city water meter 1 is enhanced in the visibility for the meter in a dark box and a shaft, since the meter 1 has a lighting part 5 for lighting the liquid crystal display part 3. Since electric power supply to the lighting part 5 is controlled by an electric power source control part 6 based on opening and closing of the meter lid 4, the display part 3 is lighted only by opening the meter lid 4 without conducting a manual operation. The meter is thereby read without lighting a display face by a luminair and the like. In abnormal display in the city water pressure, the lighting part 5 is flickered by the power source control part 6 to judge the abnormality easily. This flickering for an abnormality can be visually confirmed without opening the meter lid 4 by making the meter lid 4 transparent.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an electronic water meter for measuring tap water usage and the like. More specifically, the present invention relates to an electronic water meter provided with a liquid crystal display unit having improved visibility and the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In general, an electronic water meter has a structure in which a display section is a liquid crystal display section, and a display surface of the liquid crystal display section is covered by a meter cover. At the time of meter reading, the meter cover is opened, and the numerical value displayed on the display surface of the liquid crystal display unit is read.

[0003] Electronic water meters are connected to a water pipe embedded in the ground or wall and are located in a box or shaft embedded in the ground or wall.

[0004]

Here, since the inside of such a box or the inside of the shaft is dark, a lighting device such as a flashlight is required at the time of meter reading.

Further, since the display surface of the liquid crystal display unit cannot be seen without opening the meter cover, it is troublesome to check a plurality of water meters, for example, when an abnormality in the tap water pressure occurs. It takes time to check the location.

It is an object of the present invention to propose an electronic water meter which can read the display content of a liquid crystal display without requiring any lighting equipment.

Another object of the present invention is to propose an electronic water meter capable of confirming the occurrence of abnormal water pressure even when the meter cover is closed.

[0008]

According to the present invention, there is provided an electronic water meter having a liquid crystal display section and a meter cover for covering the liquid crystal display section, wherein the liquid crystal display section is illuminated. And a lighting control unit that controls the driving of the lighting unit in conjunction with opening and closing of the meter lid.

Since the electronic water meter according to the present invention has an illuminating unit for illuminating the liquid crystal display unit, the visibility of the meter in a dark box or a shaft is improved. The lighting controller, which controls the turning on and off of the lighting unit, detects and controls the opening and closing of the meter cover, so there is no need to manually turn on the lighting unit. Can be illuminated.

[0010] Such an illumination control section includes an open / close detection section for detecting the open / closed state of the meter lid, and a power supply control section for controlling power supply to the illumination section. When the open state of the meter cover is detected by the open / close detection unit, power is supplied to the illumination unit,
When the closed state of the meter cover is detected, the power supply to the illumination unit is stopped.

Here, the illuminating unit may be a backlight for illuminating the liquid crystal display unit from behind. In this case, the illumination unit includes a light guide plate arranged on the back surface of the liquid crystal display unit, a light emitting light source arranged on a side surface of the light guide plate, and a reflection sheet arranged on the back surface of the light guide plate. Preferably, the reflection surface of the reflection sheet is coated with a luminous paint. With this configuration, the lighting unit can illuminate the liquid crystal display unit even after the power supply is stopped, while the light is being emitted from the luminous paint applied to the reflection sheet.

Therefore, if the power supply control unit is configured to stop the power supply a predetermined time after the opening / closing detection unit detects the open state of the meter cover, the illumination unit is controlled by the lighting time of the light emitting light source. Since the liquid crystal display unit can be illuminated for a long time, power can be saved.

On the other hand, in the case where the power supply control unit has an abnormality detection unit for detecting an abnormality in the pressure of tap water flowing through the water pipe, the illumination unit detects the abnormality in the water pressure when the abnormality detection unit detects a water pressure abnormality. Can be configured to supply power by intermittent power supply. With this configuration, the illumination unit can be made to blink when an abnormality occurs, and the abnormality display of the water pressure can be clearly displayed.

[0014] The blinking of the illuminating section at the time of occurrence of the abnormality may be caused by forming at least a portion overlapping the display surface of the liquid crystal display section when the meter lid is closed or by closing the meter lid. If a through-hole is formed in a portion overlapping the display surface of the liquid crystal display unit, abnormal blinking of the illumination unit can be immediately confirmed even when the meter cover is closed.

[0015]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of an electronic water meter according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an electronic water meter to which the present invention is applied. FIG. 2 is a schematic block diagram showing an illumination unit for illuminating a liquid crystal display part in the electronic water meter of FIG.

As shown in FIG. 1, an electronic water meter 1
Is a meter main body 2 connected to a water pipe (not shown), a liquid crystal display unit 3 attached to the meter main body 2 for displaying a flow rate of tap water, and the like, and a meter main body so as to cover the liquid crystal display unit 3. 2 and a meter cover 4 which is openably and closably attached to the meter cover 2.

The meter main body 2 has a fluid passage 21 whose front and rear ends are connected to a water pipe, and a cylindrical portion 22 standing upright from the fluid passage 21. The liquid crystal display unit 3 is attached to the upper end opening 22a of the cylindrical portion 22. The meter lid 4 is attached to the cylindrical portion 22 so as to be openable and closable so as to cover the upper end opening 22a. When the meter cover 4 is closed, the liquid crystal display unit 3 is covered with the meter cover 4. In addition, since the meter cover 4 is molded from a transparent resin, the display surface 3a of the liquid crystal display unit 3 can be viewed from the outside even in a closed state.

A cover 23 for covering an external output terminal is formed between the liquid crystal display section 3 and the mounting section 41 of the meter cover 4 in the upper end opening 22a. When the meter cover 4 is closed, a U-shaped groove 42 is provided in the meter cover 4 so as not to interfere with the output line covered by the cover 23 and drawn out.
Are formed.

A push button switch 71 is provided on the front end face of the liquid crystal display section 3 in the upper end opening 22a.
Abnormal reset switches 81 are arranged side by side. When the meter cover 4 is closed, the push button switch 71
It is pressed by a switch press 43 formed inside the lid 4. This push button switch 71 is connected to the illumination unit 5 arranged on the back side of the liquid crystal display unit 3. The illumination unit 5 will be described in detail later, but the meter cover 4 is opened and the push button switch 71 is opened.
Is turned on when the pressing of the button is released, and turned off when the meter cover 4 is closed and the push button switch 71 is pressed.

An abnormal reset switch 81 is a switch used to reset an abnormal display such as tap water pressure displayed on the display surface 3a of the liquid crystal display unit 3 after the normal recovery.
It is configured by combining a reed switch and a magnet. In addition, like this abnormal reset switch 81,
The push button switch 71 pressed by the meter cover 4 can also be constituted by a reed switch and a magnet. In this case, it is necessary to keep the distance from the abnormal reset switch 81 or the like so that both switches do not cause magnetic interference.

Referring to FIG. 2, the illumination section 5 will be described. The illumination unit 5 surrounded by a dashed line is mounted on a substrate 91 inside the meter main body 2, and the liquid crystal display unit 3 is overlaid on the illumination unit 5. Therefore, the illumination unit 5 is a backlight that illuminates the liquid crystal display unit 3 from behind. The illumination section 5 and the liquid crystal display section 3 are covered by a frame 92 similarly mounted on a substrate 91,
The upper surface 92 a of the second meter 2 is flush with the upper end of the upper opening 22 a of the meter body 2.

The illuminating unit 5 includes a light guide plate 54 having a constant thickness, light sources 51 and 52 composed of light emitting diodes disposed on both sides of the light guide plate 54, and a reflection sheet 53 attached to the back surface of the light guide plate 54. Have. Luminescent paint is applied to the reflection surface of the reflection sheet 53.

Electric power is supplied to the light sources 51 and 52 from a battery power supply 61. This power supply is controlled by a power supply controller 6 connected between the battery power supply 61 and the light sources 51 and 52. The power control unit 6 is connected to an open / close detection unit 7 and an abnormality detection unit 8, and controls power supply based on detection signals from the open / close detection unit 7 and the abnormality detection unit 8.

The above-described push button switch 71 is connected to the open / close detection unit 7. When the push button switch 71 for detecting the open / close of the meter cover 4 detects the open state of the meter cover 4, the power control unit 7 is connected to the open / close detection unit 7. Send a signal. The power control unit 6 supplies power to the lighting unit 5 according to this signal. As a result, the light sources 51 and 52 of the illumination unit 5 are turned on. Conversely, when the push-button switch 71 detects the closed state of the meter cover 4, the power supply control unit 6 stops supplying power according to a signal from the open / close detection unit 7, so that the illumination unit 5 is turned off.

The opening / closing detecting section 7 sends a power supply signal to the power supply control section 6 and then, after a predetermined time, the power supply control section 6
And a timer 72 for sending a signal to stop power supply to the apparatus. Therefore, the power supply control unit 6 is controlled by the timer 72.
The power supply is stopped after a predetermined time from the start of power supply based on the detection signal indicating the open state of the meter cover 4 from the open / close detection unit 7.

Next, the abnormality detection section 8 is connected to the abnormality reset switch 81 described above, and sends an abnormality detection signal to the power supply control section 6 when detecting an abnormality in tap water flowing through the water pipe. With this signal, the power supply control unit 6 supplies power to the lighting unit 5 by intermittent energization. As a result, the lighting unit 5 repeats blinking. The blinking of the lighting unit 5 is released by pressing the abnormal reset switch 81 in a state where the tap water pressure is normal.

In the water meter 1 configured as described above,
The liquid crystal display unit 3 is illuminated by the illumination unit 5. FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing a flow from turning on the lighting unit 5 to turning off the lighting unit 5 in the water meter shown in FIG.

As shown in this figure, when the meter cover 4 is opened, the open / close detector 7 detects the open state of the meter cover 4 (steps ST1 and ST2). Thereby, the light source 5
Power is supplied from the battery power supply 61 by the power supply control unit 6 to the light emitting devices 1 and 52 (step ST11). At the same time, the timer 72 of the opening / closing detecting section 7 starts counting time (step ST12). On the other hand, in the reflection sheet 53, the light source 51,
While reflecting the light from the liquid crystal display 52 to the liquid crystal display unit 3, the light storage in the light storing paint applied to the reflection surface starts (step ST2).
1). The illumination unit 5 is turned on as the backlight of the liquid crystal display unit 3 by the light emission of the light sources 51 and 52 (step ST3).
1). Since the liquid crystal display unit 3 is illuminated in this manner, a meter reading operation or the like can be started (step ST3).

The opening / closing detecting section 7 sends a power supply signal to the power control section 6 from the timer 72 and then sends a power supply stop signal after a predetermined time, so that the power control section 6 uses this signal to supply power. The operation stops, and the light sources 51 and 52 are turned off (step ST13). When the light sources 51 and 52 are turned off, the fluorescent paint on the reflection sheet 53 emits light (step ST22).
As a result, the backlight of the illumination unit 5 is continuously turned on (step ST32). Therefore, the meter reading operation in step ST3 can be performed continuously.

Eventually, the light accumulated in the fluorescent paint disappears (step ST23). As a result, the backlight by the illumination unit 5 is also turned off (step ST33). Therefore, the procedure S
Since the meter reading operation at T3 is also completed, the meter cover 4 is closed (step ST4).

By closing the meter cover 4, the open / close detector 7 detects the closed state of the meter cover 4 (step ST).
5). At this time, the time-up state of the timer 72 of the open / close detector 7 is reset. Therefore, the meter cover 4
, The liquid crystal display unit 3 can be similarly illuminated with the backlight by the illumination unit 5.

On the other hand, when an abnormality occurs in the water pressure, the illumination unit 5 blinks because the power supply unit 6 intermittently supplies power according to the detection signal of the abnormality detection unit 8. This blinking can be confirmed even when the meter cover 4 is closed because the meter cover 4 is transparent. In addition, the meter cover 4 may be entirely transparent, or if the emission of the illumination unit 5 can be confirmed,
The portion overlapping the liquid crystal display unit 3 may be transparent or a through hole may be formed.

[0034]

As described above, since the electronic water meter according to the present invention has the illumination unit for illuminating the liquid crystal display unit, the visibility of the meter in a dark box or a shaft is improved. . In addition, since the power supply control unit that controls the power supply to the lighting unit detects and controls the opening and closing of the meter cover, there is no need to manually turn on the lighting unit. The part can be illuminated.
Therefore, meter reading can be performed without preparing lighting equipment.

The illuminating section used as a backlight of the liquid crystal display section has a reflecting sheet in which a luminous paint is applied to a reflecting surface for reflecting light emitted from a light emitting light source. This reflection sheet, even after the power supply to the light source of the lighting unit is stopped, while the light is emitted from the luminous paint,
The liquid crystal display can be illuminated. Therefore, since the lighting time of the light emitting light source can be shortened and power can be saved, the life of the battery power supply built in the electronic water meter can be extended.

On the other hand, when the abnormality of the water pressure is displayed, the illumination part blinks by the intermittent power supply by the power supply control part, so that it is easy to determine the abnormality. Opening the meter lid by making the part that overlaps the display surface of the liquid crystal display part transparent when the meter lid is closed, or by forming a through hole in the part that overlaps the display surface of the liquid crystal display part when closed And the abnormal blinking of the lighting unit can be immediately judged.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an electronic water meter to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a schematic block diagram showing an illuminating unit for illuminating a liquid crystal display part in the electronic water meter shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing a flow from turning on to off of a lighting unit in the water meter shown in FIG. 1;

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Electronic water meter 2 Meter main body 3 Liquid crystal display part 3a Display surface 4 Meter lid 5 Illumination part 6 Power supply control part 7 Open / close detection part 8 Abnormality detection part 21 Fluid passage 22 Cylindrical part 22a Top opening part 23 Cover 41 Mounting part 42 U L-shaped groove 43 Switch holder 51, 52 Light source 53 Reflecting sheet 54 Light guide plate 61 Battery power supply 71 Push button switch 72 Timer 81 Abnormal reset switch 91 Substrate 92 Frame 92a Top surface

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page F term (reference) 2F030 CC02 CE07 CE22 CE27 CE28 2F074 AA02 AA10 DD03 EE03 FF01 GG06 GG10

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. An electronic water meter having a liquid crystal display section and a meter cover for covering the liquid crystal display section, wherein: a lighting section for illuminating the liquid crystal display section; and the lighting section in conjunction with opening and closing of the meter cover. And an illumination control unit for controlling the driving of the electronic water meter. 2. The power supply according to claim 1, wherein the illumination control unit includes an open / close detection unit that detects an open / closed state of the meter cover, and a power supply control unit that controls power supply to the illumination unit. The control unit supplies power to the lighting unit when the open state of the meter cover is detected by the open / close detection unit, and stops power supply to the lighting unit when the closed state of the meter cover is detected. Electronic water meter characterized by the following. 3. The electronic water meter according to claim 1, wherein the illumination unit is a backlight that illuminates the liquid crystal display unit from behind. 4. The light guide according to claim 3, wherein the illumination unit includes a light guide plate disposed on a back surface of the liquid crystal display unit, a light emitting source disposed on a side surface of the light guide plate, and a reflection sheet disposed on a back surface of the light guide plate. An electronic water meter, wherein a luminous paint is applied to a reflection surface of the reflection sheet. 5. The electronic water meter according to claim 4, wherein the power control unit stops power supply a predetermined time after the open / close detection unit detects the open state of the meter cover. . 6. The power supply control unit according to claim 2, further comprising an abnormality detection unit that detects an abnormality in pressure of tap water flowing through a water pipe, wherein the power supply control unit controls a water pressure by the abnormality detection unit. An electronic water meter, wherein when an abnormality is detected, power is supplied to the lighting unit by intermittent power supply. 7. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein at least a portion of the meter cover that overlaps a display surface of the liquid crystal display unit when the meter cover is closed is transparent. Water meter. 8. The liquid crystal display according to claim 1, wherein a through hole is formed in a portion of the meter cover that overlaps a display surface of the liquid crystal display when the meter cover is closed. Electronic water meter.