JP2002349848A - Hot water heating system, remote control device for hot water heating, and hot water heating terminal - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a hot water heating system which ensures warning about fuel shortage based on the residual quantity of stored fuel in a refueling type water heater. SOLUTION: The hot water heating system is provided with the oil burning water heater for supplying hot water by burning oil stored in an oil tank, a hot water floor heating panel for performing floor heating using hot water from the water heater as a heating medium, and a floor heating remote controller AR for operating the hot water floor heating panel. The water heater and the remote controller AR are connected through a communication interface and a communication cable. The water heater is provided with a liquid level sensor for detecting the residual quantity of oil in the oil tank. The water heater transmits residual quantity information to the remote controller AR in accordance with the results of the detection conducted by the liquid sensor. Based on the residual quantity information, the remote controller AR outputs message characters or voice messages for accelerating refueling.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a hot water heating system for performing hot water heating using, for example, petroleum as a stored fuel, a remote control device for hot water heating, and a hot water heating terminal.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A hot water heater has a non-refueling type in which city gas supplied to each house is burned through a gas pipe to supply hot water, and kerosene or the like is stored in an oil tank as a storage fuel. There is a refueling type that supplies hot water by burning fuel. In any case, the water heater supplies hot water to a kitchen or a bathtub, but it can also supply hot water to a heating terminal that performs floor heating or bathroom drying. A system for performing heating using hot water as a heat medium by such a heating terminal is called a hot water heating system and has been widely used recently.

A hot water heating system is provided with a remote controller (hereinafter, simply referred to as a "remote controller") for a user to operate a heating terminal, and performs a heating operation via the remote controller. It is possible to check the operation status. Usually, this type of remote controller is connected to a water heater through a control signal line, and an electric signal indicating only ON / OFF of the operation is exchanged between the water heater and the remote controller through the control signal line.

[0004]

However, in a hot water heating system in which a water heater is a refueling type, even if an ignition failure occurs due to running out of fuel, an electric signal indicating operation OFF is sent from the water heater to the remote controller. It is only output and does not tell the remote controller that there is a shortage of fuel. Therefore, in the case of poor ignition due to a shortage of fuel, the user may misunderstand that the water heater or the heating terminal itself has some sort of failure.

[0005]

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been devised in view of the above circumstances, and provides a hot water supply system capable of reliably informing a fuel shortage according to the remaining amount of stored fuel in a refueling type water heater. It is an object to provide a heating system, a remote control device for hot water heating, and a hot water heating terminal.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides:
The following technical measures have been taken:

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a water heater for burning stored fuel stored in a storage tank and supplying hot water,
A heating terminal that performs heating using hot water from a water heater as a heat medium,
A hot water heating system comprising a remote control device for operating and operating a heating terminal, wherein the communication device exchanges information between a water heater and a remote control device, and a remaining amount of stored fuel in a storage tank is detected. And a notifying means for performing a required notifying operation on the remote control device based on remaining amount information on the stored fuel according to the detection result of the remaining amount detecting means, which is sent through the communication means. A hot water heating system is provided.

According to a preferred embodiment, the notifying means outputs a display and / or a sound to indicate that the stored fuel needs to be replenished, based on the remaining amount information.

According to another preferred embodiment, the notifying means displays the remaining amount of the stored fuel itself based on the remaining amount information.

According to another preferred embodiment, the water heater has an ignition failure detecting means for detecting an ignition failure when the stored fuel is burned, an ignition failure is detected by the ignition failure detection means, and the remaining amount is detected. When the means detects that the remaining amount of the stored fuel is greater than the predetermined amount, the ignition failure notifying means for notifying the remote control device of the ignition failure, and the ignition failure detection means detects the ignition failure, and Fuel shortage notifying means is provided for notifying the remote control device of fuel shortage when the amount detecting means detects that the remaining amount of the stored fuel is equal to or less than a predetermined amount.

According to another preferred embodiment, the communication means comprises a two-way communication interface and a communication cable.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the fuel stored in the storage tank is burned to supply hot water, while the remaining amount of the stored fuel in the storage tank is detected, and the storage according to the detection result is performed. Remote control for hot water heating for operating a heating terminal that is connected to a water heater that transmits remaining amount information about fuel via a communication unit that relays information and that performs heating using hot water from the water heater as a heating medium There is provided a remote control device for hot water heating, comprising a notification device for performing a required notification operation based on remaining amount information sent from a water heater through a communication device.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, the fuel stored in the storage tank is burned to supply hot water, while the remaining amount of the stored fuel in the storage tank is detected, and the storage according to the detection result is performed. A hot water heating terminal that is connected to a water heater that transmits remaining amount information related to fuel via a communication unit that exchanges information, and that performs heating using hot water from the water heater as a heat medium, and that is a heating water terminal that is connected to the water heater through a communication unit. A hot water heating terminal is provided, which has a notifying unit that performs a required notifying operation based on the received remaining amount information.

According to the present invention, the remaining amount information regarding the stored fuel is transmitted from the water heater to the remote control device or the hot water heating terminal, and the remote control device or the hot water heating terminal supplies the stored fuel based on the remaining amount information. It informs the user of what should be done and the lack of fuel. For example, if the water heater runs out of fuel and causes ignition failure, it is necessary to reliably notify the user of the lack of fuel according to the remaining amount of fuel stored in the storage tank. Can be.

[0015] Other features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following description of embodiments of the invention with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0016]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be specifically described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an embodiment of a hot water heating system according to the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the hot water heating system mainly includes an oil hot water heater H, a hot water floor heating panel A and a bathroom ventilation dryer B as hot water heating terminals, a main remote control R for hot water supply as a remote control device, and floor heating. Remote controller AR, dryer remote controller BR, and the like. In such a hot water heating system, a hot water floor heating panel A and a bathroom ventilation dryer B are connected to an oil water heater H serving as a hot water supply source via a hot water circulation pipe (shown by a solid line in FIG. 1). I have. Also,
The oil hot water heater H is provided with a two-way communication control function, and is connected to a hot water main remote controller R and a floor heating remote controller AR via a communication cable (indicated by broken lines in FIG. 1). A remote controller BR for the dryer is connected via the dryer B.

The oil water heater H supplies hot water to the hot water floor heating panel A and the bathroom ventilation dryer B, and also supplies hot water to a bathtub, a kitchen, and the like separately. Such an oil water heater H includes, as the water heater main body 1, an oil combustion device, a heat exchanger, and the like (not shown), a hot water supply unit 10 that supplies hot water to each of the hot water floor heating panel A and the bathroom ventilation dryer B, A control unit 1 including a microcomputer such as a CPU and a communication interface circuit
1, and an oil tank 2 as a storage tank for storing petroleum (kerosene) as a storage fuel. The control unit 11 includes a combustion control valve and a water flow control valve in a combustion device, a heat exchanger, and the like, a phototransistor for detecting ignition failure, and a liquid level sensor for detecting that the remaining fuel amount has become a predetermined amount or less. Are connected (not shown). The control unit 11 exchanges various kinds of information with the outside via a communication interface circuit.
The control unit 11 of the oil water heater H controls a hot water supply operation in accordance with a driving operation signal from the remote controller AR for floor heating and the remote controller BR for the dryer in addition to the main remote controller R for hot water supply. Note that hot water supply equipment for a bathtub, a kitchen, and the like is not shown because it is not directly related to the present invention. The microcomputer constituting the control unit 11 has C
It has a PU, a ROM, a RAM, an EEPROM and the like, and its physical configuration is widely known in general.

The main remote controller R for hot water supply mainly operates the oil hot water heater H from a remote place.
For example, it is installed on the wall of a kitchen or bathroom. Although not particularly shown, the main remote controller R for hot water supply includes a display unit for displaying a screen related to an operation operation of the oil hot water heater H, various operation switches, a speaker, a microcomputer such as a CPU, and a communication interface circuit. And the like. The control unit controls input and output of various switches, speakers, a display unit, and the like, and controls communication with an external device. Such a hot water supply main remote controller R
The operation screen related to the hot water supply operation or the hot water heating operation is displayed according to the user's operation, and is used to notify the oil water heater H of the start / end of the hot water supply operation or the hot water heating operation. The microcomputer constituting the control unit includes:
Since it is provided with a CPU, ROM, RAM, EEPROM, and the like, and its physical configuration is generally widely known, detailed description thereof is omitted.

The hot water floor heating panel A is provided below the floor of each room so as to perform floor heating. Although not particularly shown, hot water supplied from the oil hot water heater H is piped in a plane. It is configured to circulate in the pipeline and send it to the oil heater H again. That is, the hot-water floor heating panel A merely circulates hot water, and has no mechanism to be electrically controlled. Since the hot water floor heating panel A is generally widely known, a detailed illustration thereof will be omitted.

The floor heating remote controller AR is installed on a wall surface of a room where the hot water floor heating panel A is provided so that the hot water floor heating panel A can be operated and the like. Although not specifically shown, a floor heating remote control AR
Is equipped with a display unit that displays a screen related to the operation of the hot water floor heating panel A, various operation switches, a speaker, and a control unit including a microcomputer such as a CPU, a communication interface circuit, and the like. It is configured. The control unit controls input and output of various switches, speakers, a display unit, and the like, while the oil hot water heater H
It controls two-way communication with. Such a floor heating remote controller AR is used to display an operation screen relating to the hot water floor heating panel A in response to a user operation, and to notify the oil water heater H of the start / end of the floor heating operation. In other words, the floor heating remote controller AR is used as a pair with the hot water floor heating panel A. However, since it is not necessary to directly control the hot water floor heating panel A itself, various types of remote control AR with the oil hot water heater H are used. It is configured to exchange information. The microcomputer constituting the control unit includes a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, an EEPROM, and the like. The physical configuration is generally widely known, and a detailed description thereof is omitted.

The bathroom ventilation dryer B is provided on a bathroom ceiling or the like so as to ventilate and dry the interior of the bathroom.
Although not particularly shown, the hot water supplied from the oil hot water heater H is circulated, the air is heated by the heat radiating effect of the hot water and sent into the bathroom, and the radiated hot water is sent to the oil hot water heater H again. ing. That is, bathroom ventilation dryer B
In addition to a mechanism for circulating hot water, a control unit for exchanging simple signals with an electrically controlled ventilation fan and an oil water heater H is provided. The control unit is a CP
U and other components, such as a microcomputer and a communication interface circuit, for controlling the operation of the ventilation fan, etc.
Exchange signals with the The microcomputer constituting the control unit includes a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, an E
Since it has an EPROM and the like, and its physical configuration is generally widely known, detailed illustration and description thereof will be omitted. Since the bathroom ventilation dryer B itself is also widely known in general, detailed illustration and description thereof will be omitted.

The remote controller BR for the dryer is installed on a wall surface of a dressing room adjacent to the bathroom so that the operation of the bathroom ventilation dryer B can be performed. Although not particularly shown, the dryer remote controller BR includes a display unit and various operation switches for displaying a screen related to the operation of the bathroom ventilation dryer B, and further includes a speaker, and the like.
It has a control unit including a microcomputer such as a CPU and a communication interface circuit.
The control unit controls input and output of various switches, speakers, a display unit, and the like, and controls transmission and reception of signals to and from the bathroom ventilation dryer B. Such a remote controller BR for a dryer displays an operation screen relating to the bathroom ventilation dryer B in response to a user operation, and starts / ends the ventilation drying operation for the bathroom ventilation dryer B and the oil heater H. Used to convey. That is, the dryer remote controller BR is used as a pair with the bathroom ventilation dryer B, and is configured to exchange signals with the petroleum water heater H through the bathroom ventilation dryer B. The microcomputer constituting the control unit includes a CPU, ROM, RA
M, an EEPROM, etc., and since the physical configuration is generally widely known, detailed illustration and description thereof will be omitted.

Next, the operation associated with the hot water heating operation will be described.

FIG. 2 shows an oil water heater H according to floor heating operation.
FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram for explaining an operation state of the floor heating remote controller AR. First, as shown in FIG. 2, when the user receives an operation start request from the floor heating remote controller AR in response to the operation of turning on the floor heating operation (S1: YES), the oil hot water heater H
The control unit 11 opens the fuel supply valve communicating from the oil tank 2 to the oil combustion device, and causes the oil combustion device to perform an ignition operation, thereby starting combustion using oil as fuel (S2).

After the start of the combustion, the control unit 11 checks through the phototransistor whether an ignition failure has occurred (S3).

In the case of poor ignition (S3: YES), the control unit 11 closes the fuel supply valve and then checks, via the liquid level sensor, whether the remaining amount of oil in the oil tank 2 is not less than a predetermined amount. Is checked (S4).

If the remaining amount of oil in the oil tank 2 is equal to or less than a predetermined amount (S4: YES), the control unit 11 notifies the floor heating remote controller AR of remaining amount information indicating that fuel is insufficient (S5). Then, the hot water supply process is completed. Such remaining amount information is also notified to the hot water supply main remote controller R. The liquid level sensor detects the remaining amount of oil in the oil tank 2 at a stepless level or at a multistep level.
Notifies the floor heating remote controller AR of the value of the remaining amount together with the remaining amount information. As a result, the floor heating remote controller AR displays a message such as “Please refuel” and a screen showing the remaining fuel amount on the display unit based on the received remaining amount information and the remaining amount value as shown in FIG. The voice message displayed on the speaker 30 and having the same content
Emanated from. Of course, the same operation is performed with the main remote controller R for hot water supply. If the message characters and voice messages are not prepared in the floor heating remote control AR or the like, the oil hot water heater H sends the message characters and voice messages themselves together with the remaining amount information to the floor heating remote control A.
It may be transmitted to R or the like.

In S4, when the remaining amount of oil in the oil tank 2 is not less than the predetermined amount and does not correspond to the shortage of fuel (S4: NO), the control unit 11 determines that the ignition failure has occurred due to a malfunction of the combustion device or the like. The meaning information is notified to the floor heating remote controller AR (S6), and then the hot water supply process is terminated. With this, the floor heating remote control AR
Although not shown, a message character indicating that an ignition failure has occurred is displayed on the screen of the display unit 30 according to the received information, and a voice message having the same content is emitted from the speaker 31. Of course, the same operation may be performed by the hot water supply main remote controller R.

In S3, when the combustion is normal without ignition failure (S3: NO), the control unit 11 starts supplying the hot water heated by the combustion heat to the hot water floor heating panel A (S7). After that, the hot water supply process ends. When the user issues an operation termination request from the floor heating remote controller AR in response to the operation of turning off the floor heating operation, the supply operation of the hot water in the oil water heater H is terminated.

In S1, when there is no operation start request from the floor heating remote controller AR (S1: NO), the control unit 11
Waits for the execution of the hot water supply process until there is an operation start request.

Incidentally, the hot water supply processing of the oil water heater H in response to the ventilation drying operation and the operation of the remote controller BR for the dryer in response thereto are almost the same as described above, but this means that a shortage of fuel or poor ignition has occurred. Information and the like are notified to the dryer remote controller BR in accordance with the timing and combination of the simple ON / OFF signals. Thus, the same operation as that of the floor heating remote controller AR is performed by the dryer remote controller BR.

Therefore, according to the above-mentioned hot water heating system, when the oil hot water heater H fails to ignite due to running out of oil as the stored fuel, the remote controllers R and AR indicate that the oil hot water heater H is in a shortage of fuel. , BR, and recognizes that there is a shortage of fuel in response, the user is notified by a display output or a voice output that the stored fuel should be replenished. The shortage of fuel can be reliably notified according to the remaining amount of fuel stored in the water heater H.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment.

As the hot water heating system, only one set of the heating terminal and the remote controller attached thereto may be used, and a plurality of sets of the heating terminal and the remote controller are not always required as in the above embodiment.

The water heater is not limited to the one using petroleum as a storage fuel, but is sealed in a gas cylinder or the like as a storage tank.
The fuel may be stored, for example, using propane gas or the like.

The heating terminal may be, for example, a room heater as long as it uses hot water as a heat medium.

When another heating terminal is newly introduced into the hot water heating system, a remote controller for performing the driving operation will be additionally provided. If a device having a similar communication function is adopted, the water heater main unit 1 and the remote controller can be easily added simply by connecting them via a communication cable.

The timing of notifying the fuel shortage is not limited to when there is poor ignition, but may be notified at the time when the remaining amount of oil is below a predetermined amount during combustion or during standby. . Of course, apart from the notification of the fuel shortage, the remote control units R, AR, and BR may always display the remaining oil amount.

The liquid level sensor detects the remaining amount at a stepless level or a multi-step level. However, based on a certain level, it is simply determined whether the remaining amount is higher or lower than the reference level by simply turning on / off. It may be detected. When such an on / off detection type liquid level sensor is applied, the remaining fuel level itself cannot be displayed on the floor heating remote controller AR or the like. Please output a message character or voice message.

The storage tank such as the oil tank 2 does not need to be built in the oil hot water heater H, and may be separately provided if the remaining fuel amount information can be transmitted to the control unit 11 of the oil hot water heater H. good.

When the hot water heating terminal itself has a display unit and a speaker, the shortage of fuel based on the remaining fuel amount information may be notified through the display unit and the speaker of the hot water heating terminal. Of course, such a hot water heating terminal may display the fuel remaining amount itself based on the fuel remaining amount information. Further, if the ignition failure is detected, and if it is detected that the remaining amount of fuel is larger than a predetermined amount, the hot water heating terminal may be notified of the ignition failure,
Alternatively, when the ignition failure is detected and the remaining amount of the fuel is detected to be equal to or less than the predetermined amount, the hot water heating terminal may be notified of the fuel shortage.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing one embodiment of a hot water heating system according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart of a hot water supply process in an oil water heater according to floor heating operation.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram for explaining an operation state of a floor heating remote controller.

[Explanation of symbols]

 REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 Hot water heater main body 2 Oil tank 10 Hot water supply unit 11 Control unit 30 Display unit 31 Speaker H Oil hot water heater R Main remote control for hot water supply A Hot water floor heating panel AR Remote control for floor heating B Bathroom ventilation dryer BR Remote control for dryer

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A water heater for burning stored fuel stored in a storage tank to supply hot water, a heating terminal for heating using hot water from the water heater as a heat medium, and a heating terminal for operating the heating terminal. A hot water heating system comprising a remote control device, a communication unit that exchanges information between the water heater and the remote control device, and a remaining amount detecting unit that detects a remaining amount of the stored fuel in the storage tank. And a notifying unit that performs a required notifying operation on the remote control device based on remaining amount information regarding the stored fuel according to the detection result of the remaining amount detecting unit, which is transmitted through the communication unit. A hot water heating system, comprising: 2. The hot water heating system according to claim 1, wherein the notifying unit outputs a display and / or a sound to indicate that the stored fuel needs to be supplied based on the remaining amount information. 3. The hot water heating system according to claim 1, wherein the notification unit displays the remaining amount of the stored fuel itself based on the remaining amount information. 4. The water heater includes: an ignition failure detection unit that detects an ignition failure when the stored fuel is burned; an ignition failure detected by the ignition failure detection unit; and the storage amount detection unit detects the ignition failure. When it is detected that the remaining amount of fuel is greater than a predetermined amount, ignition failure notifying means for notifying the remote control device of ignition failure, and ignition failure detection by the ignition failure detection means, A fuel shortage notifying unit that notifies the remote operation device of a fuel shortage when the amount detecting unit detects that the remaining amount of the stored fuel is equal to or less than a predetermined amount. 3. The hot water heating system according to any one of 3. 5. The communication device according to claim 1, wherein said communication means comprises a two-way communication interface and a communication cable.
The hot water heating system according to any one of the above. 6. A method for burning a stored fuel stored in a storage tank to supply hot water, detecting a remaining amount of the stored fuel in the storage tank, and obtaining remaining amount information on the stored fuel according to the detection result. A remote control device for hot water heating for operating a heating terminal that is connected to the hot water heater to be transmitted through communication means for relaying information and performs heating using the hot water from the hot water heater as a heating medium, A remote control device for hot water heating, comprising: a notification unit that performs a required notification operation based on the remaining amount information transmitted from the water heater through the communication unit. 7. While burning the stored fuel stored in the storage tank to supply hot water, detecting the remaining amount of the stored fuel in the storage tank and detecting remaining amount information on the stored fuel according to the detection result. A hot water heating terminal that is connected to a water heater to be transmitted via a communication unit that relays information and that performs heating using hot water from the water heater as a heating medium, and is sent from the water heater through the communication unit. A hot water heating terminal, comprising: a notification unit that performs a required notification operation based on the remaining amount information.