JP2003003535A - Automatic faucet with generator - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent reduction of a storage quantity of a power storing means in an automatic faucet with a generator. SOLUTION: In the automatic faucet with the generator which is provided with a power generating means to generate power by water flow that flows inside a flow passage, the power storing means which stores power generated by the power generating means, an auxiliary power supply which replenishes power to the power storing means when power is in short, a water feed control means which is operated by power of the power storing means and executes the flow control of the flow passage, and a control means which controls the water feed control means, the control means estimates an amount of electricity generated by the generator, an amount of electricity consumption consumed by a solenoid valve or the like, and the number of opening and closing the solenoid valve or the like by the time during which the water feed control means makes the flow passage being in an opened state, and when the control means judges that the storage quantity of the power storing means is reduced, the reduction of the storage quantity is prevented by intentionally extending the power generating time by extending the opening time of the control means.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to an automatic faucet equipped with a generator.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a faucet control device having a power generation function, there is an idea of using a capacitor as a power storage means. A capacitor is used as a storage means, and an auxiliary power source (primary battery) is provided to replenish the battery if it is insufficient
By controlling the amount of charge from the primary battery to the capacitor, it is possible to provide a faucet control device that does not require replacement of any parts such as power storage means and battery until the product life of the faucet device is reached. Is.

[0003]

In the automatic faucet, the water wheel flowing in the flow path rotates the water wheel, and the electricity generated by the rotation is stored in the power storage means. Therefore, if the amount of electricity stored in the storage means decreases for some reason, the amount of electricity consumed by the solenoid valve or the like cannot be sufficiently supplied on the side of the storage means, and the supply of auxiliary power (primary battery) is relied upon. There is a problem that the ratio increases, which leads to shortening the life of the auxiliary power source (primary battery).

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-26243 discloses that when the water faucet is not used at all for a long period of time and the amount of electricity stored in the electricity storage means is reduced, water is automatically discharged and the electricity is stored in the electricity storage means. However, this conventional example has the following problems.

If the amount of electricity stored is reduced even when the automatic faucet is in use due to the water volume control valve of the automatic faucet being set to a small amount or continuous short water discharge. This problem cannot be solved by the conventional example. In addition, there is also a problem that water is automatically saved because water is automatically discharged only for power storage.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to solve the above problems and provide an automatic water faucet having a long life of an auxiliary power source (primary battery).

[0007]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a power generation unit for generating power by a water flow flowing in a flow path, a power storage unit for storing power generated by the power generation unit, and An auxiliary power supply for replenishing the electric power to the electric storage means when the electric power of the electric storage means is insufficient; a water supply control means that operates by the electric power of the electric storage means to control the amount of water in the flow path; and a control means that controls the water supply means. In the equipped automatic faucet,
Since the control means estimates the power generation amount of the power generation means by the time during which the water supply control means opens the flow path, the control means sets the water supply control means to open the flow path. By estimating the power generation amount of the power generation means according to the time that is present, the power generation amounts up to now can be summed up and the current available storage amount can be grasped.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the automatic faucet according to the first aspect, the control section includes a water supply control means and a power consumption calculation means for calculating the amount of power consumption consumed by the water supply control means.
This makes it possible to grasp the current power consumption.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the automatic faucet according to the first aspect, the control unit includes standby power consumption calculation means for calculating the amount of power consumption of the control unit during standby according to the standby time. This makes it possible to grasp the current standby power consumption.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the automatic faucet according to the second or third aspect, the control unit controls the amount of electricity generated by the generator and the amount of electric power consumed by the water supply control means or the electric power during standby of the control unit itself. By comparing the consumption amounts and estimating the amount of electricity stored in the electricity storage means, the amount of electricity stored in the electricity storage means at the present moment can be grasped.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the automatic faucet according to the fourth aspect, the controller continues the opening operation of the water supply control means if the estimated amount of electricity stored in the electricity storage means is less than a predetermined value. The power generation amount can be increased by continuing power generation to cover the insufficient power storage amount.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the automatic water faucet according to the fourth aspect, the control section is provided with an informing means for informing a user that the electricity storage amount of the electricity storage means has decreased. It is possible to accurately inform the user of the fact that there is no malfunction of the product.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the automatic faucet according to the first to sixth aspects, the human body detection means for detecting a part of the human body is provided, and the control section of the water supply control section responds to the output of the human body detection means. With the feature of opening and closing, the user can automatically open and close the water supply control unit according to the output of the human body detection unit without worrying about the user. Is.

According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, in the automatic faucet according to the first to sixth aspects, by having an operating means for opening and closing the water supply control section by the operation SW, it is convenient to continue supplying water to the container or this operation SW is convenient. is there.

According to a ninth aspect, in the automatic faucet according to the first to eighth aspects, the control section has a non-volatile storage means for storing the set value, and the generated electricity amount generated by the generator or the water supply control section consumes the electricity. By storing the amount of power consumption to be stored in the non-volatile storage means, it is possible to store the amount of electricity generated and the amount of power consumption of the automatic faucet at the present time, which can be used for periodic inspection and failure status grasp.

According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, in the automatic faucet according to the ninth aspect, the control unit externally writes data in the nonvolatile storage means.
While having an external writing terminal, by writing the amount of electricity generated by the generator from the external writing terminal or the amount of power consumption consumed by the water supply control unit in the nonvolatile storage means, the automatic faucet The value can be set according to the installed environment.

[0017]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION In order to make the contents of the present invention easier to understand, description will be given below with reference to embodiments.

[0018]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram for explaining an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, an automatic faucet 2 is installed at the tip of the flow path 1, and the faucet 2 is provided with a display unit 3 such as an LED. Further, a sensor 4 is installed in the automatic faucet 2, and the presence or absence of the detection body 5 is determined by the sensor 4, and if the detection body 5 is detected by the sensor 4, water discharge is performed, and if it is not detected, water stop is performed. Water discharge and water stop are performed by opening and closing the water supply control means composed of the electromagnetic valve 6 installed upstream of the flow path 1. Further, the flow path 1 is provided with a generator 7, and the water flow flowing in the flow path rotates the water turbine to generate electric power, which is stored in the power storage means 8 such as a condenser. Then, power is supplied from the primary battery 9. Further, the faucet 2, the electromagnetic valve 6, the generator 7, and the primary battery 9 are connected to a controller 10, and the controller 10 has a power storage unit 8, a CPU 11, a sound generation unit 12, an external SW 13, a non-volatile memory 14, Inside the CPU, a power generation amount calculation means 18, a power consumption amount calculation means 19, and a standby power consumption amount calculation means 20 are provided.

In the automatic faucet having such a configuration, the CP
The calculation unit programmed in U11 calculates the power generation amount α, the power consumption amount β, and the standby power consumption amount γ. Then, the opening operation of the solenoid valve can be continued based on the calculation results α, β, γ. The detailed flow will be described with reference to FIG.

The power generation amount α is calculated by the opening operation time of the solenoid valve. Assuming that the performance of the generator 7 is 100 mJ / s and the opening time of the solenoid valve is 3 seconds, the power generation amount is 100 mJ.
It is calculated as × 3s = 300 mJ.

The power consumption β is calculated by the consumption of the solenoid valve. When the solenoid valve of 5V and 2A is energized for 50ms in one solenoid valve opening / closing operation, the power consumption is 5V × 2A × 5
It is calculated as 0 ms = 500 mJ.

The standby power consumption amount γ is calculated by the standby power consumption amount due to the light projected from the sensor or the like. Sensing by sensor,
Assuming that it is an automatic faucet that changes the projection cycle without sensing, the standby consumption when the sensor is detected is 2 mJ / s, the standby consumption when the sensor is not detected is 1 mJ / s, the sensing time is 7 seconds, and the non-sensing time is Three
Second, the standby power consumption for 10 seconds is (2 mJ /
s × 7s) + (1mJ / s × 3s) = 17mJ.

By using the above three items as the calculation means, the current storage amount ω of the storage means can be estimated. First, it is determined whether or not the water is currently being discharged (S10
1) If it is still water, it is determined whether or not there is a solenoid valve open request (water discharge request) (S102). If there is no request, the process ends without doing anything, but if there is a request, the solenoid valve is opened and water is discharged. And at the same time, start measurement in the timekeeping section (S10
3). Next, when it comes to the process for determining whether water is being discharged (S101), it is determined that water is being discharged, and it is determined whether there is a solenoid valve closing request (water stop request) (S104). If there is no request, the process ends without doing anything, but if there is a request, the solenoid valve is closed to stop water, and at the same time, the measurement in the timekeeping unit is ended (S105). The measurement time measured by the timekeeping unit is multiplied by the power generation performance of the power generator to obtain the power generation amount α, which is then added (S106). The power consumption β of the automatic faucet is added every time the solenoid valve is closed (S107). When water is discharged a predetermined number of times (S108), α and β are subtracted, and the result is compared with the threshold ψ (S109). At this time, if the subtraction result is larger than the threshold value ψ, the normal opening time is set, and if the threshold value ψ is larger, the opening time longer than usual is set (S110). Then, this calculation result is set as the current stored amount ω and is added (S111). At this time, the comparison between the power generation amount α and the consumption amount β may be performed for each water discharge, or may be performed for every predetermined number of times such as every five times.

Also, consider the standby power consumption amount γ. Periodically (10 seconds in this embodiment) (S112) If the value of the standby power consumption γ is subtracted from the current stored electricity amount ω (S11)
3) It is possible to estimate a more accurate storage amount.

The overall flow will be described with reference to FIG. T4
When the automatic faucet detects the detection body in step 1, the solenoid valve is driven to open, and the power consumption calculation is started. When the automatic faucet does not detect the detection body at T42, it is closed and the power consumption calculating means is ended. Here, if the charged amount is lower than the threshold value,
Set a longer opening time than usual. When the automatic faucet detects the detected object again at T43, the solenoid valve is opened and the power consumption calculation is started. If the automatic faucet does not detect the detection object at T44, normally it will be closed, but since the opening time longer than usual is set at T42, the solenoid valve open state is maintained, and the shortage of stored electricity during this period. Can be covered. After that, when the set open time is up, the drive is closed and the power consumption calculation is stopped. Here, if the charged amount is higher than the threshold value, the original opening time is set.

Here, the long opening time refers to the minimum water discharge time from opening to closing. For example, if the minimum water discharge time is set to 1 second, once water is discharged, 1 second is discharged even if the human body is not sensed. If the minimum water discharge time is extended when the amount of stored electricity decreases, water will be discharged even if the human body is not sensed, so it is possible to generate power by that amount and cover the shortage of stored electricity. . Also, if the human body continues to detect when the minimum water discharge time is extended (dotted line in FIG. 4), it is possible for the user to cover the shortage of electricity storage without any extra water discharge. There are also advantages. By calculating the amount of power generation and the amount of power consumption in this way, it is possible to control the amount of electricity stored in the electricity storage means and prevent the life of the primary battery from being shortened.

Further, as shown in FIG. 3, in the generally used sensor 22, manual SW 36, and any automatic faucet that determines discharge and stop water by using a combination of the sensor and the manual SW, electric power is generated by a water turbine and Since it is common in that it is consumed by opening and closing the valve, the means for changing the minimum water discharge time based on the current amount of stored electricity is effective.

When the opening time is lengthened, the intention is that the shortage of stored electricity is currently being charged, or that there is no malfunction, and the light generated by the display unit 37 such as an LED or the sound generation unit 3 is used.
It is possible to convey to the user by the sound of 8.

Further, by providing the non-volatile memory 39 with a write wiring from the CPU and periodically writing the current power generation amount, power consumption amount, stored amount, etc., it becomes possible to control each control constant when a failure occurs. The value can be grasped and the cause of failure can be clarified.

Since the constants such as the power generation amount and the consumption amount differ depending on the installation place and the performance of the parts, the nonvolatile memory 3
9 has an external writing terminal, and if you write a value according to the installation environment of the automatic faucet, the CPU 11 reads that value and reads it through the wiring, so that it operates with the optimum value according to each environment You can

[0031]

As described above, when the automatic water faucet is set in a small amount, or when a short water discharge is continuously performed, electricity is stored even when the automatic water faucet is used. Even if the amount decreases, it is possible to store electricity in the electricity storage unit without contradicting the intention of saving water.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an automatic faucet according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a circuit example of an automatic faucet according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart for extending the water discharge time of the automatic faucet according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a timing chart of extending the water discharge time of the automatic faucet according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Flow path, 2 ... Faucet, 3 ... LED, 4 ... Sensor, 5 ... Detecting body, 6 ... Electromagnetic valve, 7 ... Generator, 8 ... Storage means, 9 ... Auxiliary power supply (primary battery), 10 ... Controller , 11 ... Control unit, 12 ... Voice generating unit, 13 ... External SW, 14 ... Nonvolatile memory 15 ... Writing wiring from CPU, 16 ... External writing terminal 17 ... Reading wiring from CPU, 18
... power generation amount calculation means, 19 ... power consumption amount calculation means, 20 ...
Standby power consumption calculation means 21 ... Microcomputer, 22 ... Human body detection circuit, 23 ... Solenoid, 24 ... Solenoid energizing circuit, 25 ... Capacitor, 26 ... Voltage conversion circuit, 27 ... Generator, 28 ... Full wave rectifier, 29 ... Zener diode,
30 ... Primary battery, 31 ... Resistor, 32 ... Diode, 33
... resistance, 34 ... transistor, 35 ... inverter, 36
... Manual SW, 37 ... Display section 38 ... Voice generating section, 39 ... Non-volatile memory

Claims (10)

[Claims] 1. A power generation unit for generating power by a water flow flowing in a flow path, a power storage unit for storing power generated by the power generation unit, and an auxiliary device for replenishing the power storage unit with power when the power storage unit runs short of power. In an automatic faucet provided with a power supply, a water supply control unit that operates with the electric power of the power storage unit to control the amount of water in the flow path, and a control unit that controls the water supply unit, the control unit is the water supply control unit. An automatic faucet which estimates the amount of power generated by the power generation means based on the time during which the flow path is kept open. 2. The automatic faucet according to claim 1, wherein the control unit includes a water supply control means and a power consumption calculation means for calculating the amount of power consumption consumed by the water supply control means. 3. The automatic faucet according to claim 1, wherein the control unit includes standby power consumption calculation means for calculating the amount of power consumption of the control unit itself during standby according to the standby time. Water faucet. 4. The automatic faucet according to claim 2,
The control unit compares the amount of electricity generated by the generator with the amount of electricity consumed by the water supply controller or the amount of electricity consumed by the controller itself during standby, and estimates the amount of electricity stored in the electricity storage unit. Automatic faucet. 5. The automatic faucet according to claim 4, wherein the control unit continues the opening operation of the water supply control means if the estimated amount of electricity stored in the electricity storage means is less than or equal to a predetermined value. . 6. The automatic faucet according to claim 4, wherein the control unit includes a notification means for notifying a user that the electricity storage amount of the electricity storage means has decreased. 7. The automatic faucet according to claim 1, wherein:
An automatic water faucet having a human body detecting means for detecting a part of a human body, wherein the control section opens and closes the water supply control section according to the output of the human body detecting means. 8. The automatic faucet according to claim 1,
An automatic water faucet having an operating means for opening and closing a water supply control unit with an operation switch. 9. The automatic faucet according to claim 1, wherein:
The control unit has a non-volatile storage means for storing the set value, and stores the amount of electricity generated by the generator or the power consumption consumed by the water supply control unit in the non-volatile storage means. plug. 10. The automatic faucet according to claim 9, wherein the control unit has an external writing terminal for writing to the nonvolatile storage means from the outside, and the amount of electricity generated by the generator or the water supply from the external writing terminal. An automatic faucet characterized in that the amount of power consumption consumed by the control unit is written in the nonvolatile storage means.