JP2003166745A - Remote monitor device of air conditioner - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce the phenomena that an abnormal condition cannot be recognized and that a normal condition is wrongly recognized as abnormal and the erroneous abnormality is announced in a remote monitor device of an air conditioner. <P>SOLUTION: The remote monitor device of the air conditioner 1 is separate from the air conditioner 1, and comprises a first communication part 21, a sensor 22, a determining part 23, and a second communication part 24. The first communication part 21 receives operation information of the air conditioner 1 from the air conditioner 1. The determining part 23 compares the operation information and information detected by the sensor 22 and determines whether the operation condition satisfies a prescribed abnormality condition. The second communication part 24 transmits monitor information to an outside information terminal when the determining part 23 determines that the operation information and the information detected by the sensor 22 satisfy the prescribed abnormality condition. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a remote monitoring device for an air conditioner.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art When an abnormality occurs in an air conditioner, it is convenient if an external user or a person concerned with the user (hereinafter referred to as a user) can grasp the occurrence of the abnormality. In order to realize this, there has been proposed a remote monitoring device that informs a mobile phone of a user or the like outside through a telephone line when an abnormality occurs in the air conditioner. For example, there has been proposed a device incorporated in an air conditioner or a personal computer connected to the air conditioner, which sends an e-mail when an abnormality in the air conditioner is recognized.

[0003]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In such a device,
It is judged whether or not there is an abnormality in the air conditioner based on operating information such as temperature information detected by various temperature sensors arranged in the air conditioner, the state of the compressor, the set operation mode and the set temperature. . However, even with such an apparatus, there may occur a case where the abnormal state that has occurred cannot be recognized or a case where the abnormality is erroneously determined and a false alarm is issued.

An object of the present invention is to reduce a phenomenon in a remote monitoring device for an air conditioner in which an abnormal state that has occurred cannot be recognized or a phenomenon in which a false alarm is erroneously determined and an error is issued.

[0005]

A remote monitoring device according to claim 1 is a remote monitoring device for an air conditioner provided separately from an air conditioner, the first communication part, a sensor and a judging part. And a second communication unit. The first communication unit receives the operation information of the air conditioner from the air conditioner. The determination unit compares the driving information with the information detected by the sensor and determines whether or not a predetermined abnormal condition is satisfied. The second communication unit transmits the monitoring information to the external information terminal device when the determination unit determines that the driving information and the information detected by the sensor satisfy the predetermined abnormal condition. Here, as the monitoring information, there is a fact that an abnormal state has occurred, an adapted abnormal condition, and the like.

Since this remote monitoring device is provided separately from the air conditioner and has a sensor separately from the air conditioner, an abnormal condition is detected from the operation information of the air conditioner and the information detected by the sensor. You can judge. For this reason,
With this remote monitoring device, it is possible to reduce a phenomenon in which an abnormal state that has occurred cannot be recognized, or a phenomenon in which a false alarm is erroneously determined to be abnormal and a false alarm is issued. For example, when the air conditioner is performing the dehumidifying operation, even if it is determined from the operation information that the normal dehumidifying operation is being performed, the actual indoor humidity is not the humidity associated with the dehumidifying operation. There are cases. Even in such a case, the remote monitoring device can recognize the abnormal state from the humidity information detected by the sensor.

A remote monitoring device according to a second aspect is the remote monitoring device according to the first aspect, further comprising a control unit. The operation command is input to the air conditioner, and the control unit transmits the operation command to the air conditioner through the first communication unit. Further, the determination unit compares the information detected by the sensor with the operation command to determine whether or not a predetermined abnormal condition is satisfied. Then, the second communication unit transmits the monitoring information to the external information terminal device when the determination unit determines that the information detected by the sensor and the operation command satisfy the predetermined abnormal condition.

This remote monitoring device can judge an abnormal state from the operation command to the air conditioner and the information detected by the sensor. Therefore, with this remote monitoring device, it is possible to reduce the phenomenon in which the abnormal state that has occurred cannot be recognized, or the phenomenon in which a false alarm is generated by mistakenly determining that the abnormality has occurred. For example, there is a case where the dehumidifying operation command is transmitted to the air conditioner, but the actual indoor humidity does not become the humidity associated with the dehumidifying operation. Even in such a case, this remote monitoring device
An abnormal condition can be recognized from the humidity information detected by the sensor.

A remote monitoring device according to a third aspect is the remote monitoring device according to the second aspect, wherein the operation command is a start command or a stop command of the air conditioner. This remote control device can determine an abnormal state from a start command or a stop command to the air conditioner and information detected by the sensor. Therefore, with this remote monitoring device, it is possible to reduce the phenomenon in which the abnormal state that has occurred cannot be recognized, or the phenomenon in which a false alarm is generated by mistakenly determining that the abnormality has occurred. For example, when a start command is transmitted to the air conditioner and a dehumidifying operation is performed, the actual indoor humidity may not decrease. Even in such a case, the remote monitoring device can recognize the abnormal state from the humidity information detected by the sensor.

The remote monitoring device according to claim 4 is the remote monitoring device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the sensor detects environmental information in the room in which the indoor unit of the air conditioner is arranged. To do. The remote monitoring device can determine an abnormal state from the operation information of the air conditioner, the operation command to the air conditioner, and the indoor environment information detected by the sensor. For example, the remote monitoring device can recognize that the indoor environment has not changed according to the operation information of the air conditioner.

Further, the remote monitoring device can judge an abnormal state from a start command or a stop command to the air conditioner and the indoor environment information detected by the sensor. For example, the remote monitoring device can recognize that the indoor environment does not change despite the activation command to the air conditioner. Thus, with this remote monitoring device, it is possible to reduce the phenomenon in which the abnormal state that has occurred cannot be recognized, or the phenomenon in which a false alarm is erroneously determined to be a false alarm.

A remote monitoring device according to a fifth aspect is the remote monitoring device according to the fourth aspect, wherein the environmental information is at least one of temperature information and humidity information. This remote monitoring device can determine an abnormal state from the operation information of the air conditioner, the operation command to the air conditioner, and the indoor temperature information (or humidity information) detected by the sensor. For example, the remote monitoring device can recognize that the room temperature or humidity has not changed according to the operation command to the air conditioner.

Further, the remote monitoring device can judge an abnormal state from a start command or a stop command to the air conditioner and temperature information (or humidity information) in the room detected by the sensor. For example, the remote monitoring device can recognize that the temperature or humidity in the room does not change despite the start command or the stop command to the air conditioner.

As described above, in this remote monitoring device, it is possible to reduce a phenomenon in which an abnormal state that has occurred cannot be recognized, or a phenomenon in which a false alarm is erroneously determined and a false alarm is issued. Claim 6
The remote monitoring device according to the present invention is the remote monitoring device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the second communication unit has a storage unit in which a plurality of electronic mail addresses are stored. Also, the monitoring information is transmitted as an electronic mail.

This remote monitoring device can send an electronic mail to a plurality of external information terminal devices when an abnormal state is recognized. Therefore, this remote monitoring device can notify the monitoring information to a plurality of users and the like. For example, if not only the user but also the electronic mail address of the information terminal device of the service center is stored in the memory, the electronic mail is sent to the service center when an abnormality occurs. In this case, the service person can quickly rush to deal with the abnormal condition.

A remote monitoring device according to a seventh aspect is the remote monitoring device according to any one of the first to sixth aspects, further comprising a third communication section for performing communication between the remote monitoring devices. This remote monitoring device is capable of collecting monitoring information of a plurality of air conditioners and transmitting it to an external information terminal device by communicating with another remote monitoring device capable of communicating with each of the plurality of air conditioners. it can. Therefore, other remote monitoring devices do not require equipment or installation work for communicating with external information terminal equipment. Thereby, remote monitoring of a plurality of air conditioners can be easily performed.

[0017]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS [First Embodiment] <Configuration of Remote Control Monitoring System> FIG. 1 shows a remote control monitoring system 100 in which a remote monitoring apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention is adopted. This remote control monitoring system 10
0 is for remotely controlling the air conditioner 1 and remotely monitoring the condition of the air conditioner 1.

The remote control monitoring system 100 is mainly composed of an air conditioner 1, a remote controller 2 of the air conditioner in which a remote monitoring device is incorporated, a landline telephone 3 and an information terminal device 4. The air conditioner 1 includes an indoor unit 11 and an outdoor unit 1.
It is composed of 2 and. The indoor unit 11 and the outdoor unit 12 are
The refrigerant pipe 13 and the communication line 14 are connected to each other. The remote controller 2 is provided separately from the indoor unit 11, and is arranged in the same room as the indoor unit 11. The indoor unit 11 and the remote controller 2 can communicate by infrared rays. The fixed telephone 3 is placed in the same room as the remote controller 2. The remote controller 2 and the fixed telephone 3 are connected to a telephone modular jack 6 via a branch adapter 5 and are connected to a telephone network 7. Remote control 2
Can be connected to the Internet 8 via the telephone network 7 and can send an electronic mail to the external information terminal device 4. The information terminal device 4 corresponds to a mobile phone capable of receiving and displaying an electronic mail, a personal computer, a terminal arranged in a service center, or the like.

As shown in FIG. 2, the remote controller 2 mainly includes an infrared port 21 (first communication section), a sensor 22, a microcomputer (hereinafter abbreviated as microcomputer) 23, a modem 24 (second communication section) and a memory 25. (Storage unit). The infrared port 21 can communicate with the indoor unit 11 by infrared rays, transmits an operation command to the indoor unit 11, and receives operation information of the air conditioner 1 from the indoor unit 11. The operation command includes a start command, a stop command, a temperature setting, a humidity setting, etc. of the air conditioner 1. Infrared port 2
1 is connected to the microcomputer 23 in the remote controller 2.
Note that the communication between the remote controller 2 and the indoor unit 11 can be performed by wire using RS232C or the like instead of wirelessly using infrared rays.

The sensor 22 is a temperature sensor for detecting the temperature inside the room in which the indoor unit 11 is arranged and a humidity sensor for detecting the humidity. The sensor 22 is connected to the microcomputer 23 and outputs the detected information to the microcomputer 23. The memory 25 stores a plurality of electronic mail addresses and is connected to the microcomputer 23.

The modem 24 can be connected to the Internet 8 via the telephone network 7 and can communicate with the outside. The modem 24 is connected to the microcomputer 23 in the remote controller 2. The microcomputer 23 has a function as a control unit that receives an operation command to the air conditioner 1 and transmits the operation command through the infrared port. In addition, the microcomputer 23
Has a function as a determination unit that determines whether or not various input information satisfies a predetermined abnormal condition.

Further, the remote controller 2 is activated by detecting a ringing sound from the fixed telephone 3 and is activated.
It has a function to control. <Remote Control> First, a method of remotely starting the remote controller 2 to control the start and stop of the air conditioner 1 will be described with reference to FIG. Here, a case where a user who is out and about starts or stops the air conditioner 1 at home from the outside will be described.

The user makes a call to the fixed telephone 3 at home from the outside by using a mobile telephone or a public telephone. Then,
A ring tone sounds from the fixed telephone 3, and the remote controller 2 detects this. At this time, the remote controller 2 distinguishes an ordinary telephone from a telephone for remote control by the following determination method. The remote controller 2 detects the ring sound for the first time a certain number of times, and when it detects the ring sound for the second time a certain number of times within a predetermined time, activates the remote controller 2 to start or stop the air conditioner 1. In other words, the ring tone of the first call becomes an attention command, and the ring tone of the second call becomes a control command.
The remote controller 2 is activated. That is, the user hangs up the phone after making a certain number of ring sounds for the first time, makes a second call after a certain time, makes a ring of the ring sound for a certain number of times, and hangs up the air conditioner from a remote location. 1 is controlled. A specific determination method will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. Here, the number of attention ring sounds is twice, the control command for starting the air conditioner 1 is two times, and the control command for stopping the air conditioner 1 is five times. Also, the timeout from the first call to the second call is set to 15 seconds.

First, in step S1, it is determined whether or not a ring sound is present. When the remote controller 2 detects the ring sound, the process proceeds to step S2. In step S2, it is determined whether or not the ring sound is two attentions. If the remote controller 2 detects two ring sounds, step S
Go to 3. In step S3, it is determined whether the time-out period has elapsed. If the time-out of 15 seconds has not elapsed, the process proceeds to step S4.

In step S4, it is determined whether or not a second ring sound is produced. When the remote controller 2 detects the second ring sound, the process proceeds to step S5. Step S5
Then, it is determined whether or not the second ring sound is the control command that activates the air conditioner 2 times. When the ring sound detected by the remote controller 2 is two times, the process proceeds to step S6, the remote controller 2 sends a start command to the indoor unit 11 of the air conditioner 1, and the air conditioner 1 is started.

In step S7, it is determined whether the second ring sound is five times, which is a control command for stopping the air conditioner 1. When the ring sound detected by the remote controller 2 is five times, the process proceeds to step S8, the remote controller 2 transmits a stop command to the indoor unit 11 of the air conditioner 1, and the air conditioner 1 is stopped. By such determination means, it is possible to prevent the air conditioner 1 from malfunctioning due to activation of the remote controller 2 due to a ringing sound such as an ordinary telephone call for making a call or a wrong telephone call.

Further, the remote controller 2 detects the ring sound 1, 2, or 3 times as 2 times, and detects the ring sound 4, 5, or 6 times as 5 times. Therefore, even if there is a difference between the number of ring sounds heard by the user who made a phone call and the number of ring sounds actually heard, an error of ± 1 is allowed. This prevents a user's operation mistake. As described above, in the remote control monitoring system 100, the user outside the home can remotely start and stop the air conditioner 1 by a simple method of making a call.

<Remote Monitoring> Next, a remote monitoring method of the air conditioner 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. Here, a user who is out and about to go is an air conditioner 1 at home.
The description will be made assuming that the above abnormality is monitored. First, the microcomputer 23 in the remote controller 2 outputs a "request for driving information" signal at regular intervals. Then, the infrared port 21 transmits a "request for driving information" signal to the indoor unit 11. Upon receiving this signal, the indoor unit 11 transmits operation information, and the infrared port 21 receives the operation information (polling method). The received operation information is transmitted to the microcomputer 23, and the microcomputer 23 determines whether a predetermined abnormal condition is satisfied. When the operation information does not satisfy the predetermined condition, the operation of the air conditioner 1 is determined to be “normal”, and the polling is continued. When the operation information satisfies a predetermined abnormal condition, the operation of the air conditioner 1 is determined to be “abnormal”, and the microcomputer 23 further determines whether the “abnormal” is an “important abnormality”. If "abnormal" is judged to be "important abnormality",
The modem 24 connects to the Internet 8 via the telephone network 7, and the electronic mail is transmitted to the information terminal device 4 of the user. E-mail is stored in the memory 2 of the remote controller 2 in advance.
5 is transmitted to the electronic mail address stored in 5, and when a plurality of addresses such as family members are stored, the information is transmitted to a plurality of information terminal devices 4.

Here, when the microcomputer 23 determines an abnormal condition, the microcomputer 23, together with the operation information transmitted from the indoor unit 11, detects the indoor condition detected by the sensor 22 such as a temperature sensor or a humidity sensor arranged on the remote controller 2. It is also determined whether the abnormal condition is satisfied based on the temperature and humidity information of.
That is, the microcomputer 23 determines whether or not the room temperature and humidity are changing according to the operation information. Further, it is also determined whether or not the temperature and humidity in the room change according to the operation command of the air conditioner 1 input to the microcomputer 23. For example, when a command to start the cooling of the air conditioner 1 is input to the microcomputer 23 and the indoor temperature detected by the sensor 22 is not lowered, it is determined as “abnormal”. Similarly, when a command to stop the cooling of the air conditioner 1 is input, it is also determined as “abnormal” when the temperature in the room does not rise.

Thus, this remote control monitoring system 1
In 00, since the remote controller 2 has a sensor 22 such as a temperature sensor separately from the air conditioner 1, the remote controller 2
Can determine an abnormal state from the operation information of the air conditioner 1, the operation command to the air conditioner 1, the temperature information detected by the sensor 22, and the like. Therefore, it is possible to reduce a phenomenon in which the abnormal state that has occurred cannot be recognized, or a phenomenon in which a false alarm is erroneously determined to be abnormal and a false alarm is issued. Moreover, since a plurality of electronic mail addresses can be stored in the memory 25 of the remote controller 2, it is possible to notify a plurality of users of the occurrence of an abnormality at the same time. In this case, if the e-mail address of the information terminal device 4 of the service center is stored in the memory, the e-mail is sent to the service center when an abnormality occurs. Therefore, the service person can quickly rush to deal with the abnormal condition.

In order to inquire the state of the air conditioner 1, the user does not communicate externally, but the remote controller 2 sends an e-mail when the abnormal state is recognized, so the number of communications is small. Become. This reduces communication costs. This remote control monitoring system 10
The remote controller 2 used for the air conditioner 1 is provided outside the air conditioner 1 and is connected to the air conditioner 1 by wireless or wired communication means.
Can communicate with. Therefore, it is possible to construct the remote control monitoring system 100 using the existing air conditioner 1. As a result, this remote control monitoring system 1
The cost of building 00 is suppressed.

Further, in the remote control monitoring system 100, when the microcomputer 23 in the remote controller 2 determines "abnormal", it is determined whether the "critical abnormality" is further detected.
It is possible to prevent unnecessary emails from being sent. [Second Embodiment] FIG. 4 shows a remote control monitoring system 101 according to a second embodiment of the present invention. Here, the web server 9 is added to the remote control monitoring system 100 of the first embodiment.
Has been added.

In this remote control monitoring system 101, a user can connect the information terminal device 4 to the Internet 8 via the telephone network 7 and log in to the web server 9. The web server 9 can send a control command to the remote controller 2 via the telephone network 7. Hereinafter, a method of remotely controlling the air conditioner 1 using the remote control monitoring system 101 will be described.

First, the user calls the fixed telephone 3 and activates the remote controller 2 in the same manner as in the first embodiment. Then, the user uses the information terminal device 4 to the web server 9
Log in to and select the operation content of the air conditioner 1 on the web. The web server 9 transmits a control command corresponding to the selected operation content to the remote controller 2. The remote controller 2 that has received the control command transmits an operation command corresponding to the control command to the indoor unit 11. When the indoor unit 11 receives the operation command, the air conditioner 1 operates according to the operation content selected by the user. Further, when the control command received by the remote controller 2 is for requesting temperature information of the room, which will be described later, the remote controller 2 operates the sensor 22 in the remote controller 2.
And sends the temperature information detected by the web server 9.

The user selects the operation content on the web as follows. First, the user is the web server 9
When logging in to, the login screen is displayed on the information terminal device 4 as shown in FIG. The user inputs the ID and password to confirm the identity. Next, the operation / stop / temperature selection screen is displayed as shown in FIG. When the user selects “stop”, the air conditioner 1 is stopped, and the fact that the operation is stopped is displayed as shown in FIG. 7. When the user selects "temperature", the temperature detected by the sensor 22 in the remote controller 2 is displayed as shown in FIG. When the user selects “operation”, the operation selection screen of the air conditioner 1 is displayed as shown in FIG. 9. The user selects operation contents such as operation mode, temperature, humidity, and air volume. Then, the operation content confirmation screen is displayed as shown in FIG. 10, and the air conditioner 1 operates according to the selected operation content.

As described above, the remote control monitoring system 101 according to the present embodiment can not only start / stop the air conditioner 1 but also remotely control more detailed operation contents such as the set temperature. In addition, security is ensured because the identity is confirmed on the web. further,
By registering the customer information in the web server 9, it becomes possible to provide a service corresponding to each customer, and the service is further enhanced.

Further, in the remote control monitoring system 101 according to this embodiment, the same remote monitoring as in the remote control monitoring system 100 according to the first embodiment is performed. Therefore, it is possible to reduce a phenomenon in which the abnormal state that has occurred cannot be recognized, or a phenomenon in which a false alarm is erroneously determined to be abnormal and a false alarm is issued. [Third Embodiment] FIG. 11 shows a remote control monitoring system 102 according to a third embodiment of the present invention. The remote control monitoring system 102 performs remote control and remote monitoring of the two air conditioners 1a and 1b. The indoor units 11a and 11b of the air conditioners 1a and 1b are arranged in different rooms. The outdoor units 12a and 12b of the air conditioners 1a and 1b are arranged outdoors.

In this remote control monitoring system 102, the remote control connected to the telephone network 7 in the remote control monitoring system 101 according to the second embodiment is used as a master unit 2a.
A remote controller that can wirelessly communicate with the parent device 2a is added as a child device 2b. As shown in FIG. 12, the main device 2a mainly includes the communication port 26, the sensor 22,
It is composed of a microcomputer 23, a modem 24, a memory 25, and a wireless module 27 (third communication unit). The base unit 2a is
The indoor unit 11a is connected to the indoor unit 11a by a wire via the communication port 26, and it is possible to transmit an operation command to the indoor unit 11a and receive response data from the indoor unit 11a. The slave unit 2b is also configured similarly to the master unit 2a, and the indoor unit 11
It is possible to transmit the operation command to the b unit and receive the response data from the indoor unit 11b. In addition, the master unit 2a can communicate with the slave unit 2b via the wireless module 27, the operation command to the air conditioner 1b, the response data from the indoor unit 11b, the information detected by the sensor 22 of the slave unit 2b. And send and receive. The modem 24 of the base unit 2a is connected to the telephone modular jack, can be connected to the Internet 8 via the telephone network 7, and can communicate with the outside. Note that the number of slave units 2b is not limited to one, and when there are three or more air conditioners, the number of slave units corresponding to each air conditioner can be added.

A method of remotely controlling the air conditioners 1a and 1b using the remote control monitoring system 102 will be described. First, the user makes a call to the fixed telephone 3 in the same manner as in the first embodiment to activate the base unit 2a. Then, the user logs in to the web server 9 from the information terminal device 4 and selects the operation content of the air conditioners 1a and 1b on the web. At this time, select the room in which the air conditioner you want to operate is located. The web server 9 transmits a control command corresponding to the selected operation content to the master device 2a.
When the room in which the air conditioner 1a is arranged is selected, the parent device 2a transmits an operation command corresponding to the transmitted control command to the indoor unit 11a of the air conditioner 1a. When the room in which the air conditioner 1b is arranged is selected, the parent device 2a transmits a control command to the child device 2b in that room. The child device 2b receiving the control command is the air conditioner 1
The operation command corresponding to the control command is transmitted to the indoor unit 11b of b. When the indoor unit 11b receives the operation command, the air conditioner 1b operates according to the operation content selected by the user. Also, the user can select a request for the status of the air conditioners 1a and 1b, such as the presence or absence of operation and the temperature, when selecting the operation content. For example, the air conditioner 1
When the request of the situation of b is selected, the indoor unit 11b of the air conditioner 1b which received this control command transmits response data to the subunit | mobile_unit 2b. The response data transmitted to the child device 2b is wirelessly transmitted to the parent device 2a. The base unit 2a is
The response data is transmitted to the web server 9 via the telephone network 7. The user who has logged in to the web server 9 can know the status of the air conditioner 1b from the display of the information terminal device 4.

The user selects the operation content on the web as follows. First, the user is the web server 9
When the user logs in, the login screen is displayed on the information terminal device 4 as shown in FIG. The user inputs the ID and password to confirm the identity. Next, a room selection screen is displayed as shown in FIG. The user selects the room in which the air conditioner to be operated is located. When the room is selected, the operation / stop / situation selection screen is displayed as shown in FIG. When the user selects "drive" or "stop", the same processing as in the second embodiment is performed. Here, when “Situation” is selected, as shown in FIG. 16 and FIG.
The operating status and settings of the air conditioners arranged in the selected room are displayed.

As described above, the remote control monitoring system 102 according to this embodiment can remotely control the air conditioners in a plurality of rooms. Further, since the user can know the status of the air conditioner, he or she can select the optimum operation content. Further, in the remote control monitoring system according to this embodiment, the same remote monitoring as in the first embodiment is performed. Therefore, this remote control monitoring system 102
In the above, it is possible to reduce the phenomenon in which the abnormal state that has occurred cannot be recognized, or the phenomenon in which the abnormality is erroneously determined to be abnormal and a false alarm is issued.

[Other Embodiments] The air conditioners to which the remote control monitoring systems according to the first to third embodiments are applied are not limited to the air conditioners installed in a house, but are installed in other buildings. Including air conditioners that have been For example, when these remote control monitoring systems are applied to the air conditioners arranged in each room of a hotel or office, it becomes possible to centrally control the air conditioners at the front desk or the control room.

In this case, an existing air conditioner in each room can be used to easily and inexpensively construct a centralized control system. Further, if there is a telephone network of an extension telephone or an intranet, it is possible to construct a centralized control system more easily and cheaply by using these.

[0044]

The remote monitoring device according to claim 1 is provided separately from the air conditioner and has a sensor separately from the air conditioner. Therefore, the operating information of the air conditioner and the sensor are detected. The abnormal state can be judged from the information. Therefore, with this remote monitoring device, it is possible to reduce the phenomenon in which the abnormal state that has occurred cannot be recognized, or the phenomenon in which a false alarm is generated by mistakenly determining that the abnormality has occurred. For example, when the air conditioner is performing the dehumidifying operation, even if it is determined from the operation information that the normal dehumidifying operation is being performed, the actual indoor humidity is not the humidity associated with the dehumidifying operation. There are cases. Even in such a case, this remote monitoring device
An abnormal condition can be recognized from the humidity information detected by the sensor.

The remote monitoring device according to the second aspect can judge the abnormal state from the operation command to the air conditioner and the information detected by the sensor. Therefore, with this remote monitoring device, it is possible to reduce the phenomenon in which the abnormal state that has occurred cannot be recognized, or the phenomenon in which a false alarm is generated by mistakenly determining that the abnormality has occurred. For example, there is a case where the dehumidifying operation command is transmitted to the air conditioner, but the actual indoor humidity does not become the humidity associated with the dehumidifying operation. Even in such a case, the remote monitoring device can recognize the abnormal state from the humidity information detected by the sensor.

The remote monitoring device according to the third aspect can judge the abnormal state from the start command or the stop command to the air conditioner and the information detected by the sensor. Therefore, with this remote monitoring device, it is possible to reduce the phenomenon in which the abnormal state that has occurred cannot be recognized, or the phenomenon in which a false alarm is generated by mistakenly determining that the abnormality has occurred. For example, when a start command is transmitted to the air conditioner and a dehumidifying operation is performed, the actual indoor humidity may not decrease. Even in such a case, the remote monitoring device can recognize the abnormal state from the humidity information detected by the sensor.

The remote monitoring device according to the fourth aspect can judge the abnormal state from the operation information of the air conditioner, the operation command to the air conditioner, and the indoor environment information detected by the sensor. For example, the remote monitoring device can recognize that the indoor environment has not changed according to the operation information of the air conditioner. In addition, this remote monitoring device can determine an abnormal state from a start command or a stop command to the air conditioner and indoor environment information detected by the sensor. For example, the remote monitoring device can recognize that the indoor environment does not change despite the activation command to the air conditioner.

As described above, in this remote monitoring device, it is possible to reduce the phenomenon in which the abnormal state that has occurred cannot be recognized, or the phenomenon in which the abnormality is erroneously determined and the false alarm is issued. Claim 5
The remote monitoring device according to the above can determine the abnormal state from the operation information of the air conditioner, the operation command to the air conditioner, and the indoor temperature information (or humidity information) detected by the sensor. For example, the remote monitoring device can recognize that the room temperature or humidity has not changed according to the operation command to the air conditioner.

Further, this remote monitoring device can judge an abnormal state from a start command or a stop command to the air conditioner and indoor temperature information (or humidity information) detected by the sensor. For example, the remote monitoring device can recognize that the temperature or humidity in the room does not change despite the start command or the stop command to the air conditioner.

As described above, in this remote monitoring device, it is possible to reduce a phenomenon in which the abnormal state that has occurred cannot be recognized, or a phenomenon in which a false alarm is erroneously determined and a false alarm is issued. Claim 6
The remote monitoring device for
E-mail can be sent to a plurality of external information terminal devices. Therefore, this remote monitoring device can notify the monitoring information to a plurality of users and the like. For example, if not only the user but also the electronic mail address of the information terminal device of the service center is stored in the memory, the electronic mail is sent to the service center when an abnormality occurs. In this case, the service person can quickly rush to deal with the abnormal condition.

A remote monitoring device according to a seventh aspect collects monitoring information of a plurality of air conditioners by communicating with another remote monitoring device capable of communicating with each of the plurality of air conditioners, and collects external information. It can be sent to the terminal device. Therefore, other remote monitoring devices do not require equipment or installation work for communicating with external information terminal equipment. Thereby, remote monitoring of a plurality of air conditioners can be easily performed.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a remote control monitoring system according to a first embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a remote controller.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of a method for determining a normal telephone and a telephone for remote control.

FIG. 4 is a configuration diagram of a remote control monitoring system according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a display screen of an information terminal device.

FIG. 6 is a display screen of an information terminal device.

FIG. 7 is a display screen of an information terminal device.

FIG. 8 is a display screen of an information terminal device.

FIG. 9 is a display screen of an information terminal device.

FIG. 10 is a display screen of an information terminal device.

FIG. 11 is a configuration diagram of a remote control monitoring system according to a third embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a configuration diagram of a master unit of a remote controller.

FIG. 13 is a display screen of an information terminal device.

FIG. 14 is a display screen of an information terminal device.

FIG. 15 is a display screen of an information terminal device.

FIG. 16 is a display screen of an information terminal device.

FIG. 17 is a display screen of the information terminal device.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 air conditioner 2 remote control 4 Information terminal equipment 21 infrared port 22 sensors 23 Microcomputer 24 modem 25 memories 26 communication ports 27 wireless module

   ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued front page    F-term (reference) 3L061 BA02 BA03 BA05                 5K048 AA09 BA08 BA13 DA01 DB04                       DC07 EA01 EB02                 5K101 KK02 KK11 KK14 LL01 LL02                       RR28 UU05

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A remote monitoring device for an air conditioner (1) provided separately from the air conditioner (1), wherein the air conditioner (1) to the operation information of the air conditioner (1). A first communication unit (21, 26) for receiving the information, a sensor (22), and a judgment for judging whether or not a predetermined abnormal condition is satisfied by comparing the driving information and the information detected by the sensor (22) Monitoring information to the external information terminal device (4) when the determination unit (23) determines that the unit (23), the driving information, and the information detected by the sensor (22) satisfy a predetermined abnormal condition. And a second communication unit (24) for transmitting the. 2. A control unit (23) which receives an operation command to the air conditioner (1) and transmits the operation command to the air conditioner (1) through the first communication unit (21). The determination unit (23) compares the information detected by the sensor (22) with the operation command to determine whether a predetermined abnormal condition is satisfied, and the second communication unit (24) The monitoring information is transmitted to an external information terminal device (4) when the determination unit (23) determines that the information detected by the sensor (22) and the operation command satisfy a predetermined abnormal condition. 1. The remote monitoring device according to 1. 3. The remote monitoring device according to claim 2, wherein the operation command is a start command or a stop command of the air conditioner (1). 4. The remote monitoring according to claim 1, wherein the sensor (22) detects environmental information of a room in which the indoor unit (11) of the air conditioner (1) is arranged. apparatus. 5. The remote monitoring device according to claim 4, wherein the environmental information is at least one of temperature information and humidity information. 6. The second communication unit (24) has a storage unit (25) in which a plurality of email addresses are stored, and the monitoring information is transmitted as an email. The described remote monitoring device. 7. A third means for communicating between the remote monitoring devices.
The remote monitoring device according to claim 1, further comprising a communication unit (27).