JP2008283433A - Networked home electric appliance system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a networked home electric appliance system which enables a user to collectively control a plurality of home electric appliances by using a mobile terminal which the user always carries. <P>SOLUTION: When a going-out mode is selected on a mobile phone 13, operation information of a plurality of home electric appliances corresponding to the going-out mode, which are registered with an ASP server 11, is transmitted to a home gateway 2, and the home gateway 2 collectively operates respective home electric appliances on the basis of the operation information. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a network home appliance system provided to control home appliances connected by a wired or wireless network.

  In recent years, a system that allows centralized control of home appliances, housing equipment, and the like has appeared. For example, in the system disclosed in Patent Document 1, a home appliance or a home equipment (hereinafter referred to as “collective home appliance”) is connected to a control device for centralized control wirelessly or by wire, and a server The home appliances can be controlled from the screen of a personal computer or the like by communicating between the control device and the control device.

Also, a network home appliance system has been proposed that can control the operation of a plurality of home appliances in a simple and quick manner according to the situation of daily life, instead of individually controlling a plurality of home appliances. (For example, refer to Patent Document 2).
JP 2004-21325 A JP 2006-350819 A

  A network home appliance system capable of controlling a plurality of home appliances collectively according to the life scene as described above can be operated on a personal computer provided in a house. Therefore, when the user is out of the house, that is, when the user is out or near the personal computer, the plurality of home appliances cannot be controlled collectively as described above.

  Then, this invention provides the network household appliance system which can control a several household appliances collectively using the portable terminal which a user always carries in view of the said problem.

The present invention includes a server, a control device connected to the server via the Internet, a plurality of home appliances connected to the control device via a home network, and the server connected via a communication line. In a network home appliance system equipped with a portable terminal,
(1) The portable terminal includes status identification information for identifying a situation when the plurality of home appliances are collectively operated, device identification information of the plurality of home appliances operating in a batch, and the plurality of home appliances A portable storage unit that stores collective operation information including the respective operation information, a display unit that displays the stored collective operation information, and a portable communication unit that transmits the displayed collective operation information. ,
(2) The server includes a server storage unit in which operation information of each of the plurality of home appliances is stored for each operation identification information, a first server communication unit that receives the collective operation information from the portable terminal, A server control unit that calls each operation information of the plurality of home appliances corresponding to the received batch operation information from the server storage unit, and each operation information of the plurality of called home appliances is the control device. A second server communication unit for transmitting to
(3) The control device includes the control communication unit that receives the operation information of each of the plurality of home appliances from the server, and the plurality of operation information of the plurality of home appliances received from the server. A network home appliance system including a main control unit for controlling each home appliance.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to control a plurality of household electrical appliances corresponding to the collective operation information only by transmitting it from the mobile terminal.

  Hereinafter, a network home appliance system according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

(1) Configuration of Network Home Appliance System FIG. 1 shows an outline of the overall configuration of a network home appliance system. The configuration inside a house or condominium (hereinafter collectively referred to as “house”) 1 and the configuration outside the house related thereto. It is.

  A home gateway 2 is provided in the house 1, and home appliances 3 to 7 that can be connected through various networks are communicably connected.

(1-1) Household appliances 3-7
The home appliances 3 to 7 include residential equipment in addition to general home appliances used in the home. Here, for example, an air conditioner 3, an illumination lamp 4, a refrigerator 5, a floor heater 6, a hot water heater 7, etc., but also an IH cooking heater, a washing machine, a microwave oven, a rice cooker, an audio device, a television, a video deck, etc. Various things are applicable.

  These home appliances 3 to 7 include interfaces 3a to 7a for performing Bluetooth (registered trademark) communication, respectively, and can communicate with each other by forming a network via the Bluetooth interface 2a connected to the home gateway 2. It has a configuration. In the state shown in the figure, for example, the air conditioner 3 and the illuminating lamp 4 are representatively one, but since it is generally provided in a plurality of rooms in the house 1, a plurality of them are actually provided. . And when these household appliances 3-7 receive a control command from the home gateway 2, they are comprised so that the drive control according to the control command may be performed.

  There is ECHONET (registered trademark) as a standard for controlling such home appliances 3 to 7 through a network. This standard controls each home electric appliance 3 to 7 by transmitting a SET signal for starting an operation as a control signal or a GET signal for confirming the operation from the home gateway 2 to each home electric appliance 3 to 7. To do.

(1-2) Home gateway 2
The home gateway 2 can be connected to a personal computer 8 and a digital television 9 via a LAN interface 2b. The personal computer 8 and the digital television 9 function as operating means for the home gateway 2.

  The home gateway 2 is provided so as to be connectable to the Internet 10 via the modem 2c. An ASP (Application Service Provider) server 11 connected to the Internet 10 can be accessed.

(1-3) ASP server 11
The ASP server 11 is provided with a database 12 and is configured to store information to be described later corresponding to a large number of houses 1.

  The ASP server 11 functions as a control means, and is installed by a seller or a service provider for the home appliances 3 to 7 and the like, and various services related to the home appliances 3 to 7 and the like are provided via the Internet 10. To provide to the user. Moreover, the database 12 is provided with a home appliance application database that holds a user information database and control application software for the home appliances 3 to 7 as a database.

  Specifically, in the user information database, for example, user information such as a login ID and password to the ASP server 11 and settings of the home gateway 2 such as a network address (MAC address) of the home gateway 2 as information received by user registration. Information, setting information such as network addresses, types, and model names of home appliances 3 to 7 connected to the home gateway 2 is stored.

  The home appliance application database stores control application software that allows the home appliances 3 to 7 in the house 1 to be remotely controlled even when the home gateway 2 cannot be operated such as outside the house 1. For example, this can be realized by accessing the ASP server 11 from the mobile phone 13 described later and downloading the control application software. In the above case, the mobile phone network 15 is connected to the Internet 10 via the relay server 14 so that the mobile phone 13 can access the ASP server 11 or the home gateway 2 via the base station 16. It has become.

  Further, the ASP server 11 stores a database related to collective operations as shown in FIG. The collective operation information in FIG. 4 will be described later.

(1-4) Mobile phone 13
The mobile phone 13 is owned by each user, and can communicate data with the ASP server 11 via the mobile phone network 15 or the relay server 14. Note that the mobile phone 13 includes a mobile terminal in addition to a normal mobile phone.

  In the case of this embodiment, the mobile phone 13 can collectively control the home appliances 3 to 7 in the house 1. This control method will be described later.

(2) Configuration of Home Security System Next, the configuration of the home security system installed in the house 1 will be briefly described.

  An electric lock 18 is provided on the entrance door 17 provided on the outer portion 1 a of the house 1, and is connected to an interphone 19 provided inside the house 1. The intercom 19 is connected to the home gateway 2 via the JEM-A terminal 2d. Also, a door phone 20 is provided at the entrance, and is connected to an interphone 19 that functions as a control device of the home security system.

  In the house 1, the intercom 19 can make a call with the visitor at the entrance and the door phone 20. In addition, the interphone 19 is provided with various sensors 21a to 21c and the like in a window of the house 1 or a place where a person is expected to enter. When an intruder from the outside is detected, the interphone 19 is provided. This can be judged automatically by a control device and can be automatically notified to the security company. In this case, as the sensors 21a to 21c, for example, it corresponds to various security such as a magnet switch installed in a door or a window, a crime prevention sensor such as a human body detection sensor, and a disaster prevention sensor such as a fire sensor or a gas leak sensor. Sensors are provided.

  The interphone 19 is provided with a function for performing exchanges with the door phone 20 described above, a monitoring function with the sensors 21a to 21c and the like, and in addition to this, an outing mode for monitoring when going out, etc. The function to cancel is provided. The front portion of the intercom 19 is provided with an operation button 19a for setting and releasing a sleep mode described below, and a display unit 19b for performing various settings and displays.

  In the connection configuration of the interphone 19 and the home gateway 2, the interphone device 19 has a JEM-A terminal 19a, and is connected to the home gateway 2 through the JEM-A terminal 19a. This JEM-A terminal 19a is a control / monitoring interface for residential equipment, and has two control terminals for inputting control signals and two for outputting monitoring signals to the outside. It is configured with a monitoring terminal. Further, when the electric lock 18 is locked in the outing mode as described later, a high level signal is output to the home gateway 2 through the monitoring terminal until the outing mode is canceled.

(3) Collective Operation Control Method Next, in the network home appliance system having the above configuration, a case where the user operates the home appliances 3 to 7 in the house 1 in a batch using the mobile phone 13 will be described.

  A user may want to operate a plurality of home appliances 3 to 7 collectively in the scene of life. For example, when going out, it is necessary to stop a plurality of air conditioners in the house 1 and turn off the illumination. Moreover, at the time of bedtime, it is necessary to stop all the air conditioners, turn off the lights, and lock the electric lock 18. Furthermore, when returning home, it is convenient to operate the air conditioner and boil the bath in advance.

  Therefore, the outline | summary of the control method which operates or stops collectively the household appliances 3-7 required in each scene of the above life is demonstrated.

  First, the mobile phone 13 owned by the user is operated to display a display screen as shown in FIG. On this display screen, a service list screen of this network home appliance system is displayed, and a convenient button is displayed therein. When the user presses this convenient button, a selection button that can control a plurality of home appliances at once is displayed as shown in FIG. This display screen is in an “outing” mode, a “good night” mode, and a “return” mode from the top. For example, when the user selects the outing mode, the display screen advances, and the operating state of the home appliances that can be collectively controlled in the outing mode is displayed. For example, FIG. 2C shows a state where the air conditioner (living room) is stopped, the air conditioner (bedroom) is stopped, and the lighting (living room) is stopped. If the user determines that this operation state is acceptable, the service selection screen is displayed and an instruction for the outing mode is transmitted to the ASP server 11.

  In the ASP server 11, the operating state of each home appliance in each mode is registered for each user ID. For example, when the user ID 0001 selects the outing mode, information is stored that the air conditioner 1 is stopped and the lighting 1 is stopped. Therefore, when a signal in the outing mode is input from the mobile phone 13 having the user ID 0001, the home electric appliances 3 to 7 are controlled based on the registered contents shown in FIG.

  In addition, the operation state of the home appliance in each mode stored in this database can be registered from each mobile phone 13 as shown in FIGS. That is, when the setting is selected in FIG. 2A and the convenient button is selected in FIG. 2D, each mode is displayed. For example, when the return mode is displayed, the operation state (on / off) of each home electric appliance can be selected. If the operation is performed here and the set content is transmitted to the ASP server 11, the content is displayed. It is registered in the database shown in FIG.

(4) Sequence in Collective Operation Next, a sequence for collectively controlling the home appliances 3 to 7 in the house 1 by the mobile phone 13 in FIG. 3 will be described. In FIG. 3, the return mode is taken as an example.

  First, the ASP server 11 is accessed from the mobile phone 13 to authenticate whether or not the user of the mobile phone 13 is registered from the login screen, and the menu screen is entered. Then, the return mode is selected as shown in FIG. Then, the contents are transmitted to the ASP server 11.

  Next, the ASP server 11 uses the database shown in FIG. 4 to call the operating state of the home appliance belonging to the home button corresponding to the user, and confirms that the air conditioner is on and the bath is on. In the job management table in the ASP server 11, the air conditioner is on and the bath is on.

  Next, the ASP server 11 accesses the home gateway 2.

  Next, the air conditioner on information is transmitted to the home gateway 2, and the home gateway 2 controls to turn on the air conditioner 3. In the ECHONET standard, a SET signal is transmitted from the home gateway 2 to the air conditioner 3. Then, the ON result information is transmitted from the air conditioner 3 to the home gateway 2. Further, when an error signal is returned from the air conditioner 3 that it cannot be turned on, the error signal is transmitted to the ASP server 11.

  Next, if an error signal is not transmitted from the home gateway 2 within a predetermined time (for example, 3 minutes), the ASP server 11 determines that the air conditioner 3 is turned on and registers it in the job management table. If an error signal is received within a predetermined time, error information is registered in the job management table.

  Next, the ASP server 11 transmits bath-on information to the home gateway 2, and the home gateway 2 controls the water heater 7 of the bath to boil water. When the hot water heater 7 starts to supply hot water, it returns the hot water supply result information to the home gateway 2. When an error signal is returned from the water heater 7 that the hot water supply cannot be performed, the error signal is transmitted to the ASP server 11.

  Next, if an error signal is not transmitted from the home gateway 2 within a predetermined time (for example, 3 minutes), the ASP server 11 determines that the bath is turned on and registers it in the job management table. If an error signal is received within a predetermined time, error information is registered in the job management table.

  Next, in the ASP server 11, when the information that the air conditioner is turned on and the information that the bath is turned on are registered in the job management table, all the home appliances in the return mode have been operated normally. The result is notified by e-mail. Then, the mobile phone 13 displays a result indicating that it is normal in response to the mail. On the other hand, if error information is registered in the job management table, the name of the home appliance (for example, air conditioner) and the name of the normally operated home appliance (for example, bath) in the error information are stored in the mobile phone. 13 will be notified by email. Then, the mobile phone 13 displays the result corresponding to the mail.

(5) Control of electric lock 18 The operation of the air conditioner 3 and the water heater 7 is controlled in the return mode. However, when the electric lock 18 is operated in the sleep mode, the operation confirmation method is slightly different. Therefore, the method will be described. Since the illumination lamp 4 is turned off in the same manner as in the return mode, the description thereof is omitted.

  First, when there is a sleep mode command, the ASP server 11 accesses the home gateway 2.

  Next, the lock information of the electric lock 18 is transmitted to the home gateway 2, and the home gateway 2 controls to lock the electric lock 18. That is, in the ECHONET standard, a SET signal is transmitted from the home gateway 2 to the electric lock 18.

  Next, the home gateway 2 transmits lock confirmation information to the electric lock 18. That is, in the ECHONET standard, a GET signal is transmitted from the home gateway 2 to the electric lock 18. Then, when the lock confirmation information is received from the electric lock 18, it is determined that the lock is normally performed. On the other hand, when the lock confirmation information is transmitted and an error signal is received from the electric lock 18, it is determined that the lock cannot be performed, and the error signal is transmitted to the ASP server 11.

  Next, if the error signal is not transmitted from the home gateway 2 within a predetermined time (for example, 3 minutes), the ASP server 11 determines that the electric lock 18 is locked and registers it in the job management table. If an error signal is received within a predetermined time, error information is registered in the job management table.

  Thus, about the household appliances which need confirmation of an operation state, confirmation information is transmitted and the safety | security is aimed at.

(6) Effect As described above, in the network home appliance system of the present embodiment, the mobile phone 13 can collectively control a plurality of home appliances, so that the operation can be easily performed. For example, since the user can collectively control the air conditioner and the bath only by operating the return button, the user can easily perform the operation without individually controlling the mobile phone 13. And a user can know the operation result of all the household appliances by mail.

  Moreover, it is possible to register home appliances to be collectively controlled from the mobile phone 13.

(Example of change)
The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the gist thereof.

It is a block diagram of the network household appliance system which shows one Embodiment of this invention. It is a screen when performing collective control in a mobile phone. This is a sequence for performing collective control. It is a database in collective control in an ASP server.

Explanation of symbols

1 Housing 2 Home Gateway 3-7 Home Appliances 11 ASP Server 13 Mobile Phone

Claims (5)

Server,
A control device connected to the server via the Internet;
A plurality of home appliances connected to the control device via a home network;
A mobile terminal connected to the server via a communication line;
In the network home appliance system with
(1) The mobile terminal
Including situation identification information for identifying a situation when operating the plurality of home appliances collectively, device identification information of the plurality of home appliances operating in a batch, and operation information of each of the plurality of home appliances A portable storage unit for storing batch operation information;
A display unit for displaying the stored batch operation information;
A mobile communication unit for transmitting the displayed batch operation information;
With
(2) The server
A server storage unit storing operation information of each of the plurality of home appliances for each operation identification information;
A first server communication unit that receives the collective operation information from the mobile terminal;
A server control unit that calls the operation information of each of the plurality of home appliances corresponding to the received batch operation information from the server storage unit;
A second server communication unit for transmitting the operation information of each of the plurality of called home appliances to the control device;
With
(3) The control device
A control communication unit that receives operation information of each of the plurality of home appliances from the server;
Based on the operation information of each of the plurality of home appliances received from the server, a main control unit that controls each of the plurality of home appliances,
Network home appliance system equipped with. When the main control unit of the control device does not receive error information indicating that there is an abnormality in the operation from all of the plurality of home appliances within a predetermined time, the server control unit of the server Determining that all of the plurality of home appliances corresponding to the collective operation information has completed the operation normally, transmitting the operation completion information to the mobile terminal via the first server communication unit,
The portable control unit of the portable terminal displays the operation completion information on the display unit when the portable communication unit receives the operation completion information.
The network home appliance system according to claim 1. The main control unit of the control device receives error information indicating that the operation is abnormal from at least one of the plurality of home appliances, and the control communication unit sends the error information to the server. Send
When the server control unit of the server receives the error information via the second server communication unit, the server control unit transmits the error information to the portable terminal via the first server communication unit,
The portable control unit of the portable terminal displays the error information on the display unit when the portable communication unit receives the error information.
The network home appliance system according to claim 1. The portable terminal is
A setting unit for setting the batch operation information; and the mobile communication unit transmits the set batch operation information to the server;
The server
When the set batch operation information is received via the first server communication unit, the server control unit identifies the home appliance identification information for each status identification information included in the batch operation information, and the operation Storing information in the server storage unit,
The network home appliance system according to claim 1. The status identification information of the collective operation information represents when the user goes out, at home, or at bedtime.
The network home appliance system according to claim 1.

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