JP2010175229A - Air conditioning controller - Google Patents

Abstract

A comfort index is automatically changed even if a building user is not particularly conscious, and an air conditioning control device for improving energy saving while maintaining comfort is obtained.
An operation history holding unit 4 that holds operation history data of a remote controller 1 that operates an indoor unit 8 to be controlled, a weather data storage unit 5 that acquires and stores weather information, and an operation history holding unit 4 The indoor environment target calculation unit 6 that calculates the indoor environment target value based on the stored operation history data, the indoor environment target value calculated by the indoor environment target calculation unit 6 and the weather information stored in the weather data storage unit 5 And an arithmetic unit 7 for calculating an air conditioning set temperature for controlling the indoor unit 8 based on the above.
[Selection] Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to an air-conditioning control device, and more particularly to a building / building air-conditioning control device. The present invention relates to an air conditioning control device.

  According to the Energy Conservation Center, the power consumption of air conditioning in office buildings accounts for about 40% of the total power consumption, and the power consumption of home air conditioning accounts for about 25% of the total power consumption. Therefore, reducing the air conditioning power consumption is the key to energy saving. To reduce air conditioning power consumption, the air conditioner can be turned off or the set temperature can be adjusted (higher in summer and lower in winter). Worsens and sacrifices comfort. Generally, energy saving and comfort are in a contradictory relationship, and it is difficult to achieve both.

  One way to save energy without sacrificing comfort is to eliminate unnecessary air-conditioning operation. Wasteful air conditioning operation refers to, for example, excessive cooling in the cooling period and excessive warming in the heating period. There have been proposed devices and methods for setting upper and lower limit values for the set temperature and determining the set temperature based on weather information for overheating and overcooling.

  Furthermore, in order to suppress useless driving | operation, the operation plan planning method using a user's report is proposed. In Patent Document 1 below, an energy management apparatus is proposed in which a service user inputs a lower limit value of a comfort index or an upper limit value of a discomfort index, and creates an operation plan of the equipment based on those input values. Since the control is performed based on the user's declared value, it is possible to eliminate unnecessary operations such as overcooling / overheating without sacrificing comfort.

JP 2005-158020 A

  In such an energy management device, the declared value of the service user is a fixed value, and in order to change the value, the service provider uses the dedicated input system for the contents of the document application by the service user. It is necessary to perform a change procedure or a procedure in which the service user displays the change as a WWW (World Wide Web) on a web browser of a terminal connected to the Internet. The service users are assumed to be building owners, managers / management organizations, tenant energy cost managers, property management departments of real estate companies, etc., not building users. From the above, even if the building user wants to change the declared value of the comfort index, etc., a request from the owner or responsible person is required, and after the owner or responsible person approves, a procedure by the owner or responsible person is required. Therefore, quick change is difficult. In addition, when the seat is changed in the office, it is necessary to change the setting, which increases the labor of the owner and the person in charge, and it is difficult to respond quickly.

  The present invention has been made to solve such a problem, and the comfort index is automatically changed even if the building user is not particularly aware of it, and the improvement of energy saving is achieved while maintaining comfort. It aims at obtaining the air-conditioning control device which can do.

  The present invention includes an operation history holding unit that holds operation history data of an operating device that operates a controlled air conditioner, a weather data storage unit that acquires and stores weather information, and the operation history holding unit. Based on the indoor environment target calculation unit that calculates the indoor environment target value based on the operation history data, the indoor environment target value calculated by the indoor environment target calculation unit, and the weather information held in the weather data storage unit And an arithmetic unit that calculates an air conditioning set temperature for controlling the air conditioner.

  The present invention includes an operation history holding unit that holds operation history data of an operating device that operates a controlled air conditioner, a weather data storage unit that acquires and stores weather information, and the operation history holding unit. Based on the indoor environment target calculation unit that calculates the indoor environment target value based on the operation history data, the indoor environment target value calculated by the indoor environment target calculation unit, and the weather information held in the weather data storage unit Therefore, the comfort index is automatically changed even if the building user is not conscious of it. Energy conservation can be improved while maintaining.

It is a block diagram which shows the air-conditioning control apparatus by Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which showed the experimental result which showed the energy-saving effect at the time of implementing the air-conditioning control by Embodiment 1 of this invention with the graph. It is a block diagram which shows the air-conditioning control apparatus by Embodiment 2 of this invention.

Embodiment 1 FIG.
FIG. 1 shows the configuration of an air conditioning control device for an air conditioner according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a remote controller for a user to operate the indoor unit 8, and transmits remote control operation history data to the air conditioning control device 3. 2 is an external communication device such as a weather distribution company or a weather site, and 3 is an air conditioner control unit, and 8 is an air conditioner indoor unit as an air conditioner controlled by the air conditioner control device 3. is there.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the air conditioning control device 3 is functionally composed of four parts. That is, there are four indoor environment target calculation unit 6, calculation unit 7, weather data storage unit 5, and operation history holding unit 4. The indoor environment target calculation unit 6 obtains an initial value of the indoor environment target value and updates the indoor environment target value based on the operation history transmitted from the remote controller 1, and the calculation unit 7 calculates The set temperature is calculated based on the indoor environment target value. The weather data storage unit 5 obtains and stores weather data from an external communication device 2 such as a weather distribution company or a weather site, and the operation history holding unit 4 is a remote control operation history of the remote controller 1 that is manually performed by the user. Is obtained from the remote control 1 and held. Details of the operation will be described below.

  First, the weather data storage unit 5 receives weather data (for example, weather forecast (weather, predicted maximum temperature, predicted minimum temperature, predicted humidity, etc.), maximum temperature (most recent) from the external communication device 2 such as a weather distribution company or a weather site. ), Minimum temperature (most recent performance), humidity (most recent performance data, etc., which are necessary) and obtain it. On the other hand, the operation history holding unit 4 obtains remote control operation history data of the remote control 1 that is manually performed by the user from the remote control 1 and holds it. These data may be transmitted to the air conditioning control device 3 in response to a request from the air conditioning control device 3, or may be automatically transmitted to the air conditioning control device 3 at a fixed period. It may be.

  In general, human comfort is affected not only by temperature but also by humidity. Therefore, it is necessary to consider both temperature and humidity as the indoor environment target value. Here, an example using the discomfort index as an index of the indoor environment target value is shown. The discomfort index DI is obtained by the following equation (1) as a function of the temperature T (° C.) and the relative humidity H (%), and the value is evaluated as shown in Table 1. At this time, if there is no hygrometer and the indoor / outdoor humidity cannot be measured, the absolute humidity is calculated using the relative humidity of the outside air, and the indoor absolute humidity is calculated based on the absolute humidity of the outside air. Thus, the indoor relative humidity derived may be used. In this case, the relative humidity data of the outside air is acquired from an external communication device such as a weather distribution company or a weather site. A calculation method for obtaining the absolute humidity from the relative humidity will be described later.

      DI = 0.81T + 0.01H (0.99T-14.3) + 46.3 (1)

  The indoor environment target calculation unit 6 sets an initial value of the indoor environment target value by using the above equation (1). Since the indoor environment target value is updated as needed by the air conditioning operation, it is not necessary to stick to the initial value so much, and an appropriate value may be set. However, since the indoor environment target value is updated based on the initial value set here, a value that is too large or too small as an initial value is not desirable. Therefore, it is desirable to set a value between 65 and 75 as the discomfort index DI.

  Next, the operation of the calculation unit 7 when the indoor environment target value is set by the indoor environment target calculation unit 6 as described above will be described. The calculation unit 7 determines a set temperature that satisfies the set indoor environment target value. That is, in order to minimize the amount of electric power used within a range that satisfies the indoor environment target value, the calculation unit 7 sets the set temperature as high as possible (set to the maximum value that satisfies the indoor environment target value) in the cooling period, In the case of the period, set it as low as possible (set to the minimum value that satisfies the indoor environment target value). The set indoor environment target value (discomfort index DI) and indoor humidity (H%) are input to Equation (1), and the temperature T is obtained. For example, when the indoor environment target value is 73 and the indoor humidity is 60%, the temperature is 25.13 ° C. In the cooling period, the set temperature may be set to 25 ° C. in order to satisfy the indoor environment target value at a room temperature of 25.13 ° C. or less. On the other hand, in the heating period, the set temperature may be set to 26 ° C. in order to satisfy the indoor environment target value at a room temperature of 25.13 ° C. or higher. For example, a humidity meter (hygrometer) is provided in the room to detect the indoor humidity, and the detected value is transmitted to the calculation unit 7. Or when there is no hygrometer, it calculates | requires from the relative humidity of external air as mentioned above. Moreover, since indoor humidity changes with time, such a calculation is performed periodically, such as every 30 minutes or every hour, and the set temperature is calculated. The calculation unit 7 controls the operation of the indoor unit 8 based on the set temperature calculated in this way. Specifically, depending on the difference between the indoor environment target value and the actual indoor environment value, the indoor unit 8 is switched on / off, the air volume is switched between large and small, and the operation mode is changed. For the determination of the cooling period or the heating period, obtain data on the highest temperature (expected value / actual value) and the lowest temperature (expected value / actual value) from an external communication device 2 such as a weather distribution company or a weather site. These values and a preset threshold value are compared to determine whether the heating period or the cooling period. Alternatively, it may be set in advance so that it can be automatically determined according to the date of the day, such as the cooling period from April to September, and the heating period from October to March, but the day when the temperature is out of season. Therefore, it is possible to set a more optimal set temperature by determining whether the cooling period / heating period is based on weather data.

  Next, an operation of updating the indoor environment target value by the indoor environment target calculation unit 6 will be described. When operating at a set temperature calculated using the initial value of the indoor environment target value, the building user's reaction is to lower the set temperature if hot and to increase the set temperature if cold. As for air conditioning ON / OFF, in the cooling season, it moves from OFF to ON when it is hot, and from ON to OFF when it is cold. On the other hand, during the heating phase, it is ON → OFF when it is hot, and OFF → ON when it is cold. It becomes a movement. That is, it is possible to determine whether the indoor environment target value is too high or too low by determining whether the set temperature has been changed by the building user or whether the ON / OFF operation has been performed by the building user. The timing at which the set temperature changing operation or the ON / OFF operation is performed is the moment when the building user who has been endured a little can no longer withstand. Therefore, the indoor state immediately before the set temperature changing operation and the air-conditioning ON / OFF operation is a limitable environment. Since the set temperature changing operation and the air conditioning ON / OFF operation are all performed by the operation of the remote controller 1, when the operation history data of the remote controller 1 is obtained, it is possible to detect when the operations are performed. . From the above viewpoint, based on the operation history data of the remote controller 1, the indoor environment target value is determined based on the indoor environment at the time immediately before the set temperature is changed or immediately before the air conditioning ON / OFF operation is performed. Update to value. The calculation unit 7 receives the updated indoor environment target value from the indoor environment target calculation unit 6 and determines a set temperature that satisfies the set indoor environment target value. At this time, whether the building user feels hot or cold immediately before the set temperature changing operation or the air conditioning ON / OFF operation is different between the cooling period and the heating period. Based on meteorological data, it is determined whether it is in the cooling period or the heating period, and the set temperature is determined (that is, the set temperature is higher by a predetermined temperature than the room temperature (indoor environment) immediately before the operation of the building user). Whether or not to lower by a predetermined temperature is set as appropriate according to the cooling period / heating period and the operation history data.)

  By the way, the set temperature may be changed manually by the building user, but apart from that, the set temperature is periodically calculated and changed by the calculation unit 7. Therefore, for the update of the indoor environment target value of the present invention, it is determined whether the change of the set temperature is manually operated by the building user or automatically operated by the calculation unit 7, and only the manual operation is determined. Must be extracted. For this purpose, the data of the (final) set temperature set by the calculation unit 7 may be held. The current set temperature is compared with the stored set temperature data, and if there is a difference, it is determined that the current set temperature is set by a building user's manual operation. The determination may be performed by the operation history holding unit 4 or may be performed by the indoor environment target calculation unit 6 or the calculation unit 7.

  In actual operation, the indoor environment target value may be updated each time a building user performs a manual operation, or when a predetermined number of manual operations are performed within a certain period of time. Only the indoor environment target value may be updated. When updating by a manual operation more than a predetermined number of times, the indoor environment target value may be an average of the indoor environment immediately before all manual operations, may be a maximum, or may be a minimum. It should be noted that the update of the indoor environment target value with the number of manual operations within a certain time is less affected when there are people who are hot or cold in the room and a specific person changes the set temperature excessively. This is particularly effective when In addition, if the person who changed the set temperature can be identified by ID, password, biometric authentication, etc., it is possible to determine who is performing each operation from the operation history data. The operation of the employee who performed the operation is ignored, and the operation performed by the employee who has been registered in advance with the customer or the executive officer can be immediately used to update the indoor environment target value.

  In some cases, there is a period in which the set temperature is not changed at all. In that case, the indoor environment target value is used without being updated, assuming that the indoor environment is ideal. However, since there are a variety of environments in which people feel comfortable, there is a possibility that further energy saving can be realized by adjusting the current indoor environment target value. When the set temperature is not changed, the discomfort index that is the indoor environment target value may be increased by a minute value such as +0.5, and the increased value may be set as a new indoor environment target value.

  Calculation of the indoor environmental target value requires not only the indoor temperature but also the value of the indoor relative humidity. The indoor temperature is measured by most air conditioners, but few air conditioners measure the indoor relative humidity. Therefore, additional measurement is required, but if the indoor relative humidity cannot be measured, the absolute humidity of the outside air is calculated from the outside air temperature and the outside air relative humidity stored in the meteorological data storage unit 5, and the indoor and outdoor absolute humidity are the same. As a result, the indoor relative humidity may be calculated. The following formula (2) shows an example of a calculation formula for calculating the absolute humidity x (kg / kg (DA)) from the temperature T (° C.) and the relative humidity H (%).

  As mentioned above, although the example which mainly used the discomfort index was described as the indoor environment target value, the index of the indoor environment target value is not limited to the discomfort index. The same effect can be obtained by using indicators such as the predicted average report, the new effective temperature, and the new standard effective temperature.

The above contents were tested in an actual building to confirm the energy saving effect. The experimental results are shown in FIG. The experiment is conducted on the floor where the certain building is located in Tokyo. The floor area is about 450 m ² and the number of floor users is about 80 people. FIG. 2 shows air-conditioning power consumption per 24 hours. The experimental results are for the period from 6/14 to 7/13 in the rainy season and from 8/1 to 8/29 in the summer. In the rainy season and summer, a power saving effect of 20% or more was confirmed compared with the case of no control. In this experiment, the indoor environment target value for the next day is determined based on the daily remote control operation history. When there are multiple remote control operations, the average of the indoor environment immediately before the multiple remote control operations is set as the indoor environment target value for the next day. In addition, when there was no remote control operation, a value obtained by adding +0.5 to the indoor environment target value on that day was set as the indoor environment target value on the next day.

  As described above, in the air conditioning control device according to the first embodiment, the operation history holding unit 4 that holds the operation history of the remote controller 1, the weather data storage unit 5 that acquires and stores weather information, and the remote control operation history. Since the indoor environment target calculation unit 6 for calculating the indoor environment target value from the computer and the calculation unit 7 for calculating the air conditioning set temperature from the weather information and the indoor environment target value are provided, the operation history data of the remote controller 1 is used. In order to achieve the indoor environment target value based on the indoor environment target value determined every predetermined time, by determining the indoor environment target value of the room so as to adjust to a value based on the preference of the personnel in the room The limit temperature (maximum value during the cooling period and minimum value during the heating period) can be set, and both energy saving and comfort can be achieved. In addition, since the weather information is taken into consideration when determining the set temperature, the setting according to the outside air state is possible.

  In addition, the discomfort index, predicted average report, new effective temperature or new standard effective temperature is used as the indoor environment target value. By using these indicators, the indoor environment can be easily calculated from the values of the indoor temperature and the indoor humidity. A target value can be calculated.

  In addition, using the operation history of the remote controller 1, the indoor environment immediately before the remote controller operation is performed as the indoor environment target value. This is because most people change the set temperature after they have endured for a while without changing the set temperature immediately even if they feel hot / cold. By setting the environment as the indoor environment target value, the limitable environment can be set as the indoor environment target value, and energy saving can be improved.

  Further, from the operation history data of the remote controller 1, the indoor environment target value is increased by a predetermined value when the remote control operation is not performed for a predetermined period. If the remote control is not operated, the indoor environment is estimated to be ideal, but even if the discomfort index is increased a little, there is a possibility that there is no problem. This is because if the increased value is set as a new indoor environment target value, further energy saving can be realized. In this way, the limit environment that can be tolerated can be set as the indoor environment target value, and the energy saving performance can be further improved.

  In addition, the air conditioning set temperature is adjusted to the maximum value that satisfies the indoor environment target value during the cooling period, and is adjusted to the minimum value that satisfies the indoor environment target value during the heating period. And energy savings.

  In addition, since the operation mode is changed according to the difference between the indoor environment target value and the actual indoor environment, the comfort can be improved by automatically changing the operation mode.

  Also, when calculating the indoor environment target value, the absolute humidity was calculated using the relative humidity of the outside air, and the indoor relative humidity derived by calculating the absolute humidity of the room from the absolute humidity of the outside air was used. The indoor environmental target value can be calculated from the weather information and the indoor temperature without installing an expensive hygrometer indoors.

  Embodiment 2. FIG. In the first embodiment described above, the indoor unit is mainly controlled. In the second embodiment, an example is shown in which a ventilator, in particular, a ventilator capable of switching between heat exchange ventilation and normal ventilation and changing the air volume is controlled. FIG. 2 shows a configuration according to the second embodiment. As shown in FIG. 2, the second embodiment can be realized with substantially the same configuration as that of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 1, and the difference in the configuration from the first embodiment is the control. The object is that the ventilation device 9 is used instead of the indoor unit 8 of FIG.

  The outside air intake method and the intake amount by the ventilation device 9 are changed according to the indoor environment target value, the outdoor environment, and the indoor environment. Here, an example using specific enthalpy is shown as the indoor environment target value in the case of ventilation.

  The specific enthalpy h (kJ / kg (DA)) can be obtained by the following equation (3) using the temperature T (° C.) and the absolute humidity x (kJ / kg (DA)).

    h = 1.0006T + (2501 + 1.805T) x (3)

  As in the first embodiment, the environment immediately before the remote control operation of the remote controller 1 of the indoor unit (not shown in FIG. 2) is performed by the building user is set as the indoor environment target value. Similarly, the indoor environment target value when the remote control operation is performed a plurality of times may be the maximum, the minimum, or the average of the previous environment. The indoor environment target value obtained in this way is the value that achieves the best balance between energy saving and comfort for the building user. In the present embodiment, the ventilation device 9 is adjusted so that the air conditioning load is reduced within a range that satisfies the indoor environment target value.

  Specifically, when the remote controller 1 is operated a predetermined number of times (one or more times), the indoor environment target calculation unit 6 first obtains the specific enthalpy of the outside air from the temperature and absolute humidity of the outside air. Further, the specific enthalpy of indoor air is obtained from the indoor environment data (temperature and absolute humidity) immediately before the operation, and is used as the indoor environment target value. At this time, if the outdoor and indoor humidity cannot be measured, the absolute humidity is calculated using the relative humidity of the outdoor air, and the indoor absolute humidity is calculated and derived based on the absolute humidity of the outdoor air. Relative humidity may be used. In this case, the relative humidity data of the outside air is acquired from an external communication device such as a weather distribution company or a weather site.

  Next, the calculation unit 7 compares the specific enthalpy of the outside air with the indoor environment target value. At this time, in the case of the specific enthalpy of the outside air ≦ the indoor environment target value, the air conditioning load becomes smaller as the outside air is introduced. Therefore, in order to positively introduce outside air, the ventilation mode of the ventilator 9 is set to normal ventilation, and the ventilation amount is adjusted to be large. Conversely, when the specific enthalpy of the outside air> the indoor environment target value, the air conditioning load increases as the outside air is introduced. Therefore, it is desirable to reduce the amount of outside air introduced. Therefore, the ventilation mode of the ventilator 9 is set to heat exchange ventilation, and the ventilation amount is adjusted to be small. In this way, it is possible to reduce the air conditioning load without sacrificing comfort by adjusting the ventilation mode and the ventilation volume according to the indoor environment target value determined based on the indoor environment and the outdoor environment. Therefore, energy saving can be improved.

  As mentioned above, although the example which adjusts two parameters of ventilation mode and air volume was shown, the energy saving which does not sacrifice comfort by adjusting the adjustable parameter for the ventilation device which can adjust only one of the parameters. Can be expected.

  In the above example, the specific enthalpy is used as the indoor environment target value, but the same effect can be obtained by using any other index such as a discomfort index instead of the specific enthalpy.

  As described above, in the second embodiment, the same effect as in the first embodiment can be obtained.

  In the second embodiment, the indoor target enthalpy is calculated from the operation history of the remote controller 1, and the ventilation mode of the ventilator 9 is changed according to the difference between the indoor target enthalpy and the outdoor air enthalpy. By performing heat exchange ventilation when it is too hot or too cold, the heat load can be reduced and the energy saving performance can be improved.

  Furthermore, the indoor target enthalpy is calculated from the operation history of the remote controller 1, and the ventilation amount of the ventilator 9 is changed according to the difference between the indoor target enthalpy and the outside air enthalpy. By enlarging, heat load can be reduced and energy saving can be improved.

  In the above-described first and second embodiments, the remote controller 1 has been described as an example of the operation device that operates the air conditioner to be controlled. However, the operation device is not limited to this case. For example, an operation panel (operation button) provided in the air conditioner body may be used, or an operation panel (operation button) fixed to an indoor wall or the like may be used. Needless to say, any kind of operation device may be used.

  In the first and second embodiments described above, an air conditioner indoor unit and a ventilator are described as examples of air conditioners to be controlled. However, the present invention is not limited to this case, and may be an air conditioner. Needless to say, the present invention can be applied to any type.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Remote control, 2 External communication apparatus, 3 Air-conditioning control apparatus, 4 Operation history holding part, 5 Weather data preservation | save part, 6 Indoor environment target calculation part, 7 Calculation part, 8 Indoor unit, 9 Ventilation apparatus.

Claims (9)

An operation history holding unit that holds operation history data of an operation device that operates an air conditioner to be controlled;
A weather data storage unit for acquiring and storing weather information;
An indoor environment target calculation unit for calculating an indoor environment target value based on the operation history data held in the operation history holding unit;
A calculation unit that calculates a set temperature for controlling the air conditioner based on the indoor environment target value calculated by the indoor environment target calculation unit and the weather information stored in the weather data storage unit; An air conditioning control device.   The air conditioning control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein any one of an index of discomfort, an expected average report, a new effective temperature, and a new standard effective temperature is used as the indoor environment target value.   The said indoor environment target calculation part uses the operation history data of the said operating device, and makes the indoor environment immediately before operation of the said operating device made into the said indoor environment target value, The Claim 1 or 2 characterized by the above-mentioned. Air conditioning control device.   The indoor environment target calculation unit uses the operation history data of the operation device, and increases the indoor environment target value by a predetermined value when the operation device is not operated for a predetermined period. The air conditioning control device according to any one of claims 1 to 3.   The calculation unit sets the set temperature to a maximum value that satisfies the indoor environment target value during a cooling period, and a minimum value that satisfies the indoor environment target value during a heating period. The air conditioning control device according to any one of 1 to 4.   The said calculating part changes the operation mode of the said air conditioner according to the difference of the said indoor environment target value and the value of an actual indoor environment, The any one of Claim 1 thru | or 5 characterized by the above-mentioned. Air conditioning control device.   The indoor environment target calculation unit calculates an absolute humidity using the relative humidity of the outside air when calculating the indoor environment target value, and calculates and derives the indoor absolute humidity based on the absolute humidity of the outside air. An air conditioning control device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the relative humidity is as follows. The air conditioner has two or more ventilation modes,
The ventilation mode of the air conditioner is changed according to a difference between an indoor environment and an outside air environment when the operation device is operated using the operation history data of the operation device. The air conditioning control device according to any one of 7. The air conditioner has a variable ventilation amount,
2. The ventilation amount of the air conditioner is changed according to a difference between an indoor environment and an outside air environment when the operation device is operated using the operation history data of the operation device. The air conditioning control device according to any one of 8.

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