JP2013042589A - Power management device and power management system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a power management device and a power management system capable of drawing the attention on the power saving for the user of an electric apparatus and capable of saving power effectively.SOLUTION: With regard to power consumption of electric apparatus (apparatus A-D), power consumption of apparatus A, C, D does not change as the time elapses from T1 to T2, T3, but power consumption of apparatus B increases gradually. At time T3, total power consumption of the electric apparatus exceeds the value indicated by a line L2. A controller thereby calculates the increment of power consumption from a predetermined time before T3. The controller transmits a control signal for turning power off to the apparatus B the increment of power consumption of which is highest. In response to the control signal, the apparatus B turns its power off.

Description

  The present invention relates to a power management apparatus and a power management system, and more particularly to a power management apparatus and a power management system for managing the power used by an electrical device.

  Conventionally, various techniques for managing the power of electric devices have been proposed for the purpose of power saving and the like.

  For example, in Patent Document 1 (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-282161) and Patent Document 2 (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-251790), the power consumption of each of a plurality of electric devices is monitored, and the total amount of the power consumption is A technique for transmitting a notification signal to notification means when a predetermined value is exceeded is disclosed.

  Further, in Patent Document 3 (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2009-130974), a current value is detected for each branch breaker in a home, and when an overcurrent is generated in a certain branch breaker, the branch breaker is connected. Among the electrical devices, there is disclosed a technique for controlling the operation with priority given to electrical devices in a predetermined order.

JP-A-10-282161 JP 2001-251790 A JP 2009-130974 A

  According to the techniques disclosed in Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2, a power consumer can be alerted to power saving, but the power saving effect is not always obtained.

  On the other hand, according to the technique disclosed in Patent Document 3, since the operation of one of the electric devices is controlled, it is considered that a power saving effect can be obtained. However, there is a case where it is not preferable that an electrical device specified as a control target in a predetermined order is set as a control target. For example, a situation may occur in which an electrical device used by a certain person in the home is controlled to reduce power consumption when another person starts using the other electrical apparatus. In this case, the other person cannot recognize the situation that the certain electric device has been controlled as a result of the start of use of the other electric device, and alerts the other person about power saving. I can't. On the other hand, the certain person does not know the reason why the electrical equipment being used is so controlled, and may be confused.

  The present invention has been conceived in view of such circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a power management apparatus capable of alerting a user of an electrical device about power saving and effectively saving power. It is to provide a power management system.

  The power management device according to the present invention includes a detection unit for detecting power consumption of a plurality of electrical devices for each electrical device, and a total amount of power consumption for each electrical device detected by the detection unit exceeds a specific amount. A control means for transmitting a control signal for reducing power consumption to a predetermined number of electric devices having a large increase in power consumption in the latest predetermined period among the plurality of electric devices. Prepare.

Preferably, the predetermined number is one.
Preferably, the control signal includes a signal for temporarily stopping an operation sequence during execution of the electric device.

  Preferably, the control signal includes a signal for causing the operation to be executed in the eco mode with reduced power consumption.

Preferably, the control means notifies that a predetermined number of control signals have been transmitted.
Preferably, the notification is performed in a predetermined number of electrical devices.

Preferably, a display device is further provided, and the notification is performed on the display device.
Preferably, the control unit performs the notification operation when the total amount of power consumption for each electric device detected by the detection unit exceeds a certain amount lower than the specific amount.

  A power management system according to the present invention is a power management system including a plurality of electrical devices and a power management device capable of communicating with the plurality of electrical devices, wherein the power management device consumes a plurality of electrical devices. Detection means for detecting electric power for each electric device, and consumption in the latest predetermined period among a plurality of electric devices when the total amount of power consumption for each electric device detected by the detection means exceeds a specific amount Control means for transmitting a control signal for reducing power consumption to a predetermined number of electric devices having a large amount of increase in power, and the electric device realizes a function as the electric device. Drive means for driving the mechanism, and drive control means for driving the drive means in accordance with the control signal when a control signal is received from the control means.

  When the total amount of power consumption for each of the plurality of electrical devices exceeds a specific amount, the power consumption for a predetermined number of electrical devices having a large increase in power consumption in the latest predetermined period among the plurality of electrical devices. Control is performed to reduce.

  Thereby, the control for reducing power consumption is performed with respect to the electric equipment considered to have caused the total amount of power consumption to exceed the specific amount. Therefore, it is possible to alert the user of the electrical equipment that is considered to be the cause of the above, and to save power and to effectively save the power.

1 is a diagram illustrating a specific example of a configuration of a system (HEMS (Home Energy Management System), hereinafter referred to as a system) 100 for managing energy consumption according to a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. It is a block diagram which shows the specific example of a structure of the electric equipment of FIG. It is a flowchart of the electric power adjustment process performed in the control apparatus of FIG. It is a figure for demonstrating the content of the process demonstrated with reference to FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the message displayed on the panel of the control apparatus of FIG. 1 in the case of alerting | reporting in step S50. It is a flowchart of the electric power adjustment process performed in the control apparatus of the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure for demonstrating the content of the power adjustment process of the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the message displayed on a monitor in the process of FIG. It is a figure which shows typically the time change of power consumption when the control signal for shifting to eco mode is transmitted with respect to the specific electric equipment. In the 3rd Embodiment of this invention, in order to alert | report that the control signal was transmitted to the specific electric equipment, it is a figure which shows an example of the message displayed on the panel of a control apparatus. It is a figure which shows an example of the message displayed on the panel of the control apparatus of the 4th Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure for demonstrating the content of the power adjustment process when a control signal is transmitted to two electric equipments in the 5th Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the specific example of a structure of the system which manages the energy consumption of the 6th Embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the specific example of a structure of the electric equipment of embodiment of 6th invention of this invention. It is a figure which shows the specific example of the structure of the system for managing energy consumption concerning the 7th Embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed the external appearance of the power consumption measuring device. It is a figure showing the hardware constitutions of the power consumption measuring device of FIG.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of a lighting device of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, elements having the same function and action are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description will not be repeated.

[First Embodiment]
<System configuration>
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a specific example of a configuration of a system (HEMS (Home Energy Management System), hereinafter referred to as a system) 100 for managing energy consumption according to an embodiment.

  With reference to FIG. 1, in this Embodiment, the general household appliance which can be connected to the communication line mentioned later as an electric equipment which consumes electric power is assumed, specifically, an air conditioner (henceforth an air conditioner), Illumination devices, televisions, refrigerators, and washing machines are envisioned. The system 100 includes electrical devices 10A, 10B, 10C, 10D, and 10E corresponding to these devices as the electrical device 10. Furthermore, the system 100 includes a control device 30.

  The electrical device 10 and the control device 30 are connected by a communication line and communicate with each other. The communication line may be wired or wireless such as infrared communication. In the following description, it is assumed that the communication between them is communication using the power cable 50, and the electric device 10 and the control device 30 are each a communication modem (hereinafter also referred to as PLC (Power Line Communication)) as a communication device. 11 and 31. The PLCs 11 of the electric devices 10A, 10B, 10C, 10D, and 10E are denoted by PLCs 11A, 11B, 11C, 11D, and 11E. The PLC may be detachable from the main body of the device or apparatus, or may be a single function included in the main body.

  Further, the types of electrical devices included in the system 100 shown in FIG. 1 are merely examples. The types of electrical equipment included in system 100 and capable of communicating with control device 30 are not limited to these.

<Electrical equipment>
FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a specific example of the configuration of the electrical device 10. Referring to FIG. 2, an electric device 10 as a general electric device includes an input unit 12 that is a mechanism for receiving an operation input from a user, and a control unit 13 that generally controls the operation of the electric device 10. And a drive unit 14 that is a mechanism for driving a mechanism (not shown) for functioning as the electric device 10, an energy management unit 15, and a storage unit 16.

  When the electric device 10 is an air conditioner, a washing machine, or a television, the input unit 12 corresponds to a switch.

  The control unit 13 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a RAM (Random Access Memory), and the like (not shown), and the CPU executes a program stored in the RAM according to an operation signal from the input unit 12, thereby causing the drive unit 14 to A control signal is output to drive a mechanism (not shown). In the electric device 10, information input via the PLC 11 is sent to the control unit 13. The control unit 13 may control the driving operation by the driving unit 14 based on the information.

  The storage unit 16 stores various data such as a program executed by the control unit 13 and data necessary for executing the program.

  The mechanism to be driven in the electric device 10 is, for example, a blower mechanism or a heating mechanism when the electric device 10 is an air conditioner, and a rotating mechanism of a washing tub when the electric device 10 is a washing machine. Is a video output mechanism including control of a liquid crystal display device or the like, and when the electrical device 10 is a refrigerator, it is a refrigeration mechanism that cools the interior of the refrigerator.

  The energy management unit 15 is connected to the drive unit 14 and detects the power consumed by the mechanism by the drive operation by the drive unit 14. The energy management unit 15 may have a hardware configuration such as a circuit connected to the drive unit 14 for performing the detection, or the function of the CPU realized by the CPU of the control unit 13 executing the program. One may be a software configuration.

  The energy management unit 15 is connected to or includes a storage device such as a RAM or a HDD (Hard Disk Drive), and stores the detected power consumption. Information for specifying the electric device 10 is also stored in the storage device. The information specifying the electric device 10 may be information specifying “air conditioner” or “washing machine”, or may be a production number, for example. These may be stored in advance at the time of shipment, or may be input and stored after that.

  The energy management unit 15 associates information specifying the electric device 10 with the information indicating the power consumption stored in the storage device, passes the information to the PLC 11, and causes the control device 30 to transmit the information. The transmission timing may be a so-called “push type” timing defined on the electric device 10 side such as a predefined time interval or after a predefined time after the power is turned on. The timing of receiving a request from the control device 30, which is called a mold, may be used.

<Control device>
Returning to FIG. 1, the control device 30 is realized by, for example, a general-purpose computer, and includes a CPU 33, a RAM 34, an HDD (hard disk drive) 35, a panel 36, a communication device 37, and a PLC 31.

  The CPU 33 causes the control device 30 to perform the functions described in the present embodiment by executing a program stored in the hard disk of the HDD 35, for example.

  Further, the CPU 33 can communicate with the electric equipment in the system 100 shown in FIG. 1 via the PLC 31 and the power cable 50, and further communicate with equipment constituting an external network (not shown) via the communication device 37. You can also

The RAM 34 functions as a work space for the CPU 33.
The panel 36 is a touch panel in which a display device such as a liquid crystal display device and a touch sensor are combined, and can display information and accept input of information by a touch operation. The CPU 33 can display the processing contents and the like on the panel 36, and executes processing according to information input to the panel 36.

<Power adjustment processing>
When the total amount of power consumption of the electrical device 10 in the system 100 exceeds a specific amount, the CPU 33 of the control device 30 adjusts the power supplied to the electrical device 10 in order to suppress the total amount (power adjustment processing) ). FIG. 3 is a flowchart of power adjustment processing executed by the CPU 33. Note that the CPU 33 executes the processing on a regular basis or when an operation for performing the processing is performed on the panel 36.

  Referring to FIG. 3, first, in step S <b> 10, the CPU 33 calculates the total power consumption of each electrical device 10 input via the PLCs 11 </ b> A to 11 </ b> E and the PLC 31, and determines whether the total exceeds a specific amount. to decide. And if it is judged that it exceeded, a process will be advanced to step S20.

  Here, the specific amount may be a target value set in a situation where the system 100 is implemented. In this case, the specific amount is input from the panel 36 and stored in the HDD 35, for example.

  The specific amount may be a value input from the outside with respect to the system 100 or may be a value calculated based on a value input from the outside. Specifically, it may be a target value input from a power supply source, or a value obtained by subtracting a certain value from the input target value. In this case, when receiving the input of the value via the communication device 36 or the like, the CPU 33 stores the value or a value obtained by subtracting a certain value from the value as a specific amount in the HDD 35. In this case, sequentially updated values can be input from the outside. Each time a value is input, the CPU 33 stores the updated value or a value obtained by subtracting a fixed value from the updated value in the HDD 35 as a specific amount.

  In step S20, the CPU 33 calculates the difference between the current power consumption of each electrical device 10 and the power consumption before a predetermined time, and proceeds to step S30. That is, here, for each electrical device 10, the amount of increase in power consumption from a certain time before is calculated.

  Here, the predetermined time can be, for example, 5 seconds. For example, the CPU 33 stores the power consumption of each electrical device 10 in the HDD 35 every 5 seconds (every fixed time), and in step S20, the latest stored power consumption of each electrical device 10 and at that time point The difference is calculated based on the calculated power consumption.

  In step S30, the CPU 33 identifies a predetermined number of the electric devices 10 having a large difference, and advances the process to step S40.

  In step S <b> 40, the CPU 33 transmits a control signal for adjusting power consumption to the electrical device 10 specified in step S <b> 30 (hereinafter also referred to as “specific electrical device 10”) via the PLCs 31 and 11. Then, the process proceeds to step S50. Here, the control signal for adjusting the power consumption is, for example, a control signal for turning off the power. And according to this, in the specific electric equipment 10 which is a transmission destination of a control signal, the control part 13 turns off the power supply of an own machine.

  In step S50, CPU33 alert | reports having transmitted the control signal for adjusting power consumption with respect to the specific electric equipment 10 in step S40, and returns a process to step S10. The notification here is realized, for example, by displaying a specific message on the panel 36.

  In the power adjustment processing described above, the total amount of power consumption of the electrical device 10 in the system 100 is detected, and when the total amount exceeds a specific amount, a specific amount of increase in power consumption from a certain time before that time is large. A control signal for reducing power consumption is transmitted to the electrical device 10. Accordingly, the power consumption of the specific electrical device 10 is reduced. Therefore, the total amount of power consumed by the electric devices 10 constituting the system 100 can be suppressed to the specified amount or less. FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining the contents of the processing described with reference to FIG.

  The power adjustment process described with reference to FIG. 3 is executed every predetermined time (for example, 5 seconds). That is, in the system 100, step S10 is executed every predetermined time, and it is checked whether or not the total amount of power consumption exceeds a specific amount. Note that step S10 may be executed when a predetermined condition is satisfied in addition to every predetermined time, such as when a specific operation is performed on the panel 36, for example.

  In FIG. 4, the power consumptions of the devices A to D representing the electric devices 10 are indicated by CA to CD, respectively. In FIG. 4, the sum of CA to CD (total amount of power consumption) shows a change with time. Also, the line L2 in FIG. 4 indicates the “specific amount” described above. The line L1 is not directly related to the processing described with reference to FIG. 3, but indicates an upper limit target value of power consumption from, for example, a power supply source.

  Specifically, in the example shown in FIG. 4, the power consumption of the devices A, C, and D does not change, but the power consumption of the device B gradually increases as time advances from time T1 to time T2 and time T3. doing. At time T3, the total amount of power consumed by the electrical device 10 exceeds the value indicated by the line L2. In response to this, the control device 30 calculates the amount of increase in power consumption for each electrical device 10 from a certain time before the time T3.

  In the example shown in FIG. 4, the power consumption of only the device B has increased, and the power consumption of the other electrical devices 10 has not increased. Therefore, the control device 30 transmits a control signal for turning off the power to the device B. In response to this, in the electric device 10 represented by the device B, the control unit 13 turns off the power of the own device.

  Thereby, as shown at time T4 in FIG. 4, the total amount of power consumption of the electric device 10 changes to be less than the amount indicated by the line L2.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a message displayed on the panel 36 at the time of notification in step S50. Note that the message shown in the display field IM01 in FIG. 5 is merely an example, but this content corresponds to the processing content described in FIG.

  Referring to FIG. 5, in the display field IM01, a message “Exceeding peak power !! Device B, which is the cause has been turned off. If used, please turn off other devices.” Is displayed. ing. Thereby, the user of the system 100 can understand the reason why the power source of the device B is turned off and how the device B is allowed to be turned on again.

  In the message in the display column IM01, “device B” is the name of the electrical device 10 that is the transmission destination of the control signal in step S40. In the control apparatus 30, the name of each electric device 10 is stored in advance. Then, based on the stored contents, the name of the electric device 10 that is the transmission destination of the control signal in step S40 is inserted into the message as shown in the display field IM01.

  The notification can also be performed in the electric device 10 to which the control signal is transmitted in step S40. For example, the notification may be realized by lighting a lamp provided in the PLC 11 of the electrical device 10 in a predetermined manner (for example, blinking for 2 seconds). Thereby, the user of the system 100 can understand the reason when the power supply of the specific electric device 10 is turned off as a result of the processing described with reference to FIG.

  In the present embodiment, instead of transmitting a control signal in step S40, a notification that the amount of increase in power consumption of the specific electrical device is large may be performed. The notification may be realized, for example, by displaying a message indicating that the power consumption of the specific electrical device has increased on the panel 36, or a notification to that effect is given to the specific electrical device. It may be realized by. For example, the notification to the specific electric device is obtained by transmitting a control signal such that the CPU 33 lights in a specific mode (pattern) to a display device (LED lamp or the like) provided in the specific electric device. Realized.

[Second Embodiment]
The configuration of the system according to the present embodiment can be the same as the configuration of the system 100 described in the first embodiment.

  In the first embodiment, when the total amount of power consumption exceeds a specific amount, a process for reducing the power consumption is executed for the specific electrical device 10.

  In the present embodiment, as a pre-stage of such processing, when the total amount exceeds a “certain amount” that is smaller than the specific amount, a notification for calling attention is given. And when the total amount of power consumption exceeds a specific amount, the process for reducing power consumption is performed with respect to the specific electric equipment 10 similarly to 1st Embodiment.

  FIG. 6 is a flowchart of power adjustment processing executed by the CPU 33 of the control device 30 of the present embodiment.

  Referring to FIG. 6, in step S <b> 1, CPU 33 calculates the total power consumption of each electrical device 10 input via PLCs 11 </ b> A to 11 </ b> E and PLC 31, and determines whether the total exceeds a certain amount. To do. And if it is judged that it exceeded, a process will be advanced to step S2.

  And in step S2, CPU33 performs the process for alerting and advances a process to step S10.

  Thereafter, as in the first embodiment, the CPU 33 executes the processing after step S10. That is, if it is determined in step S10 that the total amount of power consumption has exceeded the specific amount, in step S20, the amount of increase in power consumption from a predetermined time before each electrical device 10 is calculated, and based on the result, step S30 is calculated. The “specific electrical device 10” is specified, and a control signal for adjusting the power consumption is transmitted in step S40, and the processing of step S40 is notified in step S50.

  In the present embodiment, the “certain amount” is a value smaller than the “specific amount” that is the determination criterion in step S10 as described above.

FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining the contents of the power adjustment processing of the present embodiment.
Referring to FIG. 7, similarly to FIG. 4, the power consumption of device A to device D representing each of electric devices 10 is indicated by CA to CD, respectively. In FIG. 7, the sum of CA to CD (total amount of power consumption) shows a change with time.

  A line L2 in FIG. 7 indicates the above-described “specific amount” in the same manner as the line L2 in FIG. A line L3 indicates “a certain amount” in the present embodiment.

  In the example shown in FIG. 7, the power consumption of the devices A, C, and D does not change as the time progresses from time T1 to time T2 and time T3, but the power consumption of the device B gradually increases. At time T2, the total amount of power consumed by the electrical device 10 exceeds the value indicated by the line L3. In response to this, the CPU 33 of the control device 30 executes a process for calling attention in step S2. Specifically, for example, a message is displayed on the panel 36.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of a message displayed on the panel 36 at this time.
Referring to FIG. 8, a message “Dangerous zone! Approaching peak power. Turn off unnecessary devices.” Is displayed in display field IM02. Thereby, although the total amount of power consumption of the electric device 10 of the system 100 has not reached the value indicated by the line L2, it exceeds the value indicated by the line L3 and approaches the value of the line L2. Attention is drawn.

  When a message for alerting is displayed in step S2, the message is continuously displayed until it is determined in step S1 that the total amount of power consumption has become a certain amount or less.

  If the total amount of power consumption of the electrical device 10 in the system 100 becomes lower than the value of the line L3 by operating the electrical device 10 so as to reduce the power consumption, etc. by such alerting, FIG. The reminder message, as shown, is deleted.

  On the other hand, when the total amount of power consumption of the electrical device 10 further increases from the state and exceeds the value of the line L2, the processing after step S20 is performed on the specific electrical device 10 as in the first embodiment. Thus, processing for reducing power consumption is executed. Time T3 in FIG. 7 corresponds to this state.

  Then, by executing the processing after step S20, the total amount of power consumption of the electrical device 10 is set to be equal to or less than the value of the line L2, as shown at time T4 in FIG.

  Note that the message for attention ventilation in step S2 may be displayed for a certain period of time and then stopped regardless of the total amount of power consumption thereafter.

[Third Embodiment]
The configuration of the system according to the present embodiment can be the same as the configuration of the system 100 described in the first embodiment.

  In the first and second embodiments described above, a control signal for turning off the power is transmitted to the specific electrical device 10 in order to reduce the total amount of power consumption of the electrical device 10 in the system 100. .

  In the present embodiment, when electric device 10 can operate in a mode in which power consumption is reduced, such as so-called eco mode, a control signal transmitted by CPU 33 in step S40 (FIGS. 3, 6, etc.). Includes a signal instructing the operation mode of the electric device 10 to operate in a mode in which power consumption is reduced.

  As such a mode, when the electric device 10 is a lighting device, a mode in which the illuminance is reduced (from the normal mode) is conceivable. Further, when the electric device 10 is a television, a mode in which the luminance of the backlight is reduced (from the normal mode) can be considered. Moreover, when the electric equipment 10 is a refrigerator, the mode which sets the preset temperature in a store | warehouse | chamber slightly higher (than normal mode) can be considered. In the case where the electric device 10 is an air conditioner, a mode in which the set temperature is set and operated is higher than the normal mode if it is cooled, and lower than the normal mode if it is heated.

  In the HDD 35 of the control device 30, for example, a control signal transmitted in step S40 is registered for each electrical device. The control content may be different for each electric device. That is, a certain electric device may be controlled to turn off the power, and another electric device may be controlled so that the operation mode is changed, such as an eco mode.

  FIG. 9 is a diagram schematically illustrating a temporal change in power consumption when a control signal for shifting to the eco mode is transmitted to a specific electrical device 10.

  In FIG. 9, the time change of the power consumption (CA-CD) of four types of apparatuses is shown like FIG. At time T2, the total amount exceeds the value indicated by the line L3. Thereby, according to the technique described in the second embodiment, processing for alerting is executed.

  Then, as indicated by time T3, when the total amount of power consumption further increases and exceeds the value of line L2, step S40 (FIG. 4) is performed for “device B” in FIG. 9 which is a specific electrical device. , FIG. 9), a signal for switching the operation to the eco mode is transmitted.

  As a result, as shown at time T4 in FIG. 9, the power consumption of the device B is reduced, and the total amount of power consumption is less than or equal to the value of the line L2.

  FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a message displayed on the panel 36 of the control device 30 in order to notify that a control signal has been transmitted to the specific electrical device 10 in the present embodiment.

  The display column IM03 of FIG. 10 includes a message “Peak power exceeded! The device B that is the cause has been switched to the eco mode. To return to the normal mode, turn off the other devices.”

  Thereby, the user of the system 100 can understand the cause of the operation mode of the specific electric device shifting to the eco mode and the method for returning the operation mode to the normal mode by the message.

[Fourth Embodiment]
The configuration of the system according to the present embodiment can be the same as the configuration of the system 100 described in the first embodiment.

  And in this Embodiment, the control signal which CPU33 transmits in step S40 (FIG. 3, FIG. 6, etc.) includes the signal which instruct | indicates the temporary stop of the operation sequence of the electric equipment 10. FIG.

  As the operation sequence, when the electric device 10 is a washing machine, an operation sequence in which the washing machine sequentially executes a washing process, a rinsing process, a dehydrating process, and a drying process can be considered. Further, when the electric device 10 is a microwave oven, with respect to cooking, the first time heating operation is performed with the first output, and then the second time heating operation is performed with the second output. A sequence is conceivable.

  In the present embodiment, the CPU 33 transmits a control signal for temporarily stopping the operation sequence to a specific electric device. Thereby, in the specific electric equipment 10, the operation sequence is temporarily stopped. In addition, the control part 13 of the electric equipment 10 which received such a control signal makes the memory | storage part 16 memorize | store the sequence under execution and which process of the sequence was performed at that time. For example, when the electric device 10 is a washing machine and a plurality of courses (operation sequences) for washing are registered, the course that has been executed and which process is executed in the course. What has been stored (for example, 15 minutes in the washing process for 20 minutes) is stored in the storage unit 16.

  Then, the electrical device 10 controlled in this way resumes the operation sequence paused as described above when a specific operation is performed, for example, when a pause button of the input unit 12 is operated.

  In addition, when the control signal as described in the present embodiment is received, in the electric device 10, the control unit 13 may shift the own device to the resume state.

  FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of a message displayed on the panel 36 in step S50 when a control signal is transmitted to the specific electrical device 10 in step S40. FIG. 11 shows a display field IM04 displayed on the panel 36.

  Referring to FIG. 11, in the display column IM04, a message “Exceeding peak power !! The operation of the device B, which is the cause, has been temporarily suspended. To resume, please erase other devices.” Is displayed.

  Thereby, the user of the system 100 can understand the cause and the method for resuming the suspended operation when the operation of the specific electrical device is suspended by the message.

[Fifth Embodiment]
In each of the embodiments described above, the number of specific electrical devices that are transmission targets of the control signal is “1” in step S40, but may be a plurality.

  FIG. 12 is a diagram for explaining the contents of the power adjustment processing when a control signal is transmitted to two electric devices in step S40. In FIG. 12, electric devices included in the system 100 are illustrated as devices A to E. The power consumption of the devices A to E is indicated by CA to CE, respectively.

  In FIG. 12, the total amount of power consumption gradually increases as time T1, time T2, and time T3 progress. At time T3, the value of the power consumption line L2 is exceeded.

  In the present embodiment, in step S30, the electric device “2” is identified from the one with the largest difference. In the example of FIG. 12, device B and device E are specified. In step S40, for example, a control signal for turning off the power is transmitted to these devices. As a result, at time T4, the devices B and E are turned off, so that the total amount of power consumption is less than or equal to the value of the line L2.

[Sixth Embodiment]
In each embodiment described above, the CPU 33 of the control device 30 acquires the power consumption of each electrical device 10 by receiving the power detected by the energy management unit 15 of each electrical device 10.

  In the present embodiment, each electrical device 10 of the system 100 is supplied with power via a power consumption meter. Then, the CPU 33 of the control device 30 receives the power consumption value measured by the power consumption measuring device of each electrical device 10 from the power consumption measuring device of each electrical device 10.

  FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating a specific example of the configuration of a system for managing energy consumption according to the present embodiment.

  Referring to FIG. 13, in the present embodiment, electric devices 10 include electric devices 10A, 10B, 10C, 10D, and 10E corresponding to these devices. Furthermore, the system 100 includes a control device 30.

  The electric devices 10A, 10B, 10C, 10D, and 10E further include power consumption measuring devices 1004A, 1004B, 1004C, 1004D, and 1004E in addition to the configuration shown in FIG. Electric devices 10A, 10B, 10C, 10D, and 10E are supplied with power via power consumption measuring devices 1004A, 1004B, 1004C, 1004D, and 1004E, and power lines are used instead of PLCs 11A, 11B, 11C, 11D, and 11E. The communication devices 19A, 19B, 19C, 19D, and 19E are provided as communication interfaces without using. In the present embodiment, the control device 30 is also provided with a communication device 390 serving as an interface for communicating with the electrical device 10 and the like in a mode that does not use a power line, instead of the PLC 31. Communication between the communication devices 19A, 19B, 19C, 19D, 19E and the control device 30 and communication between the power consumption measuring devices 1004A, 1004B, 1004C, 1004D, 1004E and the control device 30 may be wired. Alternatively, wireless such as Zigbee (registered trademark) may be used.

  Hereinafter, the power consumption measuring devices 1004A, 1004B, 1004C, 1004D, and 1004E may be collectively referred to as the power consumption measuring device 1004.

FIG. 14 is a block diagram illustrating a specific example of the configuration of the electric device 10 according to the present embodiment.
Referring to FIG. 14, electrical device 10 of the present embodiment is added to input unit 12, control unit 13, drive unit 14, and storage unit 16 as compared with electrical device 10 shown in FIG. 2. Furthermore, although the power consumption measuring device 1004 is included, the energy management unit 15 is not included. In this embodiment, the power consumption is calculated by the power consumption measuring device 1004. Therefore, the electrical device 10 does not need to include the energy management unit 15. Moreover, in this Embodiment, the electric equipment 10 is provided with the communication apparatus 19 instead of PLC11.

  In the electric device 10 of the present embodiment, the power consumption measuring device 1004 transmits the power consumption to the control device 30 and receives the control signal via the communication device 19.

Next, the configuration of the power consumption measuring device 1004 will be described.
FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an appearance of the power consumption measuring device 1004. FIG. 16A is a perspective view of the power consumption measuring device 1004. FIG. 16B is a side view of the power consumption measuring device 1004. FIG.16 (c) is a perspective view of the power consumption measuring device 1004 when it sees from a different direction from Fig.16 (a).

  Referring to FIG. 16A, the power consumption measuring device 1004 includes a plug insertion socket 2101 on the surface 1004A of the power consumption measuring device 1004. Referring to FIG. 16B and FIG. 16C, a plug 2102 is provided on the surface 1004C of the power consumption measuring device 1004. Note that the surface 1004C is a surface opposite to the surface 1004A and is adjacent to the surface 1004B. A plug (outlet) of an electronic device such as a home appliance is inserted into the socket 2101.

  FIG. 17 is a diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of the power consumption measuring device 1004. Referring to FIG. 17, a power consumption measuring device 1004 includes a socket 2101, a plug 2102, a shunt resistor 2103, a power supply unit 2104, an LED 2105, a setting button 2106, an antenna 2107, a power sensor unit 2110, A low-speed wireless communication module 2120, a wiring 2131, a wiring 2132, and a wiring 2133 are provided.

  The power sensor unit 2110 includes a voltage input ADC unit 2111, a current input ADC unit 2112, a multiplier 2113, and a digital / frequency conversion unit 2114. The low-speed wireless communication module 2120 includes a CPU 2121, a ROM 2122, a RAM 2123, a GPIO 2124, and a wireless RF unit 2125.

  The wiring 2132 and the wiring 2133 are connected by a shunt resistor 2103. The shunt resistor 2103 is a very small (several hundred micro ohms) resistor used for measuring current.

  The socket 2101 and the plug 2102 are connected by wirings 2131 to 2133 and a shunt resistor 2103. The wiring 2131 is connected to one terminal of the plug 2102 and one terminal of the socket 2101. The wiring 2132 is connected to the other terminal of the plug 2102 and one end of the shunt resistor 2103. The wiring 2133 is connected to the other terminal of the socket 2101 and the other end of the shunt resistor 2103.

  The power supply unit 2104 is connected to the wiring 2132. The power supply unit 2104 converts alternating current into direct current. The power supply unit 2104 gives the DC power obtained by the conversion to the power sensor unit 2110 and the low-speed wireless communication module 2120.

  The voltage input ADC unit 2111 is connected to the wiring 2131 and the wiring 2132. The voltage input ADC unit 2111 outputs the voltage (potential difference) between the wiring 2131 and the wiring 2132 to the multiplier 2113 as a digital signal.

  The current input ADC unit 2112 is connected to the wiring 2132 and the wiring 2133. The current input ADC unit 2112 outputs the current value of the current flowing through the shunt resistor 2103 to the multiplier 2113 as a digital signal.

  The multiplier 2113 multiplies the output from the voltage input ADC unit 2111 and the output from the current input ADC unit 2112, and outputs a digital signal obtained by the multiplication to the digital / frequency conversion unit 2114.

  The digital / frequency converter 2114 converts the input digital signal into a frequency signal. The digital / frequency conversion unit 2114 outputs the frequency signal obtained by the conversion to the GPIO of the low-speed wireless communication module 2120.

  The CPU 2121 performs data conversion on the frequency signal acquired from the GPIO. The wireless RF unit 2125 transmits a signal obtained by data conversion to the control device 30 using the antenna 2107.

  The ROM 2122 stores programs executed by the CPU 2121. The RAM 2123 temporarily stores data processed by the CPU 2121 and processed data.

  The LED 2105 represents the data processing state of the power consumption measuring device 1004 by a blinking color and / or a lighting color. The setting button 2106 is used for initial setting of the power consumption measuring device 1004 by the user.

[Seventh Embodiment]
The power consumption of each electrical device 10 of the system 100 may be calculated based on the amount of current that the CPU 30 of the control device 30 passes through the breaker corresponding to each electrical device 10.

  FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating a specific example of a configuration of a system 200 for managing energy consumption according to the present embodiment.

  In the system 200, the electric devices 10 </ b> A to 10 </ b> C are supplied with power via the switchboard 210.

  The switchboard 210 includes a main breaker 220 and branch breakers 221 to 223. The electric power supplied from the commercial power source is guided to the main breaker 220 and then supplied to each of the electric devices 10A to 10C via the branch breaker 221.

  The control device 30 of the present embodiment includes a power calculation unit 39 in addition to the configuration of the control device 30 shown in FIG. The power calculation unit 39 measures the current value of the branch breaker 221. Then, based on the measurement result and the voltage value supplied to the branch breaker 221 stored in advance in the HDD 35 or the like, the CPU 33 consumes power for the electric device 10A that receives power supply via the branch breaker 221. Is calculated. In addition, the calculation unit 39 similarly calculates power consumption for other electric devices (electric devices 10B and 10C) in the system 200.

  Then, the CPU 33 executes the power adjustment process described with reference to FIG. 3 and the like based on the power consumption calculated in this way.

  The storage unit 35 stores information associating branch breakers (branch IDs), electric devices (device IDs), and address information (for example, IP addresses) of electric devices as shown in Table 1. .

  In step S20, the CPU 33 of the present embodiment calculates a difference in power consumption for each branch breaker, in step S30, identifies a predetermined number of branch breakers having a large difference, and in step S40, identifies in step S30. A control signal is transmitted to the address corresponding to the branch breaker. The content of the control signal transmitted here is determined based on the type of device corresponding to the specified branch breaker.

[Other variations]
In the system 100, the control device 30 may not be able to measure power consumption for some of the electrical devices that can be connected to the power cable 50. In such a case, the control device 30 determines whether or not the total amount of power consumption has reached the above-described fixed amount or the like only for the electrical equipment that can measure power consumption, and refer to FIG. Perform the described control action.

  In each embodiment, the notification operation in the control device 30 is a message display on the panel 36, but the mode of operation is not limited to this. For example, light may be lit / flashed in a predetermined pattern. Alternatively, when the control device 30 has a function of outputting sound, the notification operation may be realized by outputting sound such as a melody or a message.

  Each embodiment disclosed this time must be considered as illustrative in all points and not restrictive. The scope of the present invention is defined by the terms of the claims, rather than the description above, and is intended to include any modifications within the scope and meaning equivalent to the terms of the claims. In addition, the inventions described in the respective embodiments and modifications thereof are intended to be implemented alone or in combination as much as possible.

  12 input unit, 13 control unit, 14 drive unit, 15 energy management unit, 16, 35 storage unit, 30 control device, 33 CPU, 34 RAM, 36 panel, 37 communication device, 39 power calculation unit, 50 power cable, 100 200 system.

Claims (11)

Detection means for detecting the power consumption of a plurality of electrical devices for each electrical device;
When the total amount of power consumption for each of the electrical devices detected by the detection means exceeds a specific amount, among the plurality of electrical devices, the predetermined number of the power consumption increases in the latest predetermined period is large. A power management apparatus comprising: control means for transmitting a control signal for reducing power consumption to an electrical device.   The power management apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined number is one.   The power management apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control signal includes a signal for temporarily stopping an operation sequence during execution of the electric device.   The power management apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the control signal includes a signal for executing an operation in an eco mode with reduced power consumption.   The power management apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the control means performs notification that the predetermined number of the control signals have been transmitted.   The power management apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the notification is performed in the predetermined number of electrical devices. A display device,
The power management device according to claim 5 or 6, wherein the notification is performed in the display device.   The said control means performs alerting | reporting operation | movement, when the total amount of the power consumption for every said electric equipment detected by the said detection means exceeds the fixed amount whose value is lower than the said specific amount. The power management apparatus according to any one of the above. A power management system comprising a plurality of electrical devices and a power management device capable of communicating with the plurality of electrical devices,
The power management device includes:
Detecting means for detecting the power consumption of a plurality of the electrical devices for each electrical device;
When the total amount of power consumption for each of the electrical devices detected by the detection means exceeds a specific amount, among the plurality of electrical devices, the predetermined number of the power consumption increases in the latest predetermined period is large. Control means for transmitting a control signal for reducing power consumption to an electrical device,
The electrical equipment is
Drive means for driving a mechanism for realizing the function as the electrical device;
And a drive control means for driving the drive means according to the control signal when a control signal is received from the control means. Detection means for detecting the power consumption of a plurality of electrical devices for each electrical device;
When the total amount of power consumption for each of the electrical devices detected by the detection means exceeds a specific amount, among the plurality of electrical devices, the predetermined number of the power consumption increases in the latest predetermined period is large. A power management apparatus comprising: control means for performing notification that power consumption has increased for an electrical device. A power management system comprising a plurality of electrical devices and a power management device capable of communicating with the plurality of electrical devices,
The power management device includes:
Detection means for detecting the power consumption of a plurality of electrical devices for each electrical device;
When the total amount of power consumption for each of the electrical devices detected by the detection means exceeds a specific amount, among the plurality of electrical devices, the predetermined number of the power consumption increases in the latest predetermined period is large. A power management system including control means for performing notification that power consumption has increased for an electrical device.

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