JP2017053558A - Air conditioner - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an air conditioner capable of continuously operating even if powered off as electric leakage occurs to an outdoor unit set as a master unit.SOLUTION: Outdoor units 10-1, ..., 10-m of an air conditioner 1 comprises: storage parts 101-1, ..., 101-m which store setting information of a master unit as master unit information; leakage current detection parts 13-1, ..., 13-m which detect leakage currents; power cut-off parts 15-1, ..., 15-m which cut off power supply to compressors 11-1, ..., 11-m when detecting leakage currents of the compressors 11-1, ..., 11-m; and main power cut-off parts 14-1, ..., 14-m which cut off power supply from power sources 2-1, ..., 2-m. Control parts 100-1, ..., 100-m of a slave unit read master unit information out of the storage parts 101-1, ..., 101-m to be set as a master unit if communication between the master unit and slave unit is broken for a predetermined time, and transmit control signals for controlling other slave units when set as the master unit.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to an air conditioner.

There is a refrigeration apparatus that sequentially activates a target device and sequentially identifies a failed device when a leakage occurs in a plurality of compressors and outdoor fans of the refrigeration apparatus including an air conditioning system.
Patent Document 1 discloses sequential startup means for sequentially starting preset refrigeration equipment when restarting after the circuit breaker is shut down due to an abnormality in the electrical system, and the electrical system at the time of sequential startup by the sequential startup means. There is described a refrigeration apparatus including an abnormality processing unit that excludes the refrigeration equipment supplied with power just before the abnormality from the target of the sequential activation unit when the circuit breaker breaks due to an abnormality.

  Patent Document 2 discloses a ground fault countermeasure device provided between a plurality of modules constituting a power generation device and a power conditioner for supplying power generated by these modules to a load system or a power system. Have been described. The ground fault countermeasure device described in Patent Document 2 is provided corresponding to each module, and is set in advance when an open / close means disposed between the module and the power conditioner and a ground fault is detected. Control means for specifying a module in which a ground fault has occurred by controlling opening and closing of each of the opening and closing means based on the opening and closing procedure.

  In Patent Document 3, each of the plant devices is sequentially energized for a short time, and when the devices are energized, the presence or absence of the operation of the leakage detector is monitored, and the leakage detector is activated. There is a description of a method for searching for a leakage point that identifies a device that was sometimes energized as a leakage point.

  In Patent Document 4, a zero-phase current transformer that detects a ground fault current and outputs a zero-phase current, a capacitor, and when the zero-phase current exceeds a predetermined positive-side threshold or is determined in advance. And a circuit that controls charging and discharging of the capacitor based on the operation and operates when the voltage falls below a negative threshold value.

As a protection against leakage current due to insulation deterioration of components constituting the air conditioner, an earth leakage breaker is installed. Although the earth leakage breaker is instructed to be connected during field construction, the earth leakage breaker may not be connected. In this case, it is not possible to protect against electric leakage.
For this reason, in recent years, it has been studied to detect and protect leakage current with an air conditioner alone. In the configuration in which the air conditioner itself detects a leakage current and cuts off the power supply, the power conditioner is cut off when a leakage is detected as in the case of the leakage breaker, and thus the air conditioner cannot be operated continuously.
For this reason, when an air conditioner detects a leakage, there is one that specifies a faulty part and restarts operation only with normal equipment (for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2006-162242 A JP 2005-168156 A JP 2006-194804 A JP 2009-112108 A

  However, in the case of an air conditioner in which multiple outdoor units are module-connected by a master unit and a slave unit, if a leakage occurs in the outdoor unit set as the master unit, normal control of the slave unit becomes impossible. There is a problem that the entire system of the air conditioner stops.

  An object of the present invention is to provide an air conditioner capable of continuing operation even when an electric leakage occurs in an outdoor unit set as a master unit and the power is cut off.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, an air conditioner of the present invention includes at least one indoor unit and a plurality of outdoor units that are powered by a power source and connected in a parent-child manner. A compressor that compresses the compressor, a control unit that controls the compressor, a storage unit that stores setting information of the master unit as master unit information, a leakage current detection unit that detects leakage current, and a leakage current of the compressor When a leakage current is detected in spite of the interruption of the power supply by the power cutoff unit, the power supply from the power source is cut off. A main power shut-off unit, and the control unit of the slave unit is set as a master unit by reading the master unit information from the storage unit when communication between the master unit and the slave unit is interrupted for a predetermined time, When set as the master unit, control other slave units And transmitting a control signal.

  According to the present invention, there is provided an air conditioner capable of continuing operation even when an electric leakage occurs in an outdoor unit set as a master unit and the power is shut off.

1 is an overall configuration diagram of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is an operation | movement sequence diagram at the time of the normal of the module-connected air conditioner which concerns on the said embodiment. It is an operation | movement sequence diagram at the time of abnormality of the air conditioner connected with the module which concerns on the said embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows a process when the subunit | mobile_unit of the outdoor unit of the air conditioner which concerns on the said embodiment operate | moves as a main | base station.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention. An air conditioner is an air conditioner in which an outdoor unit and an indoor unit are connected by a refrigerant pipe to form a refrigeration cycle.
As shown in FIG. 1, the air conditioner 1 includes a plurality of outdoor units 10-1,..., 10-m that are connected to a parent and a child, and a plurality of indoor units 20-1,. ,..., 10-m are electrically connected to the outdoor unit-outdoor unit transmission path 16 (outdoor unit-outdoor unit transmission means), and the outdoor units 10-1,. And the indoor units 20-1,..., 20-n are provided.
The outdoor units 10-1,..., 10-m are respectively supplied with three-phase AC power supply currents from the power sources 2-1,. In the power supply path of power supplies 2-1, ..., 2-m, leakage breakers 3-1, ..., 3-m are installed to protect the outdoor units 10-1, ..., 10-m against leakage current. It is done. The outdoor units 10-1, ..., 10-m constitute an outdoor unit 10. The indoor units 20-1,..., 20-n constitute an indoor unit 20.
The outdoor units 10-1, ..., 10-m and the indoor units 20-1, ..., 20-n are connected by a refrigerant pipe (not shown), and air-conditioning operation is performed by a known refrigerant cycle (not shown). Do.

<Outdoor unit 10-1, ..., 10-m>
Each of the outdoor units 10-1,..., 10-m has the same hardware configuration. Although the outdoor units 10-1,..., 10-m have the same configuration, they are set as a master unit or a slave unit by a setting switch described later. However, even if it is set as a slave by the setting switch, it operates as a master in a predetermined case.
In the example of FIG. 1, in the normal state, the outdoor unit 10-1 is a master unit, the outdoor unit 10-2 is a slave unit <1>, and the outdoor unit 10-m is a slave unit <2>. That is, the outdoor unit 10-1 is a master unit of the slave unit <1> (the outdoor unit 10-2) and the slave unit <2> (the outdoor unit 10-m), and the slave unit <1> and the slave unit <2 > Overall control of driving.
Whether the outdoor units 10-1, ..., 10-m supply warm air or cold air to the indoor units 20-1, ..., 20-n depends on the operation control of the master unit.
The outdoor units 10-1,..., 10-m control the indoor units 20-1,.

The outdoor units 10-1, ..., 10-m include compressors 11-1, ..., 11-m, outdoor unit control boards 12-1, ..., 12-m, and leakage current detectors 13-1, .... , 13-m, main power cutoff units 14-1, ..., 14-m, and compressor power cutoff units 15-1, ..., 15-m.
The outdoor unit control boards 12-1, ..., 12-m include control units 100-1, ..., 100-m, storage units 101-1, ..., 101-m, and an outdoor unit-outdoor unit transmission unit 102-. , 102-m (outdoor unit-outdoor unit transmission means) and indoor unit-outdoor unit transmission units 103-1, ..., 103-m.
The compressors 11-1, ..., 11-m compress the refrigerant of the outdoor units 10-1, ..., 10-m of the air conditioner 1.

The leakage current detectors 13-1,..., 13-m detect the leakage current.
The compressor power shut-off units 15-1,..., 15-m are arranged on the power lines of the compressors 11-1,..., 11-m, and detect leakage currents of the compressors 11-1,. In this case, the power supply to the compressors 11-1,.
The main power cut-off units 14-1,..., 14-m detect the power supply 2-1,... When the leakage current is detected despite the interruption of the power supply by the power cut-off units 15-1,. , 2-m cuts off the power supply to the outdoor unit control boards 12-1, ..., 12-m.
The control units 100-1,..., 100-m are composed of CPUs (Central Processing Units) and control the entire outdoor units 10-1,. The operation program stored in n is read out and executed to drive the compressors 11-1, ..., 11-m.

  When the communication between the master unit and the slave unit is interrupted for a predetermined time, the control units 100-1,..., 100-m read the master unit information from the storage units 101-1,. When it is set as a master unit, a control signal for controlling other slave units is transmitted. More specifically, each of the outdoor units 10-1,..., 10-m includes a setting switch (not shown) for setting that it is a master unit or a slave unit. .., 100-m (in FIG. 1, the control units 100-2 and 100-m), when the communication between the master unit and the slave unit is interrupted for a predetermined time, the storage unit 101- 1,..., 101-m (in FIG. 1, storage units 101-2 and 101-m), the parent device information is read out and set as the parent device. In FIG. 1, the control unit 100-2 of the slave unit <1> (outdoor unit 10-2), when set as the master unit, has an outdoor unit relative to the slave unit <2> (outdoor unit 10-m). -A control signal is transmitted through the outdoor unit transmission line 16 to control the slave unit <2> (outdoor unit 10-m).

Further, the control units 100-1,..., 100-m limit the driving ability of the indoor units 20-1,.
Further, the control units 100-1,..., 100-m determine parts that have a tendency to increase the leakage current due to changes over time based on the detection results of the leakage current detection units 13-1,.

Storage units 101-1,..., 101-m are provided with a rewritable nonvolatile memory such as an EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory), and store the setting and operating state of the master unit. Storage units 101-1,..., 101-m store parent machine setting information as parent machine information.
The outdoor unit-outdoor unit transmitters 102-1,..., 102-m communicate with each other through the outdoor unit 10-1,. Part.
The indoor unit-outdoor unit transmission units 103-1,..., 103-m communicate with a plurality of indoor units 20-1,..., 20-n connected via the indoor unit-outdoor unit transmission path 17. It is a communication part.

<Indoor unit 20-1, ..., 20-n>
The indoor units 20-1, ..., 20-n include indoor unit control boards 21-1, ..., 21-n, driving devices 22-1, ..., 22-n such as blowers, expansion valves, and louvers, and a remote controller. , 23-n (notification means).
The indoor unit control boards 21-1, ..., 21-n include control units 200-1, ..., 200-n (notification means), storage units 201-1, ..., 201-n, and indoor units-outdoor units. , 202-n.

The control units 200-1,..., 200-n are composed of CPUs, and operate according to the operation programs of the storage units 201-1,.
The control units 200-1,..., 200-n, when the driving capability is limited by the parent units of the outdoor units 10-1,. Displayed on -n display sections 24-1,..., 24-n. The notification of the driving ability limitation is not limited to the display on the remote control operation units 23-1,..., 23-n, but may be a lighting of a voice message or a lamp.
The storage units 201-1,..., 201-n include a rewritable nonvolatile memory such as an EEPROM and store various setting states.

The indoor unit-outdoor unit transmission units 202-1,..., 202-n are connected to a plurality of indoor units 20-1,. It is a communication unit that communicates with the outdoor units 10-1, ..., 10-m.
The remote control operation units 23-1,..., 23-n are operation units (input units) that accept input of various data. When the operation capability of the indoor units 20-1,..., 20-n is limited, the remote control operation units 22-1,..., 22-n display the fact on the display units 24-1,. To do.

<Air conditioner 1>
As described above, the air conditioner 1 includes a plurality of outdoor units 10-1,..., 10-m that are connected in a parent-child manner, and a plurality of indoor units 20-1,. Prepare.
The outdoor units 10-1,..., 10-m and the indoor units 20-1,..., 20-n are connected to each unit driven during the air conditioning operation of the air conditioner 1 and a refrigerant pipe (not shown). Since a well-known refrigerant cycle is formed between the two, detailed description thereof is omitted.

As the output when the air conditioner 1 performs air conditioning operation, the rotation speed of the motors (not shown) of the compressors 11-1,..., 11-m, the fan motors of the outdoor units 10-1,. (Not shown), rotational speed of outdoor units 10-1, ..., 10-m, expansion valves (not shown), fan motors of indoor units 20-1, ..., 20-n (not shown). ) Rotation speed, opening / closing timing of expansion valves (not shown) of indoor units 20-1,..., 20-n, opening / closing angles of louvers (not shown) of indoor units 20-1,. There is.
Here, “output” means the control units 200-1,..., 200-n of the indoor units 20-1,..., 20-n or the control units 100- of the outdoor units 10-1,. The one whose operation is directly controlled by 1, ..., 100-m.
Further, as input to the output of the air conditioner 1, the operating current value, the refrigerant pressure and temperature of each part of the refrigerant cycle (not shown), the air blown out from the indoor units 20-1, ..., 20-n There are temperature, pressure on the suction side and discharge side of the compressors 11-1,.

Hereinafter, the operation of the outdoor units 10-1, ..., 10-m of the air conditioner 1 configured as described above will be described.
In general, when a leakage current is detected, the main purpose is to cut off the power supply to the main body of the air conditioner 1 because there is a part where the leakage current is generated somewhere in the components of the air conditioner 1 It is said. For example, the method of shutting off the power supply to the outdoor units 10-1, ..., 10-m by the operation of the external leakage breakers 3-1, ..., 3-m, or the outdoor units 10-1, ..., 10 There is a method in which the power supply to the outdoor units 10-1,..., 10-m is cut off by the main power breakers 14-1,.

If there is an outdoor unit whose power is cut off due to leakage current detection, the air conditioner 1 has insufficient capacity.
As shown in FIG. 1, in the normal case, the outdoor unit 10-1 is a master unit, the outdoor unit 10-2 is a slave unit <1>, and the outdoor unit 10-m is a slave unit <2>.
When the outdoor unit 10-1 set as the master unit is powered off, the master unit (1) (outdoor unit 10-2) and slave unit <2> (outdoor unit 10-m) are energized even if power is supplied. The outdoor unit 10-1) does not send out a control signal (command). Therefore, the master unit (outdoor unit 10-1) cannot control the slave unit <1> (outdoor unit 10-2) and the slave unit <2> (outdoor unit 10-m), and the air conditioner 1 continues. I can't drive.

Therefore, in the air conditioner 1 of the present embodiment, when the outdoor unit 10-1 set as the parent unit detects a leakage current, the leakage current is generated as the authority of the parent unit (outdoor unit 10-1). Control signals (commands) that are given to a normal child device (eg, child device <1>) and the authorized child device (child device <1>) controls another child device (eg, child device <2>) ) As a result, the air conditioner 1 can be continuously operated with outdoor units (outdoor units 10-2, 10-m) in which no leakage current is generated.
In order to continue operation with normal slave units (outdoor units 10-2, 10-m) except for the master unit (outdoor unit 10-1) in which leakage current has occurred, the master unit (outdoor unit 10-1) ) Insufficient capacity. For this reason, the continuous operation of the air conditioner 1 is enabled by restricting the operation of the indoor units 10-1, ..., 10-m.

Next, the operation continuation operation at the time of detecting the leakage current of the air conditioner 1 will be specifically described.
[Normal]
As shown in FIG. 1, the outdoor units 10-1,..., 10-m of the air conditioner 1 are connected to the main power shut-off units 14-1,. The parts 15-1,..., 15-m are ON. The control units 100-1,..., 100-m constantly monitor that no leakage current is generated based on the sensor information of the leakage current detection units 13-1,.

[In case of abnormality]
<When compressor 11-1 is the location where leakage current occurs>
As shown in FIG. 1, it is assumed that the compressor 11-1 of the outdoor unit 10-1 set as the master unit is a leakage current generation site.
When abnormality occurs in the compressor 11-1 and leakage current is generated, the value of the leakage current detection unit 13-1 is changed, so that the control unit 100-1 determines that there is an abnormality. The control unit 100-1 turns off the compressor power supply cut-off unit 15-1 disposed on the power line of the compressor, and switches to control that does not supply power to the compressor 11-1 that is leaking current. The compressor power shut-off unit 15-1 remains OFF until the compressor 11-1 in which the leakage current is generated is repaired.

Since the control unit 100-1 on the outdoor unit control board 12-1 is energized even if the compressor 11-1 in which the leakage current is generated is disconnected by turning off the compressor power cutoff unit 15-1, the main unit is energized. It is possible to control the control unit 100-1 of the outdoor unit 10-1 set to be continuously operated by the outdoor units 10-1 and 10-m of normal slave units.
However, since the air conditioning capacity of one compressor 11-1 is reduced, the control unit 100-1 of the outdoor unit 10-1 set as the master unit reduces the capacity reduction of the separated compressor 11-1. In consideration of the above, the air conditioner 1 is continuously operated while restricting the operations of the indoor units 20-1, ..., 20-n.

<When a component other than the compressor 11-1 is the part where the leakage current is generated>
In the following description, parts other than the compressor 11-1 of the outdoor unit 10-1 are assumed to be leaking current generation parts.
When leakage current occurs in parts other than the compressor 11-1 of the outdoor unit 10-1, as described above, the control unit 100-1 detects an abnormality due to a change in the value of the leakage current detection unit 13-1, and compression is performed. Shut off the machine power shut-off unit 15-1. However, since the components other than the compressor 11-1 are leak current generation parts, the leakage current cannot be stopped by shutting down the compressor power shut-off unit 15-1. Since the leakage current cannot be stopped, the abnormal state by the leakage current detector 13-1 does not change. Therefore, the control unit 100-1 shuts off the main power shut-off device 14-1 and disconnects the outdoor unit 10-1 from the outdoor unit 10.

The outdoor unit 10-1 is set as a master unit, and since the control unit 100-1 controls the slave units (outdoor units 10-2, 10-m), the outdoor unit 10-1 is disconnected. Before the capacity decreases, the slave units (outdoor units 10-2 and 10-m) cannot be controlled, and the entire air conditioner 1 stops.
Therefore, the air conditioner 1 of this embodiment gives the authority of the control unit 100-1 of the outdoor unit 10-1 set as the master unit to, for example, the slave unit <1> (outdoor unit 10-2), The slave unit <1> (outdoor unit 10-2) sends the control signal for operating the slave unit <2> (outdoor unit 10-m), thereby causing the air conditioner 1 to continue operating. A specific method in which the slave unit operates as the master unit will be described later with reference to FIG.

By the outdoor unit-outdoor unit transmission line 16 normally performed between the slave unit <1> (outdoor unit 10-2) and the slave unit <2> (outdoor unit 10-m) and the master unit (outdoor unit 10-1). When the communication of the control signal is interrupted for a certain time, the control unit 100-2 of the slave unit (outdoor unit 10-2) having a high priority set in advance starts to operate as the master unit.
The settings of the master unit and the slave unit are normally set by switch settings. The master unit has various settings such as capacity settings, refrigerant system settings, construction condition settings, and option settings that are not required in the slave unit settings.
Normally, these settings do not need to be recognized by the slave unit if the master unit recognizes these settings. In the present embodiment, in order to allow the slave unit to continue operation by substituting the authority of the master unit, the switch setting recognized by the control unit 100-1 of the master unit is set to the outdoor unit-outdoor unit transmission path 16. And are always stored in the storage units 101-2 and 101-m read by the control units 100-2 and 100-m of the slave units (outdoor units 10-2 and 10-m). As a result, even if the control unit 100-1 of the master unit (outdoor unit 10-1) is suddenly disconnected due to leakage current detection, the slave unit can control other slave units by using the authority of the master unit. The air conditioner 1 can be continuously operated.

<Operation restriction of indoor units 20-1, ..., 20-n>
The operation of the air conditioner 1 for continuous operation while limiting the operation of the indoor units 20-1, ..., 20-n will be described.
When the leakage current is detected, if the compressor where the leakage current is generated is disconnected, the capacity of the air conditioner 1 will be reduced, so the indoor units 20-1, ..., 20-n maintain 100% capacity. become unable. Therefore, it is necessary to limit the operation of the indoor units 20-1, ..., 20-n.
As a means to limit the operation of the indoor units 20-1,..., 20-n and reduce the capacity, the overall capacity of the indoor units 20-1,. There is a means for operating the system and setting priorities according to the frequency of use and stopping the indoor units in order of increasing priority.

<Notification of driving restrictions>
When the leakage current is detected, the outdoor unit 10-1 or the compressor 11-1 is disconnected, the operation of the indoor units 20-1, ..., 20-n is restricted, and the air conditioner 1 is continuously operated. , 20-n remote control operation units 23-1,..., 23-n to display units 24-1,..., 24-n, to outdoor units 10-1 or compressors 11-1. Leakage current is generated to inform the indoor unit that is restricted in operation. It is possible to inform the user of the abnormality of the air conditioner 1.

<Part failure prediction>
One of the causes of leakage current is the increase in leakage current due to component life and insulation deterioration. In this case, there is a feature that the leakage current gradually increases. The control units 100-1, ..., 100-m of the outdoor units 10-1, ..., 10-m store the current values of the leakage current detection units 13-1, ..., 13-m in the storage units 101-1, ..., 10-m. The data is stored as needed at 101-m, and the data is compared and judged for each measurement. As a result, it is possible to identify a site where the leakage current tends to increase as a site that is likely to be defective in the future.
The identified part is assumed to be a part with a high possibility of failure in the future, and the use priority is lowered among the outdoor units 10-1, ..., 10-m, and the use rate is lowered. It has the effect of extending the service life by lowering the usage rate of parts with a high possibility of failure.
Moreover, the part with a possibility of failure is displayed on the display units 24-1,..., 24-n of the remote control operation units 23-1,. Prior repair before failure is possible, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of a failure and restrict the operation of the indoor unit, and the continuous operation of the air conditioner 1 can be realized.

Next, with reference to FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, the operation continuation operation | movement at the time of the leakage current detection of the air conditioner 1 is demonstrated concretely. 2 and 3, the outdoor units 10-1,..., 10-m in FIG. 1 are simply indicated as a master unit, a slave unit <1>, or a slave unit <2>, and are represented as an indoor unit 20-1. ,..., 20-n are simply denoted as indoor unit <1> and indoor unit <2>.
2 and 3 are operation sequence diagrams of the module-connected air conditioner 1, in which FIG. 2 shows an operation sequence at a normal time, and FIG. 3 shows an operation sequence at an abnormal time.

[Normal]
<Outdoor unit-outdoor unit transmission>
The parent device, child device <1>, and child device <2> are determined by the switch setting.
As shown in FIG. 2, in outdoor unit-outdoor unit transmission, communication between the parent and child of the outdoor unit is performed.
The communication between the master unit and the slave unit is executed, for example, every second, and a transmission error occurs when communication is interrupted for 30 seconds.
The master unit controls the operation capability of the slave unit by sending a compressor operation command to the slave unit. In FIG. 2, the parent device transmits a compressor operation command to the child device <1> (see S1-1). The subunit | mobile_unit <1> transmits a compressor and expansion valve opening state information to a main | base station (refer code | symbol S2-1). In addition, the expansion valve opening degree of the subunit | mobile_unit is independent control for every subunit | mobile_unit based on the compressor operation instruction | command from a parent | base station.
As for the communication line for outdoor unit-outdoor unit transmission, the master unit and the slave unit are all connected by the same transmission line, so the slave unit <1> can also recognize the communication data of the master unit and the slave unit <2>. (Refer to broken line arrows in FIG. 2). As a result, the master unit transmits a compressor operation command to the slave unit <2> (see S1-2), and the slave unit <2> transmits the compressor and expansion valve opening state information to the master unit ( Reference S2-2).

<Indoor unit-outdoor unit transmission>
As shown in FIG. 2, in indoor unit-outdoor unit transmission, communication between the indoor unit and the outdoor unit is performed.
The indoor unit-outdoor unit transmission is communicated when a state value such as a sensor value or an operation mode changes. For example, in indoor unit-outdoor unit transmission, a communication error occurs when communication is cut off for 3 minutes. However, communication is performed every 30 seconds even if the state does not change.
The base unit of the outdoor unit controls the opening degree of the expansion valve of the indoor unit based on the operation mode of the indoor unit and the indoor sensor information. In FIG. 2, the indoor unit <1><2> transmits the operation mode of the indoor unit and the indoor unit sensor information to the main unit of the outdoor unit (see S11), and the main unit is the indoor unit <1><2>. The expansion valve opening degree command is transmitted to (see S12).
In indoor unit-outdoor unit transmission, all indoor units communicate with the base unit of the outdoor unit. Moreover, in indoor unit-outdoor unit transmission, since all the subunit | mobile_units of an outdoor unit are connected by the same transmission path, during communication between a main | base station and an indoor unit, the subunit | mobile_unit can also recognize the data during communication.

[In case of abnormality]
<Outdoor unit-outdoor unit transmission>
The parent device, child device <1>, and child device <2> are determined by the switch setting.
As shown by a cross in FIG. 3, when communication with the parent device is interrupted for a certain period of time due to the power interruption of the parent device, the child device determines that the parent device has stopped abnormally.
As indicated by the white arrow in FIG. 3, the preset child device <1> becomes the parent device (see the flowchart in FIG. 4).
Then, the outdoor unit <1> starts the base unit operation. In FIG. 3, the child device <1> serving as the parent device transmits an expansion valve opening operation command to the child device <2> (see S1-1). The subunit | mobile_unit <2> transmits a compressor and expansion valve opening state information to the subunit | mobile_unit <1> used as the main | base station (refer code | symbol S2-1).

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing processing when the child device of the outdoor unit operates as the parent device. In this flow, the control units 100-1, ..., 100-m (see Fig. 1) of the outdoor units 10-1, ..., 10-m are stored in the storage units 101-1, ..., 101-m. It is repeatedly executed at a predetermined timing according to the program.
Take the case where the outdoor unit <1> of the outdoor unit operates as a main unit.
The parent device, child device <1>, and child device <2> are determined by the switch settings, but when the parent device communication is interrupted for a certain period of time, the child device <1> starts the parent device operation according to this flowchart. To do.
First, in step S101, it is determined whether or not the parent device is set.
When the parent device is set (step S101 → YES), an operation command is transmitted to the child device as the parent device in step S102.

If the parent device is not set (step S101 → NO), whether the own child device address is the youngest as judged from the addresses of the parent device and the child device communicating on the outdoor unit-outdoor unit transmission path in step S103 Determine whether or not. In the present embodiment, the child device with the lowest address is an example having a high priority for becoming the parent device. Any method may be used for determining the priority order for becoming a parent device.
If it is determined in step S103 that the address of the slave unit is not the youngest (step S103 → NO), a reply is made as a slave unit to the communication of the master unit in step S107.

If it is determined in step S103 that the address of the child device is the youngest (step S103 → YES), it is determined in step S104 whether communication with the parent device is performed regularly.
When communicating regularly with the parent machine (step S104 → YES), the setting of the parent machine (capacity, options, etc.) is stored in the storage unit 101- of the outdoor unit control board 12-1, ..., 12-m in step S105. 1, ..., 101-m (see FIG. 1). By acquiring and storing the setting information of the parent device in advance, it is possible to cope with the case where the device itself becomes the parent device.
Next, in step S106, the communication information and indoor unit information of the master unit and other slave units are stored in the storage units 101-1, ..., 101-m of the outdoor unit control boards 12-1, ..., 12-m (see Fig. 1). To remember. By acquiring and storing communication information and indoor unit information between the master unit and other slave units in advance, the control unit 100-1,..., 100-m stores these pieces of information in the storage unit 101-1, .., 101-m can be read to cope with the case where the device itself becomes a parent device.
In step S107, a response as a slave unit is returned to the communication of the master unit.

If communication with the parent device is not performed regularly at step S104 (step S104 → NO), there is a possibility that an abnormality has occurred in the air conditioner 1 including the parent device. In step S108, it is determined whether or not a certain period of time has elapsed since communication from the parent device was interrupted.
When the communication is interrupted and a certain time has not elapsed (step S108 → NO), the communication waits from the parent device in step S109.

When the communication is interrupted and a certain time has passed (step S108 → YES), the slave unit <1> is set by the switch setting in step S110, but the master unit is switched to software recognition.
In step S111, the control units 100-1,..., 100-m read the parent device information stored in the storage units 101-1,.
In step S112, the child device <1> transmits to the other child device <1> as the parent device.

As described above, the outdoor units 10-1, ..., 10-m of the air conditioner 1 according to the present embodiment include the compressors 11-1, ..., 11-m that compress the refrigerant, and the compressor 11-. 1,..., 11-m, control units 100-1,..., 100-m, storage units 101-1,. , 13-m and the compressors 11-1,..., 11-m are detected when the leakage currents of the compressors 11-1,. When the leakage current is detected despite the interruption of the power supply by the power cutoff units 15-1,..., 15-m and the power cutoff units 15-1,. ,..., 2-m, and main power cutoff units 14-1,.
Then, the control units 100-1, ..., 100-m of the slave units read the master unit information from the storage units 101-1, ..., 101-m when the communication between the master unit and the slave units is interrupted for a predetermined time. When the master unit is set as a master unit, a control signal for controlling other slave units is transmitted.

With this configuration, when an outdoor unit set as the master unit detects leakage current, the master unit has the authority to control the slave unit that does not generate leakage current. The slave unit can be controlled.
Conventionally, when an outdoor unit set as a master unit detects a leakage current, the power source of the master unit is shut off, so that the connected slave units cannot be controlled and the entire system is stopped. On the other hand, in this embodiment, since the air conditioner 1 can be continuously operated even if the main unit is disconnected when an electric leakage occurs, the temperature of the indoor unit installation location is also from the time immediately after the occurrence of the failure until the repair. Maintenance of comfort can be realized.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and includes other modifications and application examples without departing from the gist of the present invention described in the claims.

  The above-described exemplary embodiments have been described in detail for easy understanding of the present invention, and are not necessarily limited to those having all the configurations described. Further, a part of the configuration of an embodiment can be replaced with the configuration of another embodiment, and the configuration of another embodiment can be added to the configuration of an embodiment. . Further, it is possible to add, delete, and replace other configurations for a part of the configuration of each exemplary embodiment.

1 Air conditioner 2-1, ..., 2-m Power supply 3-1, ..., 3-m Earth leakage breaker 10 Outdoor unit 10-1, ..., 10-m Outdoor unit 11-1, ..., 11-m Compression Unit 12-1, ..., 12-m Outdoor unit control board 13-1, ..., 13-m Leakage current detector 14-1, ..., 14-m Main power shut-off unit 15-1, ..., 15-m Compression Machine power shut-off unit 16 Outdoor unit-outdoor unit transmission path (outdoor unit-outdoor unit transmission means)
17 indoor unit-outdoor unit transmission path 20 indoor unit 20-1, ..., 20-n indoor unit 21-1, ..., 21-n indoor unit control board 22-1, ..., 22-n drive unit 23-1 , ..., 23-n Remote control unit (notification means)
24-1, display unit 100-1, ..., 100-m control unit 101-1, ..., 101-m storage unit 102-1, ..., 102-m outdoor unit-outdoor unit transmission unit ( Outdoor unit-outdoor unit transmission means)
103-1, ..., 103-m Indoor unit-outdoor unit transmission unit 200-1, ..., 200-n Control unit (notification means)
201-1, ..., 201-n storage unit 202-1, ..., 202-n indoor unit-outdoor unit transmission unit

Claims (6)

At least one indoor unit,
A plurality of outdoor units powered by a power source and connected in a parent-child manner,
The outdoor unit is
A compressor for compressing the refrigerant;
A control unit for controlling the compressor;
A storage unit for storing the setting information of the parent device as the parent device information;
A leakage current detector for detecting leakage current;
A power shut-off unit that shuts off power supply to the compressor when a leakage current of the compressor is detected;
A main power shut-off unit that shuts off the power supply from the power source when leakage current is detected despite the power supply shut-off by the power shut-off unit,
The control unit of the slave unit is
When communication between the parent device and the child device is interrupted for a predetermined time, the parent device information is read from the storage unit and set as the parent device,
An air conditioner that transmits a control signal for controlling another slave unit when set as a master unit. An outdoor unit that transmits and receives control signals between the master unit and the slave unit-outdoor unit transmission means,
The control unit of the slave unit is
The communication of the control signal by the outdoor unit-outdoor unit transmission means is detected, and when the communication is interrupted for a predetermined time, the control signal is set as a master unit and transmits a control signal for controlling other slave units. Item 2. An air conditioner according to Item 1. A setting switch for setting that the outdoor unit is a master unit or a slave unit;
The control unit of the slave unit is
2. When communication between a parent device and a child device is interrupted for a predetermined time, the parent device information is read from the storage unit and set as a parent device regardless of the setting of the setting switch. Air conditioner as described in. 2. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the control unit restricts an operation capability of the indoor unit when set as a master unit. 3. 2. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the control unit determines a site where the leakage current tends to increase due to a change with time based on a detection result of the leakage current detection unit. The air conditioner according to claim 4, wherein the indoor unit includes a notifying unit that notifies that effect when the driving capability is limited.

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