JP2017212565A - Hot-water supply device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a hot-water supply device capable of performing operation input in non-contact with high accuracy.SOLUTION: A hot-water supply device includes an operation apparatus for receiving operation input of a user, and a controller for controlling the hot-water supply device. The operation apparatus includes a detector for detecting that the distance from the operation apparatus to a detected object is within a predetermined range, and an image recognition unit for executing image recognition of the detected object when a determination was made that the distance is within a predetermined range, and determining whether or not a predetermined operation input operation was performed, based on the image recognition results. When a determination was made that a predetermined operation input operation was performed, the controller performs control of the hot-water supply device according to the operation input operation.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a hot water supply apparatus.

  Generally, in a hot water supply apparatus, an operating device for operating the hot water supply apparatus is installed at a position away from the hot water supply apparatus body. For example, the operation device includes a kitchen remote controller installed on a predetermined wall surface of a kitchen, a bathroom remote controller installed on a wall surface of a bathroom, or the like.

JP 2014-138634 A

  However, when washing dishes in the kitchen or washing your body in the bathroom, your hands may get wet or dirty, so wash your hands and wipe your hands before operating these remote controls. There was a problem that took time and so on.

  In order to deal with such a problem, a mode in which operation input is performed by voice recognition in order to perform operation input without contact can be considered. However, when voice recognition is used, correct operation input cannot be performed due to ambient noise such as dishwashing sounds. There is also a problem that the user is not familiar with speaking to the machine.

  Instead of such voice recognition, a mode in which operation input is performed by image recognition is also conceivable. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a configuration in which a user's gesture is compared with a pre-registered gesture pattern, and an operation (operation on a television) corresponding to the case where they match is disclosed.

  However, even in such a mode, if the image recognition cannot be performed with high accuracy, correct operation input cannot be performed and a malfunction may occur. If only the operation of the television is performed as in Patent Document 1, the influence of the malfunction is small, but a dangerous situation may occur if the user performs an operation that is not intended by the user. For example, in general, an operation input of a hot water supply apparatus includes a setting change operation of a hot water supply temperature. When image recognition is used for such an operation input, if a malfunction occurs, the hot water supply temperature is set by the user. If the temperature is set to an unintended high temperature, the user may be burned.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a hot water supply apparatus capable of performing non-contact and high accuracy operation input of the hot water supply apparatus.

  A hot water supply apparatus according to one aspect of the present invention includes an operation device that receives a user's operation input and a control device that controls the hot water supply device, and the operation device has a predetermined distance from the operation device to an object to be detected. A detection unit that detects that the distance is within the predetermined range, and when the distance is detected to be within the predetermined range, image recognition of the detected object is performed, and based on the result of the image recognition An image recognizing unit that determines whether or not a predetermined operation input operation has been performed, and when the control device determines that the predetermined operation input operation has been performed, The hot water supply device is controlled in accordance with an operation input operation.

  According to the above configuration, when the detection unit detects that the detected object is located within a predetermined range from the operating device, the image recognition in the image recognition unit is executed. Therefore, the operation input of the hot water supply device can be performed in a non-contact and high accuracy.

  The operating device activates the image recognition unit when the detection unit detects that the distance is within the predetermined range, and stops the operation of the image recognition unit otherwise. It may be configured as follows. According to this, when the object to be detected is not located within the predetermined range, the operation of the image recognition unit is stopped, so that power consumption can be reduced and erroneous recognition in the image recognition unit can be prevented. It can prevent more reliably.

  The image recognition unit determines that the predetermined operation input operation has been performed when a predetermined second image different from the first image is recognized after the predetermined first image is recognized. May be. According to this, since one operation input operation is set by the combination of a plurality of images, it is possible to prevent erroneous recognition of the operation input and to perform operation input with higher accuracy.

  The operation device is configured as a remote control device that is communicably connected to a hot water supply device body, and the remote control device is installed on a wall surface that rises from a peripheral portion of the sink in a kitchen unit having a sink, and the detection unit and the image The recognition unit may face a direction intersecting the wall surface. As a result, even if the hands are wet or dirty due to dishes such as dishwashing in the kitchen, the user can contact the remote control device installed on the nearby wall surface during the work. The operation input of the hot water supply device can be easily performed.

  The detection unit and the image recognition unit may be configured as a single image detection device that performs image recognition while measuring a distance to an object to be detected. By performing detection of an object to be detected and image recognition with a single image detection device, the number of parts can be reduced and a simple configuration can be achieved.

  The predetermined operation input operation includes a first temperature setting operation for increasing the set value of the hot water supply temperature and / or a second temperature setting operation for decreasing the set value of the hot water temperature. The operation input operation of at least one of the first temperature setting operation and the second temperature setting operation may be different depending on whether or not the hot water supply temperature after setting is equal to or higher than a predetermined temperature. Thereby, since it is possible to make the operation input operation difficult for the operation of setting the hot water supply temperature having a higher degree of danger to a high temperature as compared with the low temperature, the hot water supply at a high temperature unintended by the user can be prevented.

  According to one aspect, there is an effect that the operation input of the hot water supply apparatus can be performed in a non-contact and highly accurate manner.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a hot water supply apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. 2 is a plan view showing an outline of an operation panel of each operation device of the hot water supply apparatus shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an installation example of the operating device of the hot water supply apparatus shown in FIG. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the operation input operation in the present embodiment.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the same or corresponding elements are denoted by the same reference symbols throughout the drawings, and redundant description thereof is omitted.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a hot water supply apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. 2 is a plan view showing an outline of an operation panel of each operation device of the hot water supply apparatus shown in FIG. 2A shows the operation panel of the operation device 3a, FIG. 2B shows the operation panel of the operation device 3b, and FIG. 2C shows the operation panel of the operation device 3c.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a hot water supply device 1 according to the present embodiment includes a hot water supply device body 2, a control device 4 that controls the hot water supply device 1 (mainly a hot water supply device body 2), and at least one operating device 3 x (x = Ac). In this Embodiment, the hot water supply apparatus 1 has the three operating devices 3a-3c. The control device 4 and the operation device 3x are connected to each other via a communication line 5 so as to communicate with each other. That is, each operation device 3x is configured as a remote control device. The operation device 3x is a wall-mounted remote control device installed on a wall surface in the room. When there are a plurality of operation devices 3x as in the present embodiment, the operation devices 3x are configured to be able to communicate with each other via the communication line 5. The control device 4 communicates with the operating device 3x via the communication unit 6.

  The hot water supply device main body 2 is not particularly limited, but has at least one of a hot water supply function, a bath reheating function, and a hot water heating function. For example, the hot water supply apparatus body 2 is configured as a multifunctional hot water supply apparatus or the like having a hot water supply function and a bath reheating function.

  The operating device 3x includes an operation input unit that inputs a command to the hot water supply device body 2 (control device 4), a notification unit 31 that notifies information from the hot water supply device body 2, and a hot water supply device body 2 (control device 4). And a communication unit 32 for performing communication between the control device 3x and the operation device 3x. As shown in FIG. 2, the notification unit 31 includes a display 31a on which the current set temperature, operation confirmation display, current time, etc. for hot water supply and / or bath are displayed, a set temperature arrival sound, a warning sound, a predetermined announcement, etc. The speaker 31b which outputs.

  The operation device 3a is configured as a sink remote controller, for example, and includes a non-contact operation input unit 33 that performs non-contact operation input as an operation input unit. The operation device 3b is configured as, for example, a kitchen remote controller, and includes a contact operation input unit 34 that performs an operation input by contact (normal button operation input or the like) as an operation input unit. The operating device 3c is configured as a bath remote controller, for example, and includes both a non-contact operation input unit 33 and a contact operation input unit 34. Similarly to the operation device 3c, the operation devices 3a and 3b may be configured as one remote control including the non-contact operation input unit 33 and the contact operation input unit 34.

  As the communication line 5, for example, a two-core communication line capable of superimposing communication information on a power supply line is used. Information exchanged between the hot water supply device body 2 (the control device 4) and the operation device 3x includes command data related to hot water supply (on / off of the hot water supply device, change of the hot water supply set temperature, etc.), notification data of the hot water supply result (bath set temperature) Notification of arrival, abnormality notification, etc.).

  The non-contact operation input unit 33 includes a detection unit 35 that detects whether the distance L from the operation devices 3a and 3c to the detected object (the user's hand in the present embodiment) is within a predetermined range L1. When the distance L is detected to be within the predetermined range L1, image recognition of the detected object is executed, and a predetermined operation input mode is performed based on the image recognition result. And an image recognition unit 36 for determining whether or not.

  The detection unit 35 includes a distance measuring sensor 37 and a control unit 38. The distance measuring sensor 37 is composed of, for example, an ultrasonic sensor. The ultrasonic sensor includes an ultrasonic transmitter 37a and an ultrasonic receiver 37b, and the ultrasonic wave (pulse) transmitted from the ultrasonic transmitter 37a is reflected by the object to be detected and received by the ultrasonic receiver 37b. The distance L from the operating devices 3a, 3c to the object to be detected is measured from the time until. The control unit 38 includes a microcontroller and a memory, and determines whether or not the distance L obtained by the distance measuring sensor 37 is within a predetermined range L1. Accordingly, the detection unit 35 can detect that the user holds his / her hand over the operation devices 3a and 3c so as to perform a non-contact operation input operation on the operation devices 3a and 3c. The distance measuring sensor 37 is not limited to an ultrasonic sensor, and for example, an infrared sensor or the like can be used.

  In the present embodiment, when the detection unit 35 detects an object to be detected, the notification unit 31 notifies that fact. For example, as shown in FIGS. 2A and 2C, the display 31a displays a predetermined display (in this example, a character display 31c of “OK”) when the detection unit 35 detects an object to be detected. Is configured to light up. Instead, a predetermined lamp may be turned on, or a predetermined notification sound may be output from the speaker 31b. Thereby, the user can easily confirm the response on the side of the operation devices 3a and 3c to the operation input operation of the user. Note that such a notification mode is not an essential configuration.

  The image recognition unit 36 includes an image sensor 39 and a control unit 38. The image sensor 39 is composed of, for example, a CCD image sensor / camera, a CMOS image sensor / camera, or the like. The control unit 38 determines whether or not a predetermined operation input operation has been performed based on the image captured by the image sensor 39. When it is determined that a predetermined operation input operation has been performed, the control unit 38 generates a corresponding operation command signal. As a result, the image recognition unit 36 performs a predetermined operation input operation (for example, a combination of gestures and / or a plurality of gestures) with the user holding his / her hand over the operation devices 3a and 3c. You can recognize what happened.

  As shown in FIG. 1, in the present embodiment, the control unit 38 is included in the components of both the detection unit 35 and the image recognition unit 36 (configured as a common control unit). Instead, separate control units may be provided for the detection unit 35 and the image recognition unit 36, respectively. Furthermore, the control unit 38 performs various processes based on signals received from other devices.

  The contact operation input unit 34 includes a plurality of operation buttons 40 and a control unit 38. When any of the plurality of operation buttons 40 is pressed, the control unit 38 generates an operation command signal corresponding to the pressed operation button 40. The generated operation command signal is sent to the control device 4 via the communication units 32 and 6, and the control device 4 controls the hot water supply device 1 (mainly the hot water supply device main body 2) based on the received operation command signal. Do.

  According to the above configuration, when the detection unit 35 detects that the detected object is located within the predetermined range L1 from the operating devices 3a and 3c, the image recognition in the image recognition unit 36 is executed. . That is, the detection of the detection object within the predetermined range L1 by the detection unit 35 is used as a trigger for starting the image recognition in the image recognition unit 36. Therefore, the operation input of the hot water supply device 1 can be performed in a non-contact and highly accurate manner.

  When the detection unit 35 detects that the distance L from the operation devices 3a and 3c to the detected object is within the predetermined range L1, the operation devices 3a and 3c in the present embodiment are configured to display the image recognition unit 36. It is configured to start up and to stop the operation of the image recognition unit 36 in other cases. According to this, when the detected object is not located within the predetermined range L1, the operation of the image recognition unit 36 is stopped, so that power consumption can be reduced and the image recognition unit 36 can Misrecognition can be prevented more reliably.

  Here, an installation example of the operating device 3a will be described. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an installation example of the operating device of the hot water supply apparatus shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 3, the operating device 3 a is installed on the wall surface 9 that rises from the periphery of the sink 7 in the kitchen unit 8 having the sink 7. In the present embodiment, the wall surface 9 is configured as a wall surface located on the back side of the sink 7. The wall surface 9 may be a wall for connecting the upper unit 8a and the lower unit 8b of the kitchen unit 8, or a building such as a residence located between the upper unit 8a and the lower unit 8b. It may be a wall. When there is a wall on the side of the sink 7, the operation device 3a may be installed on the side wall.

  In a state in which the operating device 3a is installed on the wall surface 9, the distance measuring sensor 37 of the detection unit 35 and the image sensor 39 of the image recognition unit 36 face a direction intersecting the wall surface 9 (for example, an orthogonal direction). As a result, even when the hands are wet or dirty due to dishes such as dishwashing in the kitchen, the user is placed on the nearby wall 9 during the work (without washing hands). The operation input of the hot water supply device 1 can be easily performed in a non-contact manner with respect to the operation device 3a which is a remote control device.

  Here, the predetermined range L1 used to determine the distance L from the operation device 3a detected by the detection unit 35 to the detected object (for example, the user's hand) is the depth length of the kitchen unit 8 (the operation device 3a is It may be set based on the length L2 between the wall 9 to be installed and the end of the kitchen unit 8 where the wall 9 is located. More specifically, for example, the predetermined range L1 is such that the lower limit value L1min of the predetermined range L1 is shorter than the depth length L2, and the upper limit value L1max is longer than the lower limit value L1min and not more than the depth length L2. (That is, L1min <L1max ≦ L2). For example, the predetermined range L1 is set to 30 cm ≦ L1 ≦ 60 cm. The height direction position where the operating device 3a is installed may be a position that does not interfere with a faucet (mixed faucet or the like) provided in the sink 7 in a side view. More specifically, the height from the floor surface on which the operation device 3a is installed is the height of the shoulder position of the user standing on the floor surface of the kitchen (the height of the hand when the hand is directed forward) ( For example, it may be set to 120 cm to 140 cm).

  By arranging the operation device 3a in this way, when the user normally performs work in the kitchen, it is difficult for the detection unit 35 to detect the detected object, and erroneous detection can be prevented. . In addition, when the user wants to perform an operation input operation on the operation device 3a, the user's hand, which is an object to be detected, is included in the predetermined range L1 if the hand is extended toward the operation device 3a. Thus, the detection object 35 can be detected easily and reliably. Therefore, highly accurate non-contact operation input can be performed.

  The predetermined range L1 may be set in advance in the control unit 38 or the control device 4, but is configured to be changeable according to the size of the kitchen unit 8 (for example, the length of the depth length L2). Also good. According to this, the predetermined range L <b> 1 can be set to a range in which erroneous recognition is small and operation input is easy according to the size of the kitchen unit 8. The operating device 3x may be configured to be able to perform setting input within a predetermined range L1. For example, the setting input of the predetermined range L1 in the operating device 3a is performed by the contact operation input unit 34 of the operating device 3b, and the setting input of the predetermined range L1 in the operating device 3c is performed by the contact operation input unit in the same operating device 3c. 34 may be performed.

  Usually, the kitchen remote controller (operating device 3b) installed in the kitchen has a wall surface opposite to the wall surface 9 on which the kitchen unit 8 is installed (behind the user when the user performs the kitchen work) so that the user's manual input is easy. Even if it is the same plane as the wall 9, it is often provided at a position where there is no kitchen unit 8 (right or left of the kitchen unit 8). Therefore, when the user operates the kitchen remote control during the above-described work, the user needs to wash his hands and then move or look back to the place where the kitchen remote control is located to manually operate the kitchen remote control. Occurs. Furthermore, the user needs to move or look back to a place where the kitchen remote control is located simply to confirm the set temperature.

  On the other hand, according to the present embodiment, since the sink remote controller (operation device 3a) is provided on the wall surface 9 facing the kitchen unit 8, the user can move from place to place even during the above work. , Operation input or setting confirmation can be performed without looking back.

  Hereinafter, the flow of determination by the image recognition unit 36 and the operation input operation to be determined will be exemplified. In the present embodiment, the predetermined operation input operation includes an operation constituted by a combination of two images. In this case, the image recognition unit 36 determines that a predetermined operation input operation has been performed when a predetermined second image different from the first image is recognized after the predetermined first image is recognized. To do.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the operation input operation in the present embodiment. For example, in the operation input operation for the operation ON operation to enable the operation of the hot water supply device 1, a user's hand grip gesture is set as the first image, and the user's open hand (par ) Gesture is set. For example, in the operation input operation for the operation OFF operation that makes the operation of the water heater 1 impossible, the gesture of the user's hand is set as the first image, and the gesture of the user's hand grip is set as the second image. Is set. For example, in the operation input operation (first temperature setting operation) for the hot water supply temperature UP operation for raising the hot water supply temperature (set temperature) of the hot water supply device 1, a gesture of the user's grip is set as the first image, A gesture for pointing the user's index finger upward is set as the second image. Further, for example, in the operation input operation (second temperature setting operation) for the hot water supply temperature DOWN operation for lowering the hot water supply temperature of the hot water supply device 1, the user's hand grip gesture is set as the first image, and the second image is set as the second image. A gesture for setting the user's index finger downward is set.

  In this way, different operation input operations are set in advance for a plurality of operations. When the detection unit 35 detects the user's hand, which is an object to be detected, within the predetermined range L1, the image recognition unit 36 activates the image sensor 39, and the image sensor 39 performs imaging for a predetermined period. The image recognition unit 36 performs an image recognition process on the image captured by the image sensor 39 according to a predetermined algorithm. When two images are recognized within a predetermined period, the image recognition unit 36 temporarily stores the two input images together with the recognized order. For example, the image recognition unit 36 temporarily stores the first recognized image as the first input image, and temporarily stores the next recognized image as the second input image. On the other hand, when the two images cannot be recognized within the predetermined period, the image recognizing unit 36 ignores the operation input operation or notifies the notification unit 31 of an error.

  When the two input images can be recognized, the image recognition unit 36 has an operation input operation in which the combination of the first input image and the second input image matches the preset combination of the first image and the second image. It is determined whether or not. For example, when the first input image is a gesture of the user's hand grip and the second input image is a gesture of pointing the user's index finger upward, the image recognition unit 36 determines that the hot water supply temperature UP operation has been performed.

  Based on the operation input operation specified by the image recognition unit 36, the control unit 38 transmits command data corresponding to the operation input operation to the control device 4 via the communication unit 32. The control device 4 controls the operation of the hot water supply device body 2 based on the received command data. Further, the control device 4 transmits a confirmation signal (feedback signal) to the operation devices 3x that the operation input operation is being performed. Each operating device 3x may notify the notification unit 31 of the content fed back according to the received confirmation signal.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, after the predetermined first image is recognized, the predetermined operation input operation is performed when the predetermined second image different from the first image is recognized. It is determined that Therefore, since one operation input operation is set by a combination of a plurality of images, erroneous recognition of the operation input can be prevented, and more accurate operation input can be performed. When the operation input operation is configured by a combination of a plurality of images, the notification unit 31 may notify that the image is recognized every time one of the images is recognized.

  In the present embodiment, the hot water supply temperature UP operation as the first temperature setting operation differs in the operation input operation depending on whether or not the hot water supply temperature (set temperature) after setting is equal to or higher than a predetermined temperature T. Specifically, when the set temperature is lower than the temperature T (for example, T = 45 ° C.), after the second image is recognized, the image sensor 39 turns the input image corresponding to the second image (the index finger of the user is turned up). While continuously recognizing the gesture), the image recognition unit 36 recognizes the maintenance of the continuous input image as an operation input operation for performing a continuous input operation for continuously increasing the temperature. On the other hand, when the set temperature is equal to or higher than the temperature T, the image recognition unit 36 recognizes the first operation input operation after recognizing the first operation input operation (recognizes the second operation input operation). Unless this is done, it is not recognized as an operation input operation that performs two or more temperature rise settings. That is, when the set temperature is equal to or higher than the temperature T, after the second image is recognized, the hot water supply temperature of the hot water supply device 1 is continuously increased even if the image sensor 39 continuously recognizes the input image corresponding to the second image. It cannot be raised.

  For this purpose, the control unit 38 stores the current set temperature included in the confirmation signal transmitted from the control device 4. Before the operation input operation, the control unit 38 reads the stored set temperature and displays it on the display 31a. When an appropriate hot water supply temperature UP operation is performed, the control unit 38 sets a unit temperature (for example, 1 ° C.) higher than the current set temperature as the set temperature, and determines whether the set temperature is equal to or higher than a predetermined temperature T. judge.

  According to this, since the operation input operation can be made more difficult than the operation at a low temperature for the operation of setting the hot water supply temperature having a higher degree of danger to a high temperature, hot water supply at a high temperature unintended by the user can be prevented.

  In addition to or instead of this, the operation input operation may differ depending on the set temperature for the hot water supply temperature DOWN operation, which is the second temperature setting operation. The set temperature at this time may be the same as or different from the hot water supply temperature UP operation. For example, in the hot water supply temperature DOWN operation, the set temperature may be set to a lower temperature (for example, 38 ° C.), the continuous input operation may be performed above the set temperature, and the continuous input operation may not be performed below the set temperature. Instead of this, the second temperature setting operation may be continuously input regardless of the set temperature.

  As described above, since hot water supply at a high temperature unintended by the user can be prevented, the present embodiment is also suitably applied to the operation device 3c that functions as a bath remote controller. For example, when the bath remote control is installed on the wall that rises from the bathtub, if the bath remote control is touched with a hand with soap bubbles, etc., soap bubbles may adhere to the bath remote control and flow into the bathtub. There is. Even in such a case, the operation device 3c according to the present embodiment can be operated in a non-contact manner, so that soap bubbles and the like can be prevented from flowing into the bathtub. Further, as described above, for the operation of setting the hot water supply temperature to a high temperature, the operation input operation is made more difficult than when the temperature is low, so that the recognition accuracy in the image recognition unit 36 is increased, and the user intends from the shower in use or the like. It is possible to prevent hot water that does not come out.

  Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various improvements, changes, and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

  For example, in the above-described embodiment, the control unit 38 of the operating device 3x performs the determination of the detection object in the detection unit 35 (determination as to whether or not it is located within the predetermined range L1) and the image recognition in the image recognition unit 36. Although the aspect to perform was demonstrated, the detection part 35 of the operating device 3x detects the distance with a to-be-detected object, the image recognition part 36 only captures an image, and the control apparatus 4 performs each determination. Also good.

  In the above embodiment, the mode in which the operation input operation is set by combining two images has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the operation input operation may be set by one image. The operation input operation may be set by a combination of the above images. Further, the number of images constituting the operation input operation may be varied according to the operation input operation. For example, the operation input operation for the driving ON operation may be configured with only one image, and the operation input operation for the driving OFF operation may be configured with a combination of two images. Further, for example, in the hot water supply temperature UP operation, when the operation input operation is different depending on whether or not the set temperature is equal to or higher than the predetermined temperature T, one image is displayed when the set temperature is lower than the predetermined temperature T. In the case where an operation input operation composed of only two images is set and the set temperature is equal to or higher than a predetermined temperature, an operation input operation composed of a combination of two images may be set.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, even if it was the same operation, the aspect which operation input operation could differ according to preset temperature was demonstrated. The mode in which the operation input operation differs depending on the set temperature is not limited to the example described in the above embodiment. For example, in the hot water supply temperature UP operation, different operation input operations for images (gestures) may be set depending on whether the set temperature is higher than a predetermined temperature or lower than the predetermined temperature. For example, when the set temperature is set to a predetermined temperature or higher in the hot water supply temperature UP operation, a gesture of pointing the user's index finger upward is set as the operation input operation, and when the set temperature is set lower than the predetermined temperature in the hot water supply temperature UP operation, A gesture of a user's hand may be set as an operation input operation.

  Further, for example, in the operation of setting the hot water supply temperature, the first image is a gesture for opening the user's finger by the number of tenths of the set temperature, and the second image is the user's finger by the number of orders of the set temperature. An operation input operation as an open gesture may be set. In this case, for example, when the hot water supply temperature is set to 42 ° C., after performing a gesture with four user fingers opened upward, a gesture with two user fingers opened upward is performed. Further, for example, when the hot water supply temperature is set to 38 ° C., after performing a gesture of opening three user fingers upward, the gesture is performed with three user fingers opened downward.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, although the example which uses a user's one hand as an image recognized by the image recognition part 36 was shown, the gesture using both hands may be included. For example, when performing the temperature setting as described above, one hand is used as a gesture for opening the user's finger by the number of tenths of the set temperature, and the other hand is used by the user's finger for the number of orders of the set temperature. An operation input action such as opening gesture can be set. In addition, a gesture for making a circle (circle) with both hands may be set as the operation input operation in the driving ON operation, and a gesture for making a cross by crossing both hands may be set as the operation input operation in the driving OFF operation.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, although the example which performs image recognition using a user's hand was shown, it is not restricted to this, For example, you may perform image recognition using a user's arm, the whole body, etc. Further, image recognition may be performed using a body other than the user's body. For example, in the operating device 3a functioning as a sink remote controller, an image constituting the operation input operation (an image to be recognized by the image recognition unit 36) is a kitchen utensil (for example, a kitchen sponge, a detergent container, a brush with a handle, etc.). May be. Further, for example, in the operating device 3c that functions as a bath remote controller, the image constituting the operation input operation may be a bath product (for example, a soap case, a shampoo container, etc.). For this reason, the operating device 3x may allow the user to register images constituting the operation input operation. That is, the image sensor 39 of the operating devices 3a and 3c is imaged in advance in a state where a target (detected object) to be recognized as an image constituting the operation input operation is positioned in the predetermined range L1, and the captured image May be stored in association with a predetermined operation. As a result, the operation input operation can be configured with an object frequently used by the user.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, although the example which uses a still image as an image recognized by the image recognition part 36 was shown, the gesture with a motion may be included. For example, in the operation ON operation, a gesture that swings in a direction intersecting the direction of the image sensor 39 with the user's hand open (for example, in a plane parallel to the wall surface 9) may be set as the operation input operation.

  In the above embodiment, the detection unit 35 and the image recognition unit 36 have a configuration in which the control unit 38 is shared and the distance measuring sensor 37 and the image sensor 39 are separated. The unit 35 and the image recognition unit 36 may be configured to be completely separated (the control unit 38 is separated into two), or both perform image recognition while measuring the distance to the object to be detected. You may comprise as one image detection apparatus. For example, the image detection apparatus may be configured by a distance measurement image sensor (for example, a 3D image sensor or the like) in which the distance measurement sensor 37 and the image sensor 39 are integrated and a control unit, or may be configured by a plurality of cameras. An image detection apparatus may be configured by the stereo camera and the control unit. An image detection apparatus using a stereo camera functions as a detection unit 35 that detects the distance of an object to be detected in accordance with the magnitude of parallax of images captured by a plurality of cameras, and based on the captured images. It also functions as an image recognition unit 36 that performs recognition. As described above, the detection of an object to be detected and the image recognition are performed by one image detection device, so that the number of parts can be reduced and a simple configuration can be achieved.

  In the above embodiment, the configuration in which three operating devices 3x are connected has been described. However, the operating device 3x may be one, two, or four or more. For example, instead of the operation device 3a and the operation device 3b, an operation device including the non-contact operation input unit 33 and the contact operation input unit 34 similar to the operation device 3c may be provided as a kitchen remote control or a sink remote control. Further, as long as at least one of the operation devices 3x constituting the hot water supply device 1 has the non-contact operation input unit 33, the configuration of the other operation devices 3x is not limited. For example, all the operation devices 3x may have the non-contact operation input unit 33. Further, not all the operation devices 3x may have the contact operation input unit 34.

  In the above embodiment, the operation devices 3a and 3c having the non-contact input unit 33 have been described with respect to the mode in which the detection unit 35 can always detect the detected object. It may be configured such that whether or not can be set in advance in the operation devices 3a and 3c. When the operation input operation by image recognition is set not to be accepted, detection of the detection object in the detection unit 35 and / or execution of image recognition in the image recognition unit 36 is stopped. Note that the setting as to whether or not to accept an operation input operation using image recognition may be set collectively for the hot water supply device 1 or may be set for each of the operating devices 3a and 3c.

  The hot water supply apparatus of the present invention is useful for performing non-contact and high accuracy operation input of the hot water supply apparatus.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Hot-water supply apparatus 2 Hot-water supply apparatus main body 3x (x = ac) Operation apparatus 4 Control apparatus 5 Communication line 7 Sink 8 Kitchen unit 9 Wall surface 35 Detection part 36 Image recognition part

Claims (6)

An operating device that accepts user input, and
A control device for controlling the hot water supply device,
The operating device is
A detection unit for detecting that the distance from the operating device to the object to be detected is within a predetermined range;
When it is detected that the distance is within the predetermined range, image recognition of the detected object is executed, and a predetermined operation input operation is performed based on the image recognition result. An image recognition unit for determining whether or not,
When it is determined that the predetermined operation input operation is performed, the control device controls the hot water supply device according to the operation input operation.   The operating device activates the image recognition unit when the detection unit detects that the distance is within the predetermined range, and stops the operation of the image recognition unit otherwise. The hot water supply device according to claim 1 configured as described above.   The image recognition unit determines that the predetermined operation input operation has been performed when a predetermined second image different from the first image is recognized after the predetermined first image is recognized. The hot water supply apparatus according to claim 1 or 2. The operating device is configured as a remote control device that is communicably connected to the hot water supply device body,
The remote control device is installed on a wall surface that rises from the periphery of the sink in a kitchen unit having a sink,
The hot water supply apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the detection unit and the image recognition unit face a direction intersecting the wall surface.   The hot water supply according to any one of claims 1, 3, and 4, wherein the detection unit and the image recognition unit are configured as one image detection device that performs image recognition while measuring a distance to an object to be detected. apparatus. The predetermined operation input operation includes a first temperature setting operation for increasing the set value of the hot water supply temperature and / or a second temperature setting operation for decreasing the set value of the hot water temperature. ,
The operation input operation of at least one of the first temperature setting operation and the second temperature setting operation differs depending on whether or not the hot water supply temperature after setting is equal to or higher than a predetermined temperature. The hot water supply device according to any one of 5.

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