JP2019129416A - Program, home appliance system, and home appliance - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide an easy-to-use home appliance by changing a possible command in accordance with the position of an operation terminal for operating the home appliance or a communication protocol to be used.SOLUTION: A program that can send a command to a home appliance via an operation terminal, and when the program is installed on the operation terminal, a combination of commands that can be transmitted varies according to the position of the operation terminal with respect to the home appliance or a communication protocol used by the operation terminal for communication.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5a

Description

  The present invention relates to a program, a home appliance system, and a home appliance.

In recent years, home appliances such as vacuum cleaners, washing machines, refrigerators, air conditioners, and heating cookers have become connectable to a wide area network such as the Internet, and information on home appliances can be acquired and operated from outside the house. Is possible.
LANLAN Patent Document 1 discloses a GUI for reducing the visibility of an invalid display unit (0079-0088).
Further, Patent Document 2 exemplifies operating a home appliance using a server.

JP, 2016-42654, A

Unexamined-Japanese-Patent No. 2015-82778

  The home appliance can exhibit various functions depending on the product, but it is assumed that the execution of the command is not preferable depending on the place where the command for the home appliance is issued. For example, when trying to move a home appliance with a manual command, if the command from a remote place where the home appliance can not be perceived (for example, visually) is also possible, the commander (user) usually changes the state of the home appliance. I will give instructions while imagining. In this case, there is a possibility that an operation different from the user's assumption may be performed. For this reason, in order to suppress the situation where the home electric appliance performs an unexpected operation, for example, while detecting the place where the command was issued, the command which can be executed by the home electric appliance according to the place, it is difficult Or it is desirable to classify impossible commands.

  Although Patent Documents 1 and 2 mention the connection system in the case where the operation information terminal is in the wireless LAN environment in the same house and in the case where the operation information terminal is outside the house, any technical idea relating to the above problems is Not disclosed.

The program of the present invention made in view of the above circumstances,
It is a program that can send instructions for home appliances via an operation terminal,
When installed in the operation terminal, a combination of commands that can be transmitted varies depending on a position of the operation terminal with respect to the household electrical appliance or a communication protocol used by the operation terminal for communication.

In addition, the home appliance system of the present invention made in view of the above circumstances,
A wireless LAN router installed in the house;
Household appliances capable of communicating with the wireless LAN router using a wireless communication protocol;
An operation terminal capable of communicating with the wireless LAN router by selecting one of a wireless communication protocol and a wide area communication network protocol;
A home appliance system having the above program,
A combination of commands that can be transmitted by the operating terminal when it is determined that the operating terminal is in the home;
When it is determined that the operation terminal is out of the house, a combination of commands that can be transmitted by the operation terminal is different.

Schematic diagram of the device control system of the first embodiment External perspective view of a self-propelled electric vacuum cleaner to which Example 1 is applied The bottom view of the self-propelled electric vacuum cleaner to which Example 1 is applied B-B cross section of FIG. 2a CC cross section of FIG. 2a Remote control operation screen of the operation terminal of the first embodiment when operating outside the home Remote control operation screen of the operation terminal of the first embodiment when operating in the home Operation screen when selecting only KO on the remote control operation screen of the operation terminal of the first embodiment Reservation Operation Screen of Operation Terminal of Example 1 Operation screen when the reservation setting button is pressed on the reservation operation screen of the operation terminal of the first embodiment History display screen of the operating terminal of the first embodiment Screen when the detailed display button is pressed on the history display screen of the operation terminal of the first embodiment Other Menu Screens of Operation Terminal of Example 1 Example of remote control operation screen of the operation terminal of the reference example when operating outside the home Schematic diagram of the device control system of the second embodiment

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. In this specification, for convenience, the case where the home appliance and the operation terminal are in the same wireless LAN router environment is referred to as “home”, and the case where they are not in the same wireless LAN router environment is referred to as “outside home”.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a home appliance system as an example of a device control system of the present embodiment. The device control system includes a wide area network 2, operation terminals 3 and 5, a wireless LAN router 4 disposed in a home (for example, a home) and a home appliance 6.

[Operation terminals 3, 5]
The operation terminals 3 and 5 are preferably portable terminals owned by each user of the home appliance 6, for example. The operation terminals 3 and 5 are devices capable of communicating with the home appliance 6 using a wide area network protocol and a wireless communication protocol. In the case of communication using a wide area network protocol, communication with the home appliance 6 is possible through the wide area network 2 and the wireless LAN router 4. Also in the case of communication using a wireless communication protocol, communication with the home appliance 6 is possible via the wireless LAN router 4.

  In the present embodiment, among the operation terminals 3 and 5, the terminal not in the wireless communication range according to the wireless communication protocol with the wireless LAN router 4 (that is, outside the home) is in the wireless communication range with the first operating terminal 3 That is, the terminal in the house is referred to as the second operation terminal 5. The LAN operation terminals 3 and 5 are described separately for the sake of convenience, and are considered to be the second operation terminal 5 when a certain terminal is in the house and the first operation terminal 3 when the certain terminal is outside the house. be able to.

[Wireless LAN router 4]
The wireless LAN router 4 uses the wide area network protocol and the wireless communication protocol to transfer the information transmitted to the wireless LAN router 4 to other devices (operation terminals 3 and 5, home appliances 6) that are transmission destinations. Equipment.

[Household appliances 6]
The home appliance 6 is a device that can communicate with the operation terminals 3 and 5 through communication with the wireless LAN router 4 using a wireless communication protocol. Examples of the home appliance 6 include a vacuum cleaner, a washing machine, a refrigerator, an air conditioner, and a heating cooker, but are not particularly limited as long as they are electric devices used in the home.

  Although details will be described later, the home appliance 6 can be driven, finished driving, reserved for driving, through operation of a switch or button disposed on the home appliance 6 or operation from the operation terminals 3 and 5 via communication, A command for adjusting the operation during driving can be received.

  The home appliance 6 includes a transmitting / receiving unit 61, a determining unit 63 that determines whether or not to accept or reject a command based on a permission / refusal condition, a processing unit 62 that interprets and executes a command that is permitted to be accepted, and terminal information storage that stores operation right information The timer 64 which measures the elapsed time from the newest operation | movement of the part 64, the determination part 63, etc. is provided.

  The transmission / reception unit 61 receives commands (requests) from the operation terminals 3 and 5 and information specific to the operation terminals 3 and 5 (operation terminal information), and responses such as determination results of the determination unit 63 and processing results of the processing unit 62. Is transmitted to the operation terminals 3 and 5 via the wireless LAN router 4.

  Determination unit 63 determines whether or not to accept the command received by transmission / reception unit 61 based on the preset permission / refusal condition. The determination unit 63 according to the present embodiment suppresses unexpected operation of the home appliance 6 when another operation terminal tries to issue a command at the same time as receiving a command from a certain operation terminal. Is configured. Specifically, when a certain operation terminal transmits a command to the home appliance 6, the determination unit 63 stores operation terminal information unique to this operation terminal in the terminal information storage unit 64, and this operation terminal Accept only commands from the terminal for a certain period of time. At this time, the operation terminal stored in the terminal information storage unit 64 "has the operation right".

  The processing unit 62 interprets the instruction for which the determination unit 63 has accepted the acceptance, and causes the home appliance 6 to execute a process corresponding to the instruction. For example, when the command is the start of autonomous driving of the home appliance 6, the home appliance 6 is driven accordingly. Besides, various instructions such as imaging by an imaging unit attached to the home appliance 6 and a reply of imaging data can be followed.

  The terminal information storage unit 64 can store terminal information in response to a command from the determination unit 63. The storage terminal information can be erased according to the timing of the timing unit 65. When the transmission / reception unit 61 receives the operation terminal information when the storage terminal information is not set, the determination unit 63 causes the operation terminal information to be set as the storage terminal information.

The time measuring unit 65 is a lapse of time from the last operation time of the home appliance 6, for example, more specifically, the transmission / reception unit 61, the determination unit 63, or the processing unit 62 (for example, the time when the processing unit 62 last executed processing). Measure time. When the predetermined time has elapsed, the operation right is deleted by deleting the storage terminal information.
As described above, in this embodiment, when the transmission / reception unit 61 receives a request from any of the operation terminals 3 and 5 when the storage terminal information is not set, the operation terminal information of the operation terminal is set as the storage terminal information. (The operation right is granted). The determination unit 63 accepts the request from the operation terminal to which the operation right is assigned.

  The transmission / reception unit 61 is, for example, a wireless communication board, the determination unit 63 and the processing unit 62 are, for example, a processor, the terminal information storage unit 64 is, for example, a semiconductor memory medium, and the timing unit 65 can be configured by, for example, a clock counter.

[Commands from operation terminals 3 and 5]
The operation terminals 3 and 5 have installed programs (applications) that make it possible to give instructions to the home appliance 6. The application is configured to send a command via the wireless LAN router 4 using a wide area network protocol when trying to command the home appliance 6 from outside the home, and when the command is to be commanded from inside the home Is configured to send a command via the wireless LAN router 4 by a wireless communication protocol. However, if the user is at home, the communication can be switched to communication using the wide area network protocol according to the user's choice. In this case, the operation terminal is in the same state as being communicated from outside the home.

[Setting of command combinations possible inside and outside the home (determining the position with respect to the home appliance 6 and changing the possible command combinations)]
The determination unit 63 according to the present embodiment can acquire information as to whether the operation terminals 3 and 5 are transmitting requests from inside or outside the house, and can make a determination using the information.
The combinations (types) of commands that are possible for the home appliance 6 when outside the home can be different from the types of commands that are possible when inside the home. Examples of the command include a start reservation, start command, end reservation, end command, auto (autonomous) drive command, manual drive command, and browsing of information such as a reservation status of the home appliance 6. . Among them, for example, a manual drive command (for example, a move command to move forward from the current position or a jump command, a target value command to lower the set temperature) has a high degree of freedom by the commander. It may be possible only in the mode. Details of this embodiment will be described later.

Also, for example, browsing of information may be enabled from inside and outside the home. As described above, depending on the type of the instruction, by making the instruction executable only in the in-home mode, it is possible to reduce the possibility that a person other than the user of the home appliance 6 may execute the instruction illegally.
In this way, the types of commands that can be performed from inside or outside the house can be changed only when the operation terminals 3 and 5 are in the house, for example, from the viewpoint of security, or a switch disposed on the home appliance 6 or the like. It may be configured to be changeable by directly operating.

  In the present embodiment, as described above, the position is determined by the protocol used by the operation terminal, but the specific position is specified using, for example, GPS information of the operation terminals 3 and 5 and the home appliance 6. You may judge by that.

[Self-propelled vacuum cleaner 400 as an example of home appliance 6]
Next, a self-propelled vacuum cleaner 400 as an example of the home appliance 6 of the present embodiment will be described. Of the directions in which the self-propelled vacuum cleaner 400 travels, the side on which the side brush 401 is provided is defined as the front, the vertically upward direction is defined as the upward direction, and the directions in which the drive wheels 409 are opposed to the left and right.

  FIG. 2a is an external perspective view from above of the self-propelled vacuum cleaner 400, and FIG. 2b is a bottom view. The self-propelled vacuum cleaner 400 has an upper case 402 which is an upper wall (and a part of the side wall), a lower case 403 which is a bottom wall (and a part of the side wall), and a bumper 404 installed at the front. It is comprised including. A horizontal obstacle sensor (not shown) is provided at the rear of the bumper 404, and can detect horizontal walls and obstacles. On the upper surface of the self-propelled vacuum cleaner 400, a dust collection chamber 405 and a handle 406 for removing it are provided. In the upper case 402, a main body operation button 407 and a display panel (display unit) 408 for displaying a cleaning mode and the like are arranged. Drive wheels 409 and a drive mechanism portion 410 for driving the drive wheels 409 are formed on the left and right sides near the center of the lower case 403. At the front side of the lower case 403, a side brush 401 and an auxiliary wheel 411 are formed. In addition, a suction port 412 is formed on the rear side of the lower case 403.

  The side brush 401 is a brush that guides dust such as a corner of a room outside the main body of the self-propelled vacuum cleaner 400 to the mouthpiece 412, and a part of the brush is a plan view of the self-propelled vacuum cleaner 400. It is exposed from the main body. The side brush 401 has three bundles of brushes extending radially at 120 ° intervals in plan view, and is disposed on the front left and right of the lower case 403. When the side brush 401 is driven by a side brush motor (not shown), the side brush 401 rotates inward (in the direction of the arrow attached to FIG. 2b), and dust is collected on the suction part 412. It has become. A dust sensor (not shown) is provided between the suction unit 412 and the dust collection chamber 405 so that the amount of dust collected in the dust collection chamber 405 can be detected.

  A suction port 412 is formed on the rear side from the center of the lower case 403. The suction port 412 is a member in which the suction port 413 is formed and the scraping brush 414 and the rotating brush 415 are accommodated.

  The rotating brush 415 has a cylindrical shape and is supported by the suction port 412 so as to be rotatable and removable by a rotating brush motor (not shown). The rotating brush 415 has a plurality of hair transplants. Part of the exhaust air from the electric blower 450 cools the control device 421 and the battery unit 419 (FIG. 4), and is exhausted to the outside through the exhaust port 416 and the drive mechanism unit 410.

  Floor surface distance measuring sensors 417 are installed at the front, rear, right and left of 403 in the lower case. By detecting a large step such as a staircase or the like by the floor distance measuring sensor 417, the self-propelled vacuum cleaner 400 can be prevented from dropping (from the staircase or the like).

  In addition, since the lower case 403 is provided with the exhaust port 416 directed toward the floor surface, noise generated from the electric blower 450 is released to the floor surface side, so that noise can be suppressed for the user who is indoors. Since the opening A456a and the opening B456b of the electric blower 450 are disposed on the side, noise emitted from the opening A456a and the opening B456b is covered by the double wall of the electric blower storage case 422 and the upper case 402. Therefore, noise radiated from the electric blower 450 is sound-insulated. Further, since the flow path length from the opening 6 of the electric blower 450 to the exhaust port 416 of the lower case 403 can be increased, noise can be reduced because the sound energy is attenuated.

[Operation screen]
In this embodiment, the screen is changed by a remote control operation screen display button 80 as a screen that can be displayed after the program (application) for controlling the self-propelled electric vacuum cleaner 400 installed in the operation terminals 3 and 5 is started. A remote control operation screen, a reservation operation screen transitioned by a reservation operation screen display button 90, a history display screen transitioned by a history display screen display button 100, a handling explanation screen transitioned by a handling explanation screen display button 110, and a menu screen display A menu screen transitioning by the button 120 is prepared. Hereinafter, in order to facilitate understanding, the sign of each display button may be attached to a screen that is changed by each display button.

  In this embodiment, the types and arrangements (layouts) of operation buttons included in the operation screen are the same (may be substantially the same) regardless of whether the operation is performed from inside or outside the home. Various buttons and the like displayed on the remote control operation screen 80 displayed as one of the operation screens can be virtual buttons displayed on, for example, the touch panel of the operation terminals 3 and 5. Allowing the operation terminal 3, 5 or the like to process a function or command corresponding to the button by sending a touch on the virtual button to the home appliance 6 is expressed as "pressing the button" for convenience. In this embodiment, a button in a depressible state is displayed in a relatively dark color as exemplified by the spot button 85 in FIG. 5b, and a button in a state incapable of depressing is displayed in the spot button 85 in FIG. Display in a relatively light color as illustrated. That is, whether the button can be pressed or not can be displayed in a visually distinguishable manner. As described above, even if the button can not be pressed, this is displayed to suppress the change in the layout of the operation screen.

(Remote control operation screen 80)
FIG. 5A is a remote control operation screen 80 of the first operation terminal 3 (outside the house) according to the present embodiment, and FIG. 5B is a remote control operation screen 80 of the second operation terminal 5 (in the house) of the present embodiment. In the present embodiment, a command that is only possible when the operation terminals 3 and 5 are determined to be in the house (referred to as “first type command”) and a command that is determined to be either in the house or outside the house. Even in the case of a command, it has a possible command (referred to as “second type command”).

  The remote control operation screen 80 includes a start / stop button 81, a home button 82, a forward button 831, a right rotation button 832, a slight return button 833, a move button 83 composed of a left rotation button 834, a search button 84, The spot button 85 and the course selection unit 86 are displayed. The operations and functions performed by the home appliance 6 transmitted by pressing each button will be described later, but the operations and functions realized by a part of the button are similar to the operations and functions when the user is near the home appliance 6 Is preferably performed in a state where it can be perceived that the operation is performed (that is, an operation or a function realized by the first type command, hereinafter also referred to as a perceptual operation or function).

  As perceptual operations and functions, for example, it is preferable to be performed in an environment where the home appliance 6 can be perceived (for example, manual operation is preferable in an environment where visual observation is possible, and in the same house when sound is generated) The case where it exists in the circumference | surroundings is preferable.) When the operation | movement and a function are exhibited, it is preferable that the household appliance 6 exists in a specific position and condition.

  In addition, as an operation or function that is not perceptible (that is, an operation or function realized by the second type command), for example, the home appliance 6 is caused to move around automatically or a predetermined destination Those that move autonomously to search for (for example, a charging stand), those that specify such a mode or course of autonomous drive, and that the state of the home appliance 6 is output in such a manner that the operation terminals 3 and 5 can output Can be mentioned.

  The buttons corresponding to the (first type) required motion or function of the present embodiment include the move button 83, the search button 84, and the spot button 85. Depending on the first operation terminal 3 in the screen, it is displayed that it cannot be pressed. In addition, buttons corresponding to operations and functions that are not perceptible (second type) are displayed so that they can be pressed regardless of whether they are inside or outside the house.

  The color of the background 89 of the operation screen (FIG. 5b) when the operation terminals 3 and 5 are in the house and the color of the background 89 of the operation screen (FIG. 5a) when outside the house are different from each other. It is also good. In this way, it is possible to easily inform the user of whether the operation terminals 3 and 5 are going to access the home appliance 6 by means of a protocol, a network, or the like inside or outside the house.

  The start / stop button 81 is displayed to be able to be pressed regardless of whether the operation terminals 3 and 5 are inside or outside the house. When the start / stop button 81 is pressed, a command to autonomously drive (clean) the self-propelled vacuum cleaner 400 is transmitted. When this command reaches the transmission / reception unit 61 and the determination unit 63 permits the reception, the processing unit 62 starts cleaning by autonomous driving which is the content of the command. The flow from the reception of the command of the transmission / reception unit 61 to the execution of the processing unit 62 is the same even when the other buttons are pressed. The start / stop button 81 is switched to “stop” during the operation of the self-propelled vacuum cleaner 400, and the operation of the self-propelled vacuum cleaner 400 is stopped by pressing the start / stop button 81 again. .

  The home button 82 is displayed so as to be pressable regardless of whether the operation terminals 3 and 5 are inside or outside the house. When the home button 82 is pressed, the self-propelled electric vacuum cleaner 400 starts autonomous traveling to return to a place set in advance as a home, for example, a charging stand. In this embodiment, while searching for a signal emitted from the charging stand, the vehicle travels to connect to the charging stand following this signal. Note that a plurality of places that can be set as homes may be registered, and a place to be set as a home may be selected when a command by the home button is transmitted. The home button 82 can not be operated when the self-propelled vacuum cleaner 400 is connected to the charging stand. Whether or not the user is at home can be displayed on a status display unit 121 described later.

  The move button 83 is displayed to be able to be pressed on the second operation terminal 5 located in the house, and is displayed to be impossible to be pressed on the first operation terminal 3 located outside the house. When the forward button 831 among the movement buttons 83 is pressed, the self-propelled vacuum cleaner 400 starts moving forward, when the right rotation button 832 is pressed, starts rotating right, and when the return button 833 is pressed a little, the backward movement starts. When the left rotation button 834 is pressed, the left rotation is started. The movement button 83 is preferably operated only in the house (second operation terminal 5) because it is desirable that the user can operate the mobile button 83 in a state in which the user can confirm the position and state of the self-propelled electric vacuum cleaner 400. A little return button 833 is a function to return to the position immediately before (for example, one main body) with respect to the self-propelled vacuum cleaner 400 in operation. Even in the house, operation is possible only while the self-propelled vacuum cleaner 400 is in operation.

  The search button 84 is displayed so that it can be pressed on the second operation terminal 5 in the house and is displayed so as not to be pressed on the first operation terminal 3 outside the house. When the search button 84 is pressed, the self-propelled vacuum cleaner 400 emits a sound or light. This makes it easy for the user inside the house to find out where the self-propelled vacuum cleaner 400 is.

  The spot button 85 is displayed so that it can be pressed on the second operation terminal 5 in the house, and is displayed so as not to be pressed on the first operation terminal 3 outside the house. When the spot button 85 is pressed, the self-propelled vacuum cleaner 400 moves to intensively clean the vicinity of the current position.

The course selection unit 86 is a slide for selecting a mode (course) at the time of the cleaning operation of the self-propelled electric vacuum cleaner 400 (for convenience, the slide may also be referred to as a button). In this embodiment, a normal course and a manner course can be selected. In the normal course, a drive mechanism unit 410 (drive wheel motor) that drives the drive wheels 409 of the self-propelled vacuum cleaner 400, This course allows the driving sound of the brush motor for driving the brushes 401 and 415 used for cleaning and the electric blower 450 used for sucking dust to be larger than the manner course. Among the users, those who emphasize the cleaning performance and the shortening of the driving time more than the reduction of the driving noise are considered to often select this course. On the other hand, in the manner course, the cleaning is performed such that the driving noise of these motors is relatively small. Among the users, those who desire to reduce the driving noise are considered to often select this course.
The course can be selected for a mode which can be selected from mode buttons 130, 140 and 150 described later. For example, a normal course in automatic mode, a manner course in automatic mode, a normal course in careful mode, a manner course in careful mode, a normal course in preference mode, and a manner course in preference mode can be set.

  The user of the first operation terminal 3 or the second operation terminal 5 can select and press one of the automatic mode button 130, the careful mode button 140, and the preference mode button 150. These buttons are used to specify parameters for autonomous driving when the self-propelled vacuum cleaner 400 is started to be driven by the operation of the start button 81 or the like.

  When the automatic mode is selected by pressing the automatic operation mode button 130, the state of the floor surface (for example, the material. Various known methods can be used to determine the type of the floor surface). Alternatively, the drive strength of the electric blower 450 of the self-propelled vacuum cleaner 400 is autonomously switched to either “standard” or “strong” depending on the amount of dust detected by the dust sensor described above. Also, the drive wheel 409 is rotated at a “fast” speed. The cleaning time is automatically determined, for example, from about 30 minutes to about 60 minutes depending on the size of the space to be cleaned detected by the sensor and the remaining amount of dust detected by the dust sensor.

  When the careful mode is selected by pressing the careful operation mode button 140, the operation time is made longer than in the automatic mode. For example, fix for about 70 minutes.

  When the favorite mode setting button 150 is pressed, the screen is changed to the screen illustrated in FIG. In this embodiment, the parameters are set to be adjustable as the preference mode. In this embodiment, “running near the wall” traveling near the wall, “reflective running” traveling away from the wall and obstacles, and thin obstacles such as chair legs. We have prepared the ease of execution (probability of execution) of "travel around legs" traveling around the circumference of the. In the present embodiment, buttons 151, 152, and 153 capable of selecting which of these three types of parameters should be emphasized are presented to the user. In the case of using the on-wall travel emphasis mode button 151, the probability of executing on-the-wall travel is increased compared to the other favorite modes 152 and 153. In the case of the reflection traveling emphasis mode button 152, the probability of executing the reflection traveling is made higher than that in the other preference modes. In the case of using the leg-center-travel-oriented mode button 153, the probability of executing the leg-surrounding operation is made higher than in the other favorite modes.

  In addition, a status display unit 121 and an information display unit 122 are displayed on the remote control operation screen 80. The status display unit 121 displays that there are four types of "in operation", "stopped", "home", or "not connected". “During operation” indicates that the home appliance 6 is being driven (in the present embodiment, it is being cleaned). “Stopped” indicates that the home electric appliance 6 has stopped driving (in the case of “home”, “home” is displayed with priority). “Home” indicates that the home appliance 6 is connected to the charging stand. In the case of “not connected”, it indicates that communication with the home appliance 6 has not been established. Thus, by providing the area for displaying the state of the home appliance 6, the user can know the state of the home appliance 6 even when the home appliance 6 is in a place where the user cannot perceive. Further, in the case of “during driving”, the state display unit 121 can be pressed, and the details of the current driving situation can be confirmed on the same screen as a history screen described later. In FIG. 5 a, “not connected” is displayed in FIG. 5 b, and in FIG.

  The notification display unit 122 can notify the user when it is necessary to ask the user for some action such as maintenance of the home appliance 6 (when an announcement occurs). When there is an announcement, the announcement display unit 122 can be pressed. When the notification display unit 122 is pressed in this state, for example, the contents of the action requested of the user, such as “Please move the main body” and “Please remove the thing entangled with the brush” are displayed. This content may be described using not only characters but also illustrations and moving images, for example. The illustration and the moving image may be installed in advance together with the application, or the server may be accessed to request the illustration and the moving image from the server.

(Reservation operation screen 90)
FIG. 6a shows a reservation operation screen 90 displayed on the operation terminals 3 and 5 of this embodiment. The reservation operation in the present embodiment can make a driving reservation for one time for each day of the week. The reservation operation screen 90 includes a reservation state display unit 91, a day of the week display unit 92, an operation start time designation unit 93, a mode designation unit 93, and a course designation unit 94. For each day of the week displayed in the day of the week display section 92, for example, a user who wants to set a reservation for Monday presses the reservation setting button 95 in the row to which the day of the week display section 92 labeled "Month" belongs, for example. Then, it shifts to a screen for specifying the Monday start time, mode, and course. The specific operation start time and the like can be designated by various known designation methods. Further, when the reservation state display unit 91 is pressed, it is possible to switch ON / OFF of the reservation.

FIG. 6 b is a reservation setting screen to which transition is made when the reservation setting button 95 is pressed. On the reservation setting screen, the contents of the day-of-the-week display 92a on the same line as the pressed reservation setting button 95 are displayed (reference numeral 92a). The operation start time can be set in increments of 1 hour and 5 minutes by scrolling the hour unit designation unit 93a and the minute unit designation unit 93b. Further, the mode and the course can be selected from the mode specifying unit 94a and the course specifying unit 95a, respectively.
Since this function does not need to be perceived by the user, it can be used regardless of whether the operation terminals 3 and 5 are located inside or outside the house.

(History display screen 100)
FIG. 7 a shows a history display screen 100 displayed on the operation terminals 3 and 5 of this embodiment. The history display screen 100 can display the operation date display 101 when the home appliance 6 is operated, the operation start time display 102, the time 103 from the operation start to the end, and the travel distance 104 from the operation start to the end. For example, it can be displayed in order from the newest operation day. Further, the detail display button 105 is set for each operation day, and when the button is pressed, the screen changes to a history detail screen (FIG. 7b). On this screen, it can be confirmed including the operated mode 106 and the operated course 107.
Since this function does not require user perception, it can be used regardless of whether the operation terminals 3 and 5 are inside or outside the home.

(Handling instruction screen 110)
When the instruction screen display button 110 is pressed, the user can check how to use the home appliance 6 by linking to the content uploaded in advance on the WEB (for example, on the server). This content may be text, graphics or videos. Since this function does not require user perception, it can be used regardless of whether the operation terminals 3 and 5 are inside or outside the home.

(Menu screen 120)
FIG. 8 shows a menu screen when the menu screen display button 120 is pressed. From this screen 120, detailed contents can be set. For example, in the present embodiment, up to five home appliances 6 can be operated from an application installed on one operation terminal 3, 5.

  Functions such as “select device”, “add device”, and “delete device” are provided. From "Add Device", one home appliance 6 can be associated with the operation terminal 3, 5 by known pairing. Thereby, the operation terminals 3 and 5 can operate the paired household appliances. From "Device selection", it is possible to select which of the paired home appliances 6 is to be operated. That is, the operation terminals 3 and 5 operate one home appliance 6 by one operation. From “deletion of device”, information on the paired home appliance 6 can be deleted.

  Also, conversely, one home appliance 6 is configured to be able to receive operation requests from up to five operation terminals 3 and 5. Details of operations from the plurality of operation terminals 3 and 5 will be described later.

  Moreover, the software of the home appliance 6 and the application of the operation terminals 3 and 5 can be confirmed by selecting “version information”. Thereby, for example, the user can confirm whether the software of the home appliance 6 is the latest, and the software can be updated. In addition, various information can be browsed from the menu 120.

[When there are multiple operation terminals / Matchment between main unit display and screen]
In the present embodiment, as described above, one home appliance 6 can be operated by up to five operation terminals 3 and 5. Further, when there are a plurality of operation terminals 3 (outside the home), there is a possibility that the home appliances 6 are operated at a distance that a plurality of users cannot perceive. In that case, if the request information from the plurality of operation terminals 3 and 5 is simultaneously applied, there is a possibility that the operation unintended by the user may be performed. Therefore, the terminal information storage unit 64 of the present embodiment may be configured to be able to store the priority order information of the operation terminals 3 and 5. For example, a setting that one of the operation terminals 3 and 5 has priority over the other through the operation of the home appliance 6 or the operation terminals 3 and 5 can be made in advance. In this embodiment, the operation terminal A will be described as being set so that priority is given.

In this case, it is assumed that the operation terminal A transmits a request to the home appliance 6 while the operation terminal information of the operation terminal B is stored in the terminal information storage unit 64 (the operation terminal B has the operation right). At this time, the determination unit 63 detects that the priority of the operating terminal A which has received the current request is higher than that of the operating terminal B having the operation right. For example, the following information (1) to (3) ) Is notified of the following information (4) or (5) to the operation terminal B.
(1) Storage terminal information is currently set in another terminal.
(2) Storage terminal information is currently set in the operation terminal B.
(3) Information of storage terminal information erasing unit. For example, the measurement time of the timer 65.
(4) Another operating terminal having a higher priority than the self transmits the request.
(5) The operation terminal A which is an operation terminal having a higher priority than the self transmits the request.

  Next, the operation terminal A receives from the home appliance 6 an inquiry as to whether or not to acquire an operation right. When (forced) acquisition of the operation right is desired, the determination unit 63 erases the operation right of the operation terminal B and grants the operation right to the first operation terminal A by returning a request to the home appliance 6. Do.

  Even if this operation priority is not set in advance, when one operation terminal C transmits request information, the operation terminal C has priority over the other operation terminals 3 and 5 for a certain period of time (for example, 5 seconds). By obtaining the right, it is possible to prevent a plurality of operating terminals 3 and 5 from transmitting request information simultaneously.

  Further, when the plurality of operation terminals 3 and 5 can be operated on the home appliance 6, for example, information on the course 86 selected in the home appliance 6, information on the modes 130, 140, and 150, and the reservation operation screen 90 It is desirable that the information on the history display screen 100 can be shared. Therefore, these pieces of information are stored in the terminal information storage unit 64 of the home appliance 6, and periodically (for example, every 0.3 seconds for the information terminal 5 in the home, every one minute for the information terminal 3 outside the home) 4 is reflected on the other operation terminals 3 and 5.

  The home appliance 6 can be operated by the main body operation button 407 of the main body 400 in addition to the operation terminals 3 and 5. Further, it is possible to display information on the selected course 86, information on settings by the mode setting buttons 130, 140, and 150, and a part of the reservation operation screen 90 on the display panel 408. Accordingly, the main body 400 can also be handled as one of the operation terminals, and the display on the display panel 408 can be shared with the information terminals 3 and 5 through the wireless router 4. The operation with the operation button 407 is also reflected on the operation terminals 3 and 5 through the wireless router 4. That is, the display panel 408 is configured to be able to display preferably all of the information that can be confirmed by the application installed on the operation terminals 3 and 5. For example, the main body operation button 407 can include a main body button having the same function as the remote control operation screen display button 80, the reservation operation screen display button 90, the history display screen display button 100, and the instruction manual display button 110.

  The display panel 408 can be configured to display a remote control operation screen 80, a reservation operation screen 90, a history display screen 100, and an instruction explanation display screen 110 in accordance with the operation of these main body buttons. Further, when the display panel 408 displays the remote control operation screen 80, it is preferable to display the request content from the operation terminal having the operation right (for example, the forward button 831 is pressed).

  In this case, since the user operating the main body 400 is closest to the main body 400 and can be accurately perceived, it is desirable that the operation priority of the main body operation button 407 is higher than that of the operation terminals 3 and 5. For example, when the user A operates the operation terminal 3 to move the home appliance 6 from outside the house and the main body 400 moves to a place where the user does not want to operate, the user B who is in the same place as the main body 400 By operating the main body operation button 407, the movement of the main body 6 can be preferentially changed. The operation content by the main body operation button 407 is transmitted from the home appliance 6 so as to be displayed on the remote control operation screen 80 and the reservation operation screen 90 of the operation terminals 3 and 5.

[Reference example]
The configuration of the reference example can be the same as that of the first embodiment except for the following points. FIG. 9 is a schematic view of a device control system of a reference example.

  In the first embodiment, the layout of the operation buttons displayed on the operation screen 80 is the same or substantially the same between the first operation terminal 3 (outside the house) and the second operation terminal 5 (in the house). Since the layout can be maintained even if the position changes, it is possible to suppress an increase in the types of operation methods that the user should learn.

  In the reference example, the operation screens of the operation terminal 3 (outside the house) and the operation terminal 5 (inside the house) are completely different. For example, the remote control operation screen outside the home is laid out only on the buttons that can be operated as shown in FIG. 9 with respect to the remote control operation screen in the home (FIG. 5b). By doing in this way, a user can distinguish the difference of the operation terminals 3 and 5 more now. In addition, if the buttons at the same position are given different functions depending on the operation terminals 3 and 5, the user will be confused. Therefore, the difference in function can be determined by changing the layout.

The configuration of the present embodiment can be the same as that of the embodiment 1 or the reference example except for the following points.
[Server 1]
The server 1 is a device that can communicate with other devices using a wide area network protocol. The server 1 can communicate with other devices in advance by, for example, communication using the wireless communication protocol and the wide area network protocol from the home appliance 6.

  In the present embodiment, the first operation terminal 3 (outside the home) that cannot communicate using the wireless communication protocol is configured to send a request to the server 1 when attempting to send a request to the home appliance 6. There is. This request includes a number (home appliance number) unique to the target home appliance 6. The home appliance number is acquired when the operation terminals 3 and 5 perform authentication processing with the home appliance 6.

On the other hand, the home appliance 6 is configured to periodically inquire about whether there is a request to the server 1 or configured to be able to immediately receive a request that is always connected to the server 1 and reaches the server 1. Yes. When making an inquiry, the server 1 is notified of its home appliance number, and the server 1 confirms whether there is a request for a matching home appliance number. If a corresponding request is found, the server 1 sends the request to the home appliance 6. With this configuration, security can be improved.
The present invention is not limited to home appliances and can be applied to devices having a communication function.

Reference Signs List 1 server 2 wide area network 3 first operation terminal 4 wireless LAN router 5 second operation terminal 6 home appliance 61 transmission / reception unit 62 processing unit 63 determination unit 64 terminal information storage unit 65 clock unit (storage terminal information deletion unit)
80 Remote control operation screen 81 Start button 82 Home button 83 Move button 831 Forward button 832 Right rotation button 833 Back button 834 Left rotation button 84 Search button 85 Spot button 86 Course selection unit 90 Reservation operation screen 100 History display screen 110 Instruction button 120 Menu button 121 Status display section 122 Information display section 130 Automatic mode selection section 140 Advanced mode selection section 150 Favorite mode selection section

Claims (11)

It is a program that can transmit commands for home appliances via the operation terminal,
When installed on the operation terminal, a combination of commands that can be transmitted varies depending on a position of the operation terminal with respect to the home appliance or a communication protocol used by the operation terminal for communication. . Transmission of the command is possible by pressing an operation button displayed on the operation terminal,
A remote control operation screen including a plurality of the operation buttons can be displayed on the operation terminal,
The layout of the operation buttons on the remote control operation screen is maintained substantially the same even if the position of the operation terminal or a communication protocol used for communication by the operation terminal varies. The listed program.   The program according to claim 1 or 2, wherein a background color of the operation terminal changes according to a position of the operation terminal or a communication protocol used by the operation terminal for communication. A status display unit that reports establishment or failure of connection between the home appliance and the operation terminal during operation or stop of the home appliance, or
The program according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a notification display unit for notifying the user of an action requested by the home appliance can be displayed on the operation terminal. A wireless LAN router installed in the house;
Household appliances capable of communicating with the wireless LAN router using a wireless communication protocol;
An operation terminal capable of communicating with the wireless LAN router by selecting one of a wireless communication protocol and a wide area communication network protocol;
A home electric appliance system comprising: the program according to any one of claims 1 to 4;
A combination of commands that can be transmitted by the operating terminal when it is determined that the operating terminal is in the home;
A household electric appliance system characterized in that when it is determined that the operation terminal is outside the home, a combination of commands that can be transmitted by the operation terminal is different. As the types of commands that can be transmitted, including a first type command and a second type command,
When it is determined that the operation terminal is in the home, the operation terminal can transmit both the first type command and the second type command,
The home electric appliance system according to claim 5, wherein when it is determined that the operation terminal is out of the house, the operation terminal can transmit only the second type command. The first type of command realizes an operation or function of perceptuality required,
The home appliance system according to claim 6, wherein the second type command realizes an operation or a function not requiring perceptibility. The home appliance is a self-propelled vacuum cleaner,
The first type command includes a part or all of a movement command for moving the self-propelled electric vacuum cleaner, a command for searching for sound or light, and a spot cleaning command for centrally cleaning the vicinity of the current position. Contains or consists entirely of,
The second type command is a start command to autonomously drive the self-propelled vacuum cleaner, a home command to search for a destination, a reservation command to set reservation for autonomous driving, a command to browse information related to driving history, and The home electric appliance system according to claim 7, characterized in that it includes or consists of a part or all of the instruction manual browsing instruction.   The home appliance can register a plurality of the operation terminals, and when the state of the home appliance changes by transmitting a command to the home appliance from one of the operation terminals, the plurality of operation terminals and at least another The home appliance system according to any one of claims 5 to 8, wherein one display unit displays the state of the home appliance. The home electric appliance has a main body operation button for receiving an instruction to the electric home appliance, and a display unit for displaying an instruction from the operation terminal and an instruction from the main body operation button.
The content of the command by the main body operation button is transmitted to the operation terminal and displayed on the operation terminal,
The household electrical appliance system according to any one of claims 5 to 9, wherein the household electrical appliance receives a command from the main body operation button with priority over a command from the operation terminal.   The household appliances contained in the household appliance system of Claim 9 or 10.

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