JP3113193B2 - Air conditioner - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve a comfortableness by a method wherein quality of sleeping or sleeping comfortableness is improved through control of an environmental temperature several hours before going to bed in consideration of a biorhythm and a rising of the biorhythm or its activation under control of environmental temperature at several hours after getting-up from bed. SOLUTION: A going-to-bed time and a getting-up time can be detected in advance under arrangement of a going-to-bed time discriminating part 6 and a getting-up time discriminating part 7. There are also provided a timer and a time setting means 8. In addition, there are provided an operation mode memory part 9 for storing at least more than one of different operation modes of 'before going to bed', 'during sleeping' and 'after getting-up' under a control of at least one of the hot thermal elements such as temperature, radiation, air flow and humidity of indoor area, and an inputting device 1 capable of inputting at least a feeling of hot or cool or comfortable feeling claim or a desired going-to-bed time and a getting-up time. In addition, there are provided a hot heat environment measuring part 10 and a hot heat environment control part 12, thereby various kinds of operation modes can be carried out automatically for 'before sleeping', 'during sleeping' and 'after sleeping' in response to a sleeping hour of an individual person so as to improve a comfortable feeling.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention considers a set point of a body temperature prior to an actual biological rhythm and a biological rhythm and a human thermal sensation in order to obtain a comfortable sleep.
The present invention relates to an air conditioner that performs air conditioning of a space to be air-conditioned.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Hitherto, several inventions have been proposed for the purpose of improving comfort during sleep, improving quality of sleep, improving subjective sleep feeling, and the like. These are intended to achieve comfortable sleep by changing the temperature during the sleep operation mode (during sleep), and include, for example, JP-A-5-88758. Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2-4304 discloses a method of obtaining a comfortable sleep by controlling the temperature and the air-conditioning in a bed in consideration of a biological rhythm.
JP, JP-A-3-225141, JP-A-6-3
It is known in, for example, Japanese Patent No. 4178.

In order to perform control for improving the quality of sleep several hours before going to bed, it is necessary to preliminarily input, predict, or determine bedtime and wake-up. Is mentioned. First, as for the method of making a bedtime decision, determine the bedtime from the "good night timer" set at bedtime, and use the "good night timer".
There is a method of changing the driving mode according to when the is operating and when it is not operating to improve comfort, and a control method using a means for determining the presence of the bed by body movement detecting means provided on the bedding. As a wake-up determination method, there have been proposed some methods of detecting wake-up time by detecting body movement by a piezoelectric element disposed on the bedding and calculating a body movement frequency. Furthermore, there is a proposal for an occupancy pattern predicting device that enables automatic operation of an air conditioner by estimating an occupancy state or a living activity and issuing an on / off instruction to the air conditioner.

[0004]

However, the above-mentioned prior art has several problems. First, in an air conditioner for improving comfort during sleep, improving quality of sleep, improving subjective sleep feeling, and the like, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Nos. 2-4304, 3-225141, and 5-887
In Japanese Patent Publication No. 58, it is intended to achieve a comfortable sleep mainly by devising the air conditioning during the sleep operation mode (during sleep). Consideration should also be given to the environment in which humans are placed, and experimentally confirm that improving the indoor temperature control several hours before sleep can improve the quality of sleep, and combining it with comfortable temperature control during sleep Thus, there is a possibility that the quality of sleep can be further improved.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 6-34178 discloses an air conditioning method in which morning, noon, and night driving modes are provided in accordance with a biological rhythm (activity rate rhythm). Is not taken into account, and in the morning of the natural environment, which matches very well with human biological rhythms,
It takes into account the state of the day and night, and says that the temperature should be low in the morning and medium in the evening. However, when actually considering the set thermal environment, it is very important to take human thermal sensation into consideration. It is a well-known fact that the actual human sensation feels cool in the morning and slightly warm in the evening even in an environment of a constant temperature. Considering comfortable control,
It is desirable to control the thermal environment to promote body temperature fluctuations that do not cause unpleasant feeling and that the biological rhythm is sharp.
For example, in the morning operation mode after waking up, the temperature setting may be set slightly lower, but if it is considered to promote the rising of the biological rhythm in the morning, the temperature that is cooler in the comfortable range in the thermal sensation felt by humans Should be considered as a setting. The thermal sensation felt by a person in regulating human body temperature is a very important point when considering body temperature level fluctuations. Therefore, if you want to control the body temperature of a person even a little, the thermal sensation cannot be overlooked.

[0006] For the determination of going to bed, see Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 7-917.
In Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 22-220, a sleep time is determined when a "sleep timer" is set at bedtime, and in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. Hei 5-38365, a method is used in which a bed motion is determined from a body motion sensor provided on the bedding. Only the determination of whether it was before bedtime or after bedtime could be made with the borderline. Therefore, when the control for several hours before going to bed is considered, for example, when the control specification is changed from the time two hours before going to bed, the bedtime scheduled for the day is input in advance, or the switch is made in advance two hours before going to bed. I had to do cumbersome work such as putting in. In addition, most homes have independent bedrooms in most cases. In this case, the occupied room and the bedroom need to be air-conditioned in conjunction with each other. The present invention is characterized by control for several hours before going to bed,
The control is performed in a time zone (while awake) before the sleep onset time desired by the user, and is considered as another control during sleep.
Therefore, for example, if you want to enter the bedroom just for sleeping and want to fall asleep immediately, it is necessary that the bedroom be air-conditioned so that it is comfortable beforehand. If the user forgets to turn on the switch, there is a problem that sleeping in the bedroom may be disturbed because the bedroom is in an uncomfortable state. For this reason, if automatic driving is considered as a means for solving the problem of forgetting to input a switch or the trouble of input work, a method or apparatus for predicting bedtime in advance is required.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 5-337103 discloses an invention on a method of detecting body movement by a piezoelectric element disposed on bedding and calculating the frequency of body movement to determine the timing of getting up. , The equipment for realization is complicated and expensive, and in the case of waking up halfway, such as getting up in the toilet, there is a possibility that it will be mistakenly determined to get up,
Further, in order to allow the individual to wake up intentionally or to wake up more naturally at a time when the user must wake up, it is necessary for the user to input or predict in advance the time to wake up. Therefore, a method of simply and reliably predicting and determining the wake-up is desired.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2-254247 discloses an apparatus for estimating a living pattern. In this apparatus, a living activity estimating means for estimating a wake-up time and a room entry time during sleep. It does not predict bedtime.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and has as its first object the purpose of mainly improving the quality of sleep and the subjective feeling of sleep in consideration of the biological rhythm,
First, to improve the quality and comfort of sleep by controlling the environmental temperature several hours before going to bed, and to promote the rise and activity of biological rhythms by controlling the environmental temperature from wake-up to several hours or going out. Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an air conditioner capable of ensuring higher comfort and activating a biological rhythm. Further, the present invention detects the predicted bedtime, so that it is possible to automatically operate the device before going to bed, and from the proposal of a wakeup determination method, an air conditioner that enables simple and reliable wakeup determination. To offer. Furthermore, the present invention can reduce the forgetfulness and troublesome input of machine operations such as an air conditioner by using a bedtime prediction method and a wakeup time determination method, and can improve the comfort and provide an energy saving effect. To provide a machine.

[0010] The present invention provides an input device capable of inputting at least a thermal sensation / comfort sensation and a desired bedtime / wakeup time, and a bedtime determination that directly determines the bedtime and wakeup time input to the input device. Unit and wake-up time determination unit, and store at least one or more different operation modes before bedtime, during sleep, and after wake-up by controlling at least one of the temperature elements of the room such as temperature, radiation, airflow, and humidity. Operating mode storage unit, and a timer / time limit means which operates at several hours before the reserved bedtime and wake-up time, at bedtime, and at the time of wakeup, and selects a suitable mode from the operation mode storage unit. , A thermal environment measuring unit that measures the thermal environment around the human body, at least data measured by the thermal environment measuring unit and information from the thermal sensation / comfort sensation claim A microcomputer for arithmetically processing, comprising a thermal environment control unit for controlling the air conditioner by a command from the microcomputer, before bedtime
The driving mode must be within the comfortable range from before bedtime to bedtime.
The room temperature, radiation, air
At least one of the thermal elements of flow and humidity
And is set to be controlled . Specifically, as shown in FIG.
(2-4 hours) Within the comfortable range from before to bedtime
PMV = 0 (neutral) → PMV = -0.5 (slightly cool)
→ PMV = 0 (neutral) to change the room temperature .

Further, according to the present invention, the operation mode after waking up is
Comfortable range from indoor thermal environment where the thermal sensation is neutral when flooring
The room temperature and radiant heat will be slightly
At least one of the thermal elements of
Set to control elementary
It is characterized by. Specifically, as shown in FIG.
From a few hours after waking up (within about 2 hours), comfortable range
Within PMV = 0 (neutral) → PMV = -0.5 (slightly cool
) To change the room temperature.

Further, according to the present invention, the driving mode before going to bed is
Slightly cool or cool in the comfortable range from bedtime to bedtime
Temperature, radiation, airflow, humidity, etc.
Control at least one of the elements
While being configured to, operating mode after getting up, the indoor thermal environment of thermal sensation is neutral on awakening, as thermal sensation is somewhat sensation side in the comfort range, room temperature, At least one of the thermal elements of radiation, airflow, and humidity
It is set to control one element .

Further, the present invention is characterized in that the bedtime judging section includes a wakeup judging section, a bedtime judging section, and a bedtime estimating section, so that the bedtime can be predicted.
In addition, according to the present invention, the bedtime prediction unit calculates the daily sleep time of the individual, the wake-up time, information on the sleep pattern of sleep time, the sleep pattern weekly, monthly, yearly, seasonal periodicity, and the actual bedtime / sleeptime. It is characterized in that it is configured to calculate a predicted bedtime from information taking into account the validity with the wake-up time. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 4, 就 sleeping time prediction unit 21 and the sleep determination unit 27, a bedtime predicting device comprising waking judging unit 28, daily individual sleep patterns at bedtime prediction unit 21 and information from the storage unit 22, the day before the wake-up time 23, the day from the night before bedtime 24 bedtime 2
5 is output, the result of comparing the predicted bedtime 25 and the actual wake-up time 26 later, and the actual bedtime and wake-up time are stored in the storage unit 21 as past sleep patterns, The bedtime is predicted.

Further, the present invention is configured such that the input device is provided with an alarm clock mechanism, determines the wake-up time from the time when the wake-up means is turned off, and changes the control method of the air conditioner according to the wake-up determination time. It is characterized by having been done. Specifically, as shown in FIG.
Is provided so as to be linked with the wake-up time input unit 5, and the time when the wake-up means is turned off is determined as the wake-up time, and the control method of the air conditioner is changed according to the wake-up determination time.

[0015]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an air conditioner according to the present invention. The input device 1 includes a normal input function unit 2, a thermal / comfort feeling input unit 3, a bedtime input unit 4, and a wake-up time input unit 5, and corresponds to, for example, an input unit such as a remote controller. First, the normal input function unit 2 is a part or mode (constant, fluctuation, dehumidification, humidification, etc.) for setting a wind speed, a wind direction, a set temperature, a humidity, and the like, which are normally provided in a remote controller or a wall-mounted input unit of a normal model. , Good night, etc.) It is a part that also has an operation setting unit and a timer unit. Warmth / comfort feeling input part 3
For example, by inputting numerical values such as the thermal sensation evaluation scale shown in FIG. 6 and the comfort sensation evaluation scale shown in FIG. 7, both the thermal sensation and the comfort sensation can be considered. The bedtime input unit 4 and the wakeup time input unit 5 are configured with a display unit for displaying time and the like and a time input unit, so that desired bedtime and wakeup time can be input in advance.

The bed time determination unit 6 and the wake-up time determination unit 7 determine the times input by the bed time input unit 4 and the wake-up time input unit 5 without any change. 2 to 4 hours before and at the time of going to bed and at the time of getting up, an appropriate mode is selected from the operation mode storage unit 9. The driving modes include, for example, a comfortable sleep preparation mode (before going to bed), a good night mode (during sleep), and a good morning mode (after getting up), and in each mode, a feature that promotes the movement of the body temperature rhythm of the human body. Is stored, so that thermal environment control can be performed. The thermal environment measuring unit 10 is configured with a sensor for measuring the thermal environment around the human body, and includes, for example, at least an indoor temperature sensor, and includes six elements of heat (room temperature, radiation temperature, wind speed,
It is desirable to have a plurality of sensors for measuring each element such as humidity, clothes, and activity) and illuminance. The measured heat information is transmitted to the microcomputer 11.

In the microcomputer 11, first, the arithmetic processing is always performed by using each element measured by the thermal environment measuring unit 10 as a parameter. For example, the comfort of the actual thermal environment is physically evaluated by, for example, calculating a conventionally used PMV value. Currently, there is PMV control that is widely used, but the PMV value is -0.5 (neutra
midpoint between l and slightly cool) +0.5 (neutral and
The range of the slightly warmer middle point) is regarded as a comfortable range. For example, except for the above-mentioned time periods in which the comfortable sleep preparation mode (before going to bed), the good night mode (during sleep), and the good morning mode (after getting up) are performed, the PMV control is basically considered, and the comfortable PMV value is set. It is assumed that air conditioning is performed near zero. Information from the operation mode data, the data measured by the thermal environment measuring unit 10, and personal preference setting data such as thermal / comfort claims and other wind speeds, wind directions, and humidity are stored in the microcomputer 11 At this time, neuro-learning, etc., are performed on personal preferences in the thermal environment (setting criteria for the neutral thermal environment and values on the hot and cold sides of the comfortable range). It is desirable to adapt to the individual. For example, taking the case of driving in the comfortable sleep preparation mode as an example, in consideration of comfortable sleep, it is necessary to make preparations so that the body temperature drops significantly by sleeping before going to bed. To do this, in the preparatory stage, you can feel a little cooler (within the comfortable range), raise the body temperature slightly (countercurrent heat exchange), and during sleep, you can get a larger decrease in body temperature from the time of entering the bed , Comfortable sleep is obtained. Therefore,
It is necessary to set the reference value of the mode setting in a place where the user feels a little cool within the comfortable range.
Taking the value as an example, the thermal environment is controlled to be around -0.5. In order to control the indoor environment, information processed by the microcomputer 11 is first transmitted to the thermal environment controller 12. The thermal environment control unit 12 is configured by a drive circuit or the like that operates according to a command from the microcomputer 11, and controls the air conditioner 13 based on the transmitted information. As the air conditioner 13,
Equipped with a refrigeration cycle connected to a variable capacity compressor, a four-way valve, an outdoor heat exchanger, a decompressor, and an indoor heat exchanger, and at least the indoor temperature can be controlled by a cooling or heating operation or a radiant panel. Equipment. It is more desirable that the device be capable of controlling a plurality of factors such as room temperature, humidity, radiation temperature, and wind speed of a thermal environment.
As described above, since information is constantly fed back to the device side to control the air conditioner, various air-conditioned spaces can be created.

When the above-mentioned operation is performed, it is desirable to provide a selection switch for automatic or each operation mode to enable selective automatic operation. Also, the example described above is mainly for the case where the living room and the bedroom are the same room, such as one-room, hospital, nursing home, etc.When the bedroom such as the general house is provided separately, the rooms are linked. Need to be controlled. In most cases, it is highly likely that a person enters a bedroom mainly for the purpose of sleeping, and in most cases spends 2 to 4 hours before going to bed and several hours after getting up in a separate room. Therefore, when each mode is executed, it must be performed for the room where the user is staying, and whether or not the user is staying in each room can be switched manually or automatically by various sensors such as a CCD camera. Techniques for judging whether to stay or not are also needed. In this way, it can be realized by linking the air conditioning of each room.

With the air conditioner having the above configuration, it is possible to automatically perform various operation modes before, during and after sleep according to the sleep time of the individual, thereby improving comfort and comfortable sleep. .

FIG. 2 shows the setting of the driving mode before going to bed. Between a few hours before going to bed (about 2 to 4 hours) and going to bed, PMV = 0 (neutral) → PMV = − within the comfortable range. 0.
5 (slightly cool) → PMV = 0 (neutral), which is set so as to change the room temperature. Here, P
Although MV = 0 is set as the neutral reference point, since the neutral point differs for each individual, the neutral point is different for each individual. Therefore, the input value in the normal input function unit 2 or the thermal / comfort feeling input unit 3 in FIG. It is desirable to go.

According to such an operation mode setting, the indoor temperature is changed from a few hours before going to bed (about 2 to 4 hours) so that the sense of heat is slightly cooler within the comfortable range, thereby increasing the body temperature. By slightly raising the body temperature and changing the room temperature so that the thermal sensation becomes neutral again by bedtime, the body temperature is easily lowered by bedtime,
In addition, a large drop in body temperature can be produced with going to bed, and as a result, the subjective feeling of sleep can be improved.

FIG. 3 shows the setting of the operation mode after waking up. From the time of waking up to several hours after waking up (within about 2 hours), PMV = 0 (neutral) → PMV = -0.
Some are set to change the room temperature to 5 (slightly cool). Within 2 hours from the time of getting up, the rise of the rectal temperature in the morning is the largest, and the temperature change to the low temperature side (but within the comfortable range) is caused by moderate cold stimulation to the peripheral part. This was considered to be the most effective because the opposing heat exchange was performed and promoted the rise of rectal temperature.
Here, PMV = 0 is set as the neutral reference point, but the neutral point differs for each individual. Therefore, the input value in the normal input function unit 2 and the thermal / comfort feeling input unit 3 in FIG. It is desirable to correspond to.

According to such an operation mode setting, the room temperature is changed from the time of waking up to several hours after waking up (within about 2 hours) so that the thermal sensation is slightly cooler within the comfortable range. Thereby, a rise in body temperature from the time of getting up can be made smooth, and as a result, the refreshing feeling in the morning can be improved.

FIG. 4 is a functional block diagram showing a bedtime prediction device. This bedtime prediction device includes a bedtime prediction unit 21, a bed determination unit 27, and a wakeup determination unit 28. First, the sleep determination unit 27 is a unit that determines the actual bed entry time, and is desirably as accurate as possible. When entering the bed entry time manually, for example, a method of inputting a switch by himself / herself when entering the bed, or considering entering the sleep mode as a bed entry may be considered. Also, when entering the bed entry time automatically, the place where the amount of activity is reduced by the activity sensor is regarded as entry, the entry is determined by the piezoelectric sensor attached to the bedding, or the illuminometer is used. Measure the illuminance, judge that the light is off when it is entering the floor,
Sleeping is determined by adopting a method such as determining bed entry time, and a clock mechanism is provided to determine bedtime.

The wake-up determination section 28 is also a part for determining the actual wake-up time, and is desirably as accurate as possible. The wake-up determination unit 28 includes, for example, a part having a wake-up function in the wake-up determination unit 28. The wake-up scheduled time of the next day is input in advance, and the time when the wake-up means is finally stopped is regarded as the wake-up time. Judgment of wake-up is determined by a method such as wake-up from the bed using a piezoelectric sensor, or measuring the state of wake-up from the bed with an activity sensor, and judging that the activity has risen extremely. ,
A wake-up time is determined by providing a clock mechanism.

In the bedtime prediction unit 21, the daily individual sleep pattern storage unit 22 has an annual calendar function and a clock function, and uses a storage means such as an IC to store information such as yearly, monthly, weekly, seasonal, etc. This is a part that stores the actual sleep pattern of the individual while taking into account the periodicity factor of the above, and needs to be input in advance as basic data. For example, a person who lives an almost regular life inputs roughly one week's worth of data and uses this as teacher data. Normal office workers and students often live a weekly lifestyle with weekdays, before holidays, and holidays, and also wake up early in hot summers, but wake up late in cold winters. The characteristics such as the tendency to become apt or the short sleep on the previous day, such as going to bed the next day quickly and sleeping for a long time, are weighted by neuro-learning, which will be described later, and the bedtime is obtained. Therefore, based on the information from the individual sleep pattern storage unit 22 and the wake-up time 23 of the previous day and the bedtime 24 of the previous night, the predicted bedtime 25 of the day is output, but later the predicted bedtime 25 and the actual bedtime 26 And the actual sleeping time and wake-up time are stored in the storage unit 22 as past sleep patterns, and the sleeping time is predicted.

Here, an example of a bedtime prediction method will be described. Examples of the calculation method include a method using a neural network, a method using statistical processing, a method using fuzzy inference, and the like. Here, an example in the case of using a neural network will be described. In the input unit, data patterned by periodic elements such as year, month, week, and seasonality stored in the individual sleep pattern storage unit 22, the wake-up time 23 on the eve, and the bedtime 24 on the eve are input. Is done. There is only one output unit, which outputs the predicted bedtime for the day. The output predicted bedtime 25 is compared with the actual bedtime 26. If the result is not within the allowable range (within ± 30 minutes), it is deleted from the data. If the result is within the allowable range, the result is stored as needed. Will be done. The neural network can be divided into a hierarchical structure and an interconnected structure according to its structure, and the present invention may use any method. A neural network is an example of a hierarchical structure including an input layer, a middle layer, and an output layer. Each layer is composed of one or more units, and the unit is connected only in one direction from the input layer to the intermediate layer and the output layer, and there is no inter-unit connection in the layer. In the example, the middle layer is 1
Although it is a layer, a plurality of layers may be provided. The unit structure of the neural network receives the outputs of other units, weights and sums them, converts them by a certain rule (conversion function),
Output the result.

A learning method for operating the neural network as a predicted bedtime calculation circuit will be described. In this case, the neural network learning method is to make an actual output close to a target value (desired output), and changes the weight of each unit. First, each person's normal rough one week sleep pattern is used as teacher data,
Taking into account the seasonality, the pre- and post-relationship between holidays and weekdays, etc., each weight of the neural network is learned. A known back error propagation method may be used as the learning method. This is repeated until the error between the output value (predicted bedtime) and the actual bedtime becomes equal to or less than a predetermined value, and the bedtime is predicted.

By using such a method, it is possible to predict the bedtime, and by using the predicted bedtime, the automatic driving in the comfortable sleep preparation mode, which is timed several hours before going to bed, can be performed. This makes it possible to automatically and comfortably air-condition an independent bedroom in advance, thereby reducing the trouble of inputting an air-conditioner switch in advance and eliminating forgetting to input.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing an input device of the air conditioner. This input device is obtained by expanding the function of the input device 1 shown in FIG. 1, and has a configuration in which a wake-up function unit 14 is provided and linked with the wake-up time input unit 5. The alarm function unit 14 includes a time limit unit, a clock mechanism, a display unit, and an alarm unit (means for awakening by applying a stimulus to a living body such as sound, vibration, light, and temperature), and the like. A desired wake-up time is input in the time input unit 5, and when the input time comes, a signal is sent from the time limit unit, and the time when the arousal stimulus from the alarm unit operated by the signal is released is determined as the wake-up time. The control method of the air conditioner is changed according to the wake-up determination time, that is, the mode is switched from the good night mode to the good morning mode.

According to such an input device, by integrating the wake-up function and the air conditioner, it is possible to easily and reliably determine when the user wakes up, and to smoothly perform the air-conditioning operation from the time the user wakes up. In particular, it is convenient to use when changing the air-conditioning operation according to the change from sleep to awake state.

[0032]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS In the prior art described above, most of the air conditioners mainly try to achieve comfortable sleep by devising air conditioning during the sleep operation mode (during sleep). 2 more than the person's actual body temperature
Considering the set point ahead of about hours, the environment where humans are placed several hours before going to sleep should be considered as a sleep preparation stage, and by devising room temperature control several hours before sleep We have experimentally confirmed that sleep quality can be improved, and found that there is a possibility that sleep quality can be further improved in combination with comfortable temperature control during sleep. In addition, after wake-up, we also experimentally verified room temperature control to promote the rise of body temperature. The method and results of the experiment will be described below.

First, before describing the experiment, a brief explanation will be given of a human biological rhythm, which is a fundamental viewpoint of the present invention. FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram showing a biological rhythm (diurnal rhythm of body temperature) near a person's sleep. The solid line shows the fluctuation of the actual body temperature, and the broken line shows the set point that precedes the actual body temperature by about 2 hours. The set point is the temperature control headquarters in the brain. Body temperature
It begins to descend gradually before sleep, and falls rapidly at bedtime,
The diurnal rhythm generally follows a gradual gradual gradual decline, beginning at a low around dawn and then rising, rising rapidly with rising, and then gradually rising to a maximum near evening. It is a target. Most of the conventional technology considers environmental control during sleep, but considering the set point that precedes the actual body temperature, it is important that environmental control at the preparation stage before sleep is important for comfortable sleep Think. In addition, if the body temperature rises smoothly after waking up, it will be awakened clearly, but it is also necessary to verify whether controlling the environmental temperature after waking up can promote the body temperature rise.
Therefore, in this experiment, we did not consider the temperature change (stimulation) during sleep, and examined how the environmental temperature change (stimulation) before and after waking up affects body temperature, subjective sleep sensation, etc. Verified.

First, the experimental conditions will be described. The subject is to sleep several days before the experiment, preferably at bedtime 23:00,
Get accustomed to a regular life cycle of 8 hours of sleep at 7:00 and get up at 9: 00 on the day of the experiment.
I entered the laboratory from around 00 and lived almost normal life. The measurement of the experiment was performed according to the time schedule and setting conditions shown in FIG. Environmental conditions were wind speed 0.3 (m / s), relative humidity 60 (%), activity amount 1.0 (met), and clothing amount 0.4.
At the time of (clo), the room temperature range where -0.5 <PMV <0 (the thermal sensation is slightly cool within the comfortable range) is approximately 25.5 to 25.5.
Since the temperature was 27.0 ° C., environmental conditions within this comfortable range were set. The experimental pattern was at room temperature 27 throughout the experiment.
The constant (constant) and (falling) conditions of ° C are 19: 0
The temperature is gradually lowered from room temperature 27 ° C. (PMV = 0) to room temperature 25.5 ° C. (PMV = −0.5) by 21:00, and again at 23:00 when sleeping at 23:00. (P
MV = 0). After waking up, the condition (constant) at room temperature of 27 ° C. and from room temperature 27 ° C. (PMV = 0) to 25.5 ° C. (PMV = −0.5) from the time of waking up to 2 hours later. The comparison was made between two patterns of conditions (falling down). The measurement items are a subjective feeling of sleep, a feeling of warmth / coolness, and a feeling of comfort, a skin temperature of 2 points (lower leg, foot back), and a rectal temperature.

Next, the experimental results will be described. FIG.
Measures the subjective feeling of sleep using the OAS sleep questionnaire (Development of the OAS sleep questionnaire, Psychiatry, 27 (7): 791-799, 1985), and averages the five factors related to sleep for each factor. Is calculated, and the results are shown in a radar chart under a constant condition (●) and a descending condition (▲). As for the score of each factor, the larger the numerical value, the better the feeling of sleep. Therefore, it can be understood from FIG. 10 that a better sleep feeling was obtained under the descending condition than under the constant condition in all the factors. FIG. 11 shows the results of the thermal sensation questionnaire. Before bedtime, both the constant condition (●) and the descending condition (▲) show the report value near neutral (0), and the report on the slightly cooler side under the descending condition. Value. In addition, even after waking up, both of the reported values were in the vicinity of neutral, but the reported values of the thermal sensation were stable for the descending condition. FIG.
2 is the result of the comfort questionnaire measured at the same time, and it can be seen that both the constant condition (●) and the descending condition (▲) were in a comfortable condition before going to bed. Nevertheless, it was reported that the descending condition was comfortable and the constant condition was somewhat unpleasant, and thereafter the descending condition provided a higher degree of comfort. Next, the time-lapse data of the rectal temperature is shown in FIG. The constant condition is indicated by a light line, the descending condition is indicated by a dark line, and the hatched portion in the figure indicates a predetermined sleep time. From FIG. 13, before going to bed, the rectal temperature was relatively high in the descending condition, and was almost the same level up to the middle sleep level, so that the rectal temperature decrease from awakening to bedtime was found to be large under the descending condition, From the latter half of sleep, the descending condition has a higher level, and it can be seen that the rise of rectal temperature during the two hours from the time of getting up is greater under the descending condition. The 14 lower leg skin temperature, Figure 15 is a time data instep skin temperature, constant conditions thin line, lowered condition is shown in dark line and a sleep hatched portion is defined in FIG. Is shown. Note that data after waking up under the descending condition is missing due to trouble during measurement. 14 and 15, the skin temperature of the lower leg and the back of the foot is at a lower level in the descending condition during awakening during bedtime, but reaches substantially the same level during sleep, so that the skin temperature at the peripheral site due to bedtime It can be seen that the degree of increase is large under the descending condition.

From the above results, it is possible to smoothly lower the rectal temperature by going to bed before going to bed under the descending condition. As a result, the change in temperature before going to bed gives a better feeling of sleep, and the rising of rectal temperature after getting up. It can be seen that better arousal and exhilaration can be obtained from the ability to smoothly perform In addition, the human body temperature fluctuates in a 24-hour cycle (biological rhythm). There is a set point as a mechanism for driving the body temperature, and it is said that the set point is about two hours ahead of the actual body temperature. Therefore, in order to make the body temperature easy to fall asleep at the time of going to bed, the air conditioning should be changed at least 2 hours before going to bed in consideration of the change of the set point. It was found that it was desirable to start the fluctuation four hours before.

[0037]

As described above , according to the present invention,
Considering the set point of biological rhythm, several hours of bedtime
(Approximately 2 to 4 hours) Cool feeling within a comfortable range from before
By changing the room temperature to
To raise the body temperature slightly, and to drop by bedtime
Create a condition that is easy to do
Creates a decline, resulting in a subjective feeling of sleep
It can lath.

Further , according to the present invention, the number of times after waking up
Over a period of time (within about 2 hours)
Changing the room temperature so that it is slightly cooler
By smoothing the rise in body temperature from waking up, the result
As a result, it is possible to improve the exhilaration in the morning .

According to the present invention, a set of biological rhythms
Considering the points, before going to bed several hours (about 2 to 4 hours)
Room so that the thermal sensation is slightly cooler within the comfortable range.
By changing the internal temperature, the body temperature rises slightly
In a state where body temperature tends to fall by bedtime
In addition, a large drop in body temperature occurs at bedtime,
As a result, by improving the subjective feeling of sleep, and by changing the room temperature from the time of waking up to several hours after waking up (within about 2 hours), the temperature inside the comfortable area is slightly cooler and cooler In addition, it is possible to smoothly increase the body temperature from the time of getting up, and as a result, it is possible to improve the refreshing feeling in the morning.

Further, according to the present invention, it is possible to predict the bedtime in advance, and by using the prediction of the bedtime, it is possible to automatically drive the comfortable sleep preparation mode in which the timing is several hours before going to bed. In addition, it becomes possible to automatically and comfortably air-condition an independent bedroom or the like in advance automatically, thereby reducing the trouble of inputting an air-conditioner switch in advance and eliminating forgetting to input.

Further, according to the present invention, by integrating the wake-up function and the air conditioner, it is possible to easily and reliably determine when the user wakes up, and to smoothly perform the air-conditioning operation from the time of wake-up. It is convenient to use it when changing the air-conditioning operation according to the change from the awake state to the awake state.

As described above, the quality of sleep and the comfort of sleep are firstly improved by controlling the environmental temperature several hours before going to bed, mainly in consideration of the improvement of the quality of sleep and the subjective feeling of sleep, in consideration of the biological rhythm. In addition, it is possible to secure greater comfort by promoting the rise and activity of the biological rhythm by controlling the environmental temperature for several hours after getting up.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of a pre-sleep operation mode.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of a post-wake-up operation mode.

FIG. 4 is a functional block diagram of a bedtime prediction device.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of an input device.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a thermal sensation evaluation scale.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a comfort evaluation scale.

FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram of a human biological rhythm.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram of an experiment time schedule and experiment conditions.

FIG. 10 is a radar chart showing an average value of each of the five factors of the subjective feeling of sleep.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing the results of a thermal sensation questionnaire.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing the results of a comfort sensation questionnaire.

FIG. 13 is a diagram showing time-lapse data of rectal temperature.

FIG. 14 is a diagram showing temporal data on the skin temperature of the lower leg.

FIG. 15 is a diagram showing temporal data of the dorsal foot skin temperature.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Input device 2 Normal input function part 3 Thermal sensation / comfort sensation claim input part 4 Bedtime input part 5 Wakeup time input part 6 Bedtime determination part 7 Wakeup time determination part 8 Timer / time limit means 9 Operation mode storage part 10 Heating Environment measurement unit 11 Microcomputer 12 Thermal environment control unit 13 Air conditioner 14 Alarm function unit 21 Sleep time prediction unit 22 Sleep pattern storage unit 23 Eve wake-up time 24 Eve sleep time 25 Predicted sleep time 26 Actual sleep time 27 Sleep time Judgment unit 28 Wakeup judgment unit

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on front page (58) Field surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) F24F 11/02

Claims (6)

(57) [Claims] 1. An input device capable of inputting at least a thermal sensation / comfort sensation and a desired bedtime / wakeup time in advance, a bedtime determination unit for directly determining the bedtime and wakeup time input to the input device, and The wake-up time determination unit stores at least one or more different operation modes before bedtime, during sleep, and after wake-up by controlling at least one of the thermal elements of the room temperature, radiation, airflow, and humidity. An operation mode storage unit, a timer / time limit unit which operates at several hours before the reserved bedtime and wake-up time, and at the time of bedtime and wake-up time, and selects a suitable mode from the operation mode storage unit; A thermal environment measuring unit for measuring a surrounding thermal environment, and calculating and processing at least data measured by the thermal environment measuring unit and information from the thermal sensation / comfort sensation claim. Comprising a microcomputer for management, and the thermal environment control unit for controlling the air conditioner by a command from the microcomputer, before sleep operation mode
Between bedtime and bedtime, a feeling of warmth and cold within a comfortable range
Indoor temperature, radiation, airflow, humidity so that it is slightly cooler
For at least one of the heating elements
Trawling, and when going to bed
Temperature, radiation, airflow, and humidity
Is also set to control for one element
Air conditioner, characterized by that. 2. A claim for a feeling of warmth / coolness / comfort, and
Input device for inputting desired bedtime and wake-up time in advance
And the bedtime and wake-up time input to the input device.
A bedtime determination unit and a wake-up time determination unit that determine whether the
Temperature, radiation, airflow, humidity
Before going to bed and sleeping by controlling about one element
At least one or more different operation modes after wake-up
The stored operation mode storage section and the reserved bedtime
A few hours before wake-up time, bedtime, and wake-up time.
Operating mode from the operation mode storage unit
Timer and time limit means, and the thermal environment around the human body
A thermal environment measurement unit for measuring, and at least the thermal environment measurement
The data measured by the section and whether the thermal / comfort sensation claims
A microcomputer for arithmetically processing the information and
Air conditioner controlled by microcomputer
And a thermal environment control unit for controlling
From the indoor thermal environment where the thermal sensation is neutral when getting up,
It is set so as to control at least one of the indoor temperature, radiation, airflow, and humidity, so that the thermal sensation is slightly cooler in the comfortable range. Air conditioner. 3. A claim comprising at least a feeling of warmth / coolness / comfort and
Input device for inputting desired bedtime and wake-up time in advance
And the bedtime and wake-up time input to the input device.
A bedtime determination unit and a wake-up time determination unit that determine whether the
Temperature, radiation, airflow, humidity
Before going to bed and sleeping by controlling about one element
At least one or more different operation modes after wake-up
The stored operation mode storage section and the reserved bedtime
A few hours before wake-up time, bedtime, and wake-up time.
Operating mode from the operation mode storage unit
Timer and time limit means, and the thermal environment around the human body
A thermal environment measurement unit for measuring, and at least the thermal environment measurement
The data measured by the section and whether the thermal / comfort sensation claims
A microcomputer for arithmetically processing the information and
Air conditioner controlled by microcomputer
And a thermal environment controller for controlling the operation mode before going to bed.
Between bedtime and bedtime, a feeling of warmth and cold within a comfortable range
Indoor temperature, radiation, airflow, humidity so that it is slightly cooler
For at least one of the heating elements
Trawling, and when going to bed
Temperature, radiation, airflow, and humidity
Is also set to control for one element
In addition, the operation mode after waking up, from the indoor thermal environment where the thermal sensation is neutral at the time of waking up, from the indoor thermal environment, so that the thermal sensation is slightly cooler within the comfortable range, the indoor temperature, radiation, airflow,
An air conditioner characterized in that it is set to control at least one of the thermal elements of humidity. 4. The method according to claim 1, wherein
The air conditioner, wherein the bedtime determination unit includes a wakeup determination unit, a bedtime determination unit, and a bedtime prediction unit, and is configured to be able to predict bedtime. 5. The sleep time predicting unit according to claim 4 , wherein the sleep time predicting unit includes information on sleep patterns of daily individual sleep time, wake-up time, sleep time, sleep pattern weekly, monthly, yearly, and seasonality. An air conditioner characterized in that it is configured to calculate a predicted bedtime from information in consideration of the periodicity of the bedtime and the validity of the actual bedtime / wakeup time. 6. The method according to claim 1, wherein:
In things, the input device, the alarm clock mechanism is provided,
An air conditioner characterized by determining an wake-up time from a point in time when an alarm clock unit is turned off, and changing a control method of the air conditioner according to the wake-up determination time.