JP3330437B2 - Hot water storage type electric water heater control device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a control device for a hot water storage type electric water heater.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Recently, power has been supplied for 24 hours in the same manner as ordinary commercial power, due to the power supply and demand balance.
2. Description of the Related Art In a specific power time zone within a time, a time zone-based charge system is adopted in which power at a lower rate than other time zones can be used. Accordingly, the applicant has filed Japanese Patent Application No. 4-1809 in the case of using only specific power such as late-night power or the case of using power supplied for 24 hours such as hourly rate system. Also proposed an applicable hot water storage type electric water heater. In the control device of the hot water storage type electric water heater proposed above, it is determined whether the power source of the heating element of the hot water storage type water heater is the specific power such as midnight power or the normal power supplied for 24 hours. Select one of the specific power control mode to control the energization to the heating element using specific power according to the type or the normal power control mode to control the energization to the heating element using normal power, The power supply to the heating element is controlled based on the selected control mode. Midnight power is supplied at a fixed time and is stopped at a fixed time.Therefore, when controlling power supply to a heating element in a specific power control mode, a clock function is always provided inside the control device. It is not necessary to provide a timer means having On the other hand, if the power supply to the heating element is controlled in the normal power control mode using the normal power supplied for 24 hours, cheap power cannot be effectively used unless the exact time is known. It is necessary to provide a timer having a clock function inside the control device. Therefore, conventionally, the operation cannot be started unless the time of the timer is set.

[0003]

However, looking at the installation of hot water storage type electric water heaters, many households use midnight power. For this reason, conventionally, even in the case of using the midnight power, the setting work of the timer means not used for the control is performed by the installer or the inspection worker. In a conventional water heater,
When the backup battery used as a drive power supply for the timer unit is defective and the timer unit is stopped, when the energization to the heating element is controlled in the specific power control mode not using the timer unit, the time of the timer unit is set again. If the control is not performed, there is a problem that the energization control cannot be performed, that is, the operation cannot be performed.

[0004] A main object of the present invention is to control a hot-water storage type water heater that can control the energization of a heating element without setting the time of a timer means, and does not cause an inoperable situation. It is to provide a device.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a control device for a hot water storage type water heater which can display that the time of the timer means is not set, in addition to the above main object.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide, in addition to the above-mentioned main object, a hot water storage type which can stop displaying that the time of the timer means is not set when it is determined that the power source of the heating element is the specific power. A control device for a water heater is provided.

[0007]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a hot-water storage type electric hot water having timer means having a clock function, time setting means for setting the time of the timer means, and control mode selection type energization control means. It is intended for the control device of the vessel. The control mode selection type energization control means determines whether the power of the heating element of the hot water storage type electric water heater is specific power such as midnight power or normal power supplied for 24 hours, and generates heat using the specific power. One of the specific power control mode for controlling power supply to the body or the normal power control mode for controlling power supply to the heating element using normal power is selected according to the control mode change command, and the selected control mode is selected. The power supply to the heating element is controlled based on the above.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the time setting judging means for judging whether or not the time is set by the time setting means and the time setting judging means judging that the time has not been set. A time non-setting display unit for displaying the setting is further provided. The time setting determination means outputs a control mode change command for selecting the specific power control mode to the control mode selection type energization control means while determining that the time has not been set.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, the control mode selection type energization control means includes a specific power control mode for controlling energization of the heating element of the hot water storage type electric water heater using specific electric power such as midnight electric power. A control mode storing means for storing a normal power control mode for controlling energization of the heating element by using the supplied normal power; and first, one of the specific power control mode and the normal power control mode is selected, and thereafter the input is performed. Control mode selection means for selecting a control mode stored in the control mode storage means in response to a control mode change command received, and energization for controlling energization to the heating element according to the control mode selected by the control mode selection means. A control means for changing a selection control mode for selecting a normal power control mode when detecting that a non-power failure time of a power supply of the heating element is longer than a power supply time period of a specific power; A non-power failure time detection means for outputting a command to the control mode selection means, and a power failure time of a power source of the heating element for detecting a power failure for a predetermined time or more and for selecting a specific power control mode to the control mode selection means. And a power failure detection means for outputting a control mode change command.
Also in the present invention, a time setting determining means and a time non-setting display means are further provided as in the first aspect of the invention. In the present invention, the time setting determining unit outputs a control mode change command for selecting the specific power control mode to the control mode selecting unit while determining that the time has not been set.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, when the power failure time detecting means outputs a control mode change command for selecting the specific power control mode, the time non-setting display means stops the operation of displaying the time non-setting.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the power failure time detecting means outputs a control mode change command for selecting a specific power control mode to the control mode selecting means as soon as the power failure is detected. Substantially different.

[0012]

According to each invention of the present application, one hot water storage type electric water heater is modified by correcting the control mode based on the occurrence of a power failure at the power source of the heating element or the power failure not occurring for a predetermined time or more. When the timer can be used as either a hot water storage type electric water heater for specific electric power (for example, for late night electric power system) or a hot water storage type electric water heater for normal electric power (for example, for hourly charge system). Is not set, the power supply to the heating element is controlled in the specific power control mode.

In any of the first, second, and fourth inventions, when the time setting determining means determines that the time has not been set, the control mode change command for selecting the specific power control mode. Is output to the control mode selection means. Therefore, when the time of the timer is not set, the energization to the heating element is always controlled in the specific power control mode, so that the operation cannot be disabled. Then, since the time non-setting display means performs an operation of displaying the time non-setting, a warning is given to the user who uses the normal power by this display.

In the current power supply situation, a power failure rarely occurs for a long time. Therefore, when the power failure time detecting means detects a power failure for a predetermined time or longer, there is no problem even if the power source is determined to be midnight power. Therefore, as in the invention of claim 3, when the power failure time detecting means detects a power failure for a predetermined time or longer, the time non-setting display means stops displaying the time in which the time has not been set. Never keep displaying.

[0015]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. [Embodiment 1] FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the structure of an embodiment of the first and second aspects of the present invention. In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes a heating element for heating arranged inside a hot water storage tank (not shown). Depending on the type of water heater, the heating element 1 includes not only a heating element for main heating disposed at the lower portion inside the hot water storage tank but also a heating element for auxiliary heating disposed at the upper portion inside the hot water storage tank. Some are. Reference numeral 2 denotes an energization control unit.
To control the energization of Although not shown, the power supply control means 2
Is connected to a cable from a power supply (usually 200 V power supply) of the heating element 1 (not shown). The energization control unit 2 includes, for example, a switch circuit that is switched to energize the heating element 1, a switch control unit that controls on / off of the switch circuit according to a control mode, and the like.

The control mode selection means 3 selects a control mode stored in the control mode storage means 4. Commands are input to the control mode selection means 3 from the power failure time detection means 5, the non-power failure time detection means 6, and the time setting determination means 9. The control mode selection means 3 first selects one of the normal power control mode and the specific power control mode, and when a control mode change command is input from the power failure time detection means 5, selects the specific power control mode. When the control mode change command is input from the detection means 6, the normal power control mode is selected, and when the control mode change command is input from the time setting determination means 9, the specific power control mode is selected.

The control mode storage means 4 stores a specific power control mode for controlling energization of the heating element 1 using specific power such as midnight power, and a normal power supplied for 24 hours (power of the hourly rate system). And a normal power control mode for controlling energization of the heating element 1 by using the power control mode. The specific control contents of the specific power control mode and the normal power control mode are arbitrary, and are determined in consideration of, for example, the water temperature, the remaining hot water amount, the hot water temperature, the amount of hot water to be heated, whether or not additional heating is performed, and whether or not additional heating is performed. Details of these control modes are omitted because they are not directly related to the gist of the present invention.

The power failure time detecting means 5 is provided for causing the control mode selecting means 3 to select a specific power control mode when the power of the heating element 1 is a specific power. Then, the power failure time detecting means 5 detects a power failure time of the power supply of the heating element 1 and outputs a control mode change command to the control mode selecting means 3 when detecting a power failure for a predetermined time or more. The predetermined time (reference power outage time) is set shorter than the length of the time period during which the specific power (midnight power) is not supplied, and longer than the power outage time required for periodic inspection and maintenance work. Incidentally, specifically, this time is set to 2 hours.

Specifically, in this embodiment, the power failure time detecting means 5 comprises a heating element power failure detection means 5a, a power failure time counting means 5b, a reference power failure time storage means 5c, and a power failure time comparing means 5d. The operation uses the timer function of the timer means 7. The timer means 7 has not only a timer function for counting time, but also a clock function for providing a time required for control based on the normal power control mode, and displays the time on a time display unit (not shown). .
When detecting that the power of the heating element (not shown) is in a power failure state, the heating element power failure detection means 5a outputs a start command to the power failure time counting means 5b. The heating element power failure detection means 5 detects the occurrence of a power failure of the heating element by detecting the live state of a line connected between the power cable and the ground via a pseudo load by using a current transformer or the like. . The power failure time counting means 5b counts the power failure time based on the time counted by the timer means 7 when the start command is input from the heating element power failure detection means 5, and compares the counted time with the power failure time comparison means 5d.
Output to The power outage time comparing means 5d compares the standard power outage time (two hours in this example) stored in the standard power outage time storage means 5c with the power outage time T counted by the power outage time counting means. When the above power failure is detected, a control mode change command is output to the control mode selecting means 3. In this embodiment, in order to increase the versatility of the control device, the reference power outage time storage means 5b uses a variable reference power outage time. However, the reference power outage time may be a constant.

The non-power failure time detecting means 6 detects the non-power failure time of the power source of the heating element 1 and detects a power supply time period (for example, 8
When a non-power failure state longer than (time) is detected, a control mode change command for selecting the normal power control mode is output to the control mode selection means 3. Although not shown, the non-power failure time detecting means 6 includes a heating element power source non-power failure detection means, a non-power failure time counting means, a reference non-power failure time storage means, a non-power failure time comparison means, and the like.
Note that these specific means will be described in detail in a second embodiment described later.

The time setting means 8 is means for setting the time of the clock function of the timer means 7, and is usually constituted by a setting switch attached to a panel of the remote controller. The time setting determining means 9 determines whether or not the time has been set by the time setting means 8, and when the time setting means 8 determines that the time has not been set, displays the time not set. A command is output to the display means 10 and the control mode selection means 3. The time setting determining means 9 is configured to determine whether or not time has been set, for example, based on whether or not a setting signal has been output from the time setting means 8. The setting of the time is performed at the time of installing the water heater, after a long power failure, after the completion of the maintenance and the like. When the time setting determining means 9 determines that the time has not been set by the time setting means 8, the time setting determining means 9 issues a control mode change command for selecting a specific power control mode while in the control mode selecting means 3. Output to means 3. When the control mode selecting means 3 is provided with a function of judging and storing a command output from the time setting judging means 9, the time setting judging means 9 changes the control mode for selecting the specific power control mode only once. If the control mode selecting means 3 does not have a function of judging the command output from the time setting judging means 9 and storing the command, the time setting judging means 9 selects the specific power control mode. In this case, a control mode change command for performing the operation may be continuously output.
In the former case, even when the time setting determining means 9 determines that the time has been set by the time setting means 8, it outputs a command to that effect and resets the memory of the control mode selecting means 3. In the latter case, if the time is set by the time setting means 8, the time setting determining means 9
It is sufficient to stop the output of the command from.

The time non-setting display means 10 displays that the time is not set while the time setting judging means 9 judges that the time is not set. The display unit 10 can be provided independently, but can also serve as an existing display unit of a remote controller (not shown). As the simplest method, the non-set time can be displayed by blinking the display of a time display unit (not shown) of the timer means 7. In the case where a liquid crystal display is used for the display unit of the remote controller, it is also possible to display the non-setting of the time by characters. In this case, since the time is not set together with the time is not set, the fact that the operation is being performed in the specific power control mode can be displayed in characters.

In this embodiment, the control power supply for each unit from the power supply control means 2 to the display means 10 is a 100 V commercial power supply, and a backup power supply such as a battery is provided in the event of a 100 V commercial power failure. You can also.

When the control mode selecting means 3 installs a hot water storage type electric water heater or after maintenance, inspection, repair, etc.
If the normal power control mode is selected first when the control power supply is connected, a control mode change command is input from either the time setting determining means 9 or the power failure time detecting means 5. And the specific power control mode instead of the normal power control mode.
When a control mode change command to select the normal power control mode is input from the CPU, the normal power control mode is selected. When the control mode selecting means 3 selects the specific power control mode first, if the power source of the heating element 1 is the normal power, the normal power control A control mode change command for selecting a mode is output, and the normal power control mode is selected. If a control mode change command is output from the power failure time detecting means 5 due to a long power failure, the specific power control mode is selected instead of the normal power control mode. Return to the normal power control mode by the mode change command.

The embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 can be realized by using either hardware or software. FIG. 2 shows a flowchart of an algorithm when the main part of this embodiment is implemented using a microcomputer and the control mode is selected using a microcomputer. In this algorithm, the normal power control mode is selected first. Heating element 1
When the power supply of the power supply is a normal power supply, it operates as follows.
If the time of the timer means is not set at the beginning of startup,
Proceeding from step ST2 to steps ST7 and ST8, the control mode is changed to the specific power control mode, and control is performed in the specific power control mode. Step ST9-S
Even if the control mode is changed to the normal power control mode at T11, the control mode is changed to the specific power control mode again in steps ST7 and ST8. Therefore, the heating element 1
Even if the power source is the normal power, the control in the specific power control mode is executed unless the time is set. In this case, if the time has been set before the start, steps ST9 to ST1 are performed via steps ST2 to AST6.
The operation proceeds to 1 and the operation is continued in the normal power control mode unless a long power failure occurs. When the time is set after the start-up, control is first performed in the specific power control mode, and after the time is set, the process goes through steps ST2 to ST6. In steps ST9 to ST11, the specific power control mode is set. From the normal power control mode.

When the power source of the heating element 1 is midnight power, it operates as follows. If the time of the timer means is not set at the beginning of the activation, the process proceeds from step ST2 to steps ST7 and ST8, the control mode is changed to the specific power control mode, and the control is performed in the specific power control mode. Even if the control mode is changed to the normal power control mode in steps ST9 to ST11, the control mode is changed to the specific power control mode again in steps ST7 and ST8. Therefore, even if the power supply of the heating element 1 is the normal power, the control in the specific power control mode is executed unless the time is set. In this case, if the time has been set before the startup, the control mode is changed to the specific power control mode in steps ST2 to AST6, and the steps ST9 to ST9 are performed.
The operation proceeds to ST11, but since power is not continuously supplied for 8 hours or more, the operation is continued in the specific power control mode. When the time is set after startup, control is initially performed in the normal power control mode, but after the time is set, the control mode is specified by detecting a power failure of 2 hours or more in steps ST2 to ST6. The mode is changed to the power control mode, and thereafter, control is performed according to the specific power control mode.

In the algorithm of FIG. 2, step ST2 constitutes the time setting judging means 9, and step ST3
To ST5 constitute the power failure time detecting means 5, and
9 and ST10 constitute the non-power failure time detecting means 6. Steps ST1, ST6, ST8 and ST11
Constitute the control mode selection means 30.

In the algorithm shown in FIG. 2, the control mode selecting means 3 selects the normal power control mode first, but may select the specific power mode first. If the specific power mode is selected first, step ST8
Can be omitted. First, when the specific power mode is selected and the power of the heating element 1 is the normal power, the control is always performed in the specific power control mode by passing through step ST7 unless a time is set. .
If the time is set halfway, step ST7
, The control mode is changed to the normal power control mode.

When the power source of the heating element 1 is a specific power,
The setting of the time of the timer means 7 is not always necessary. Therefore, if the power failure time detecting means detects a power failure for a predetermined time or more in step ST5, the display of the time not set in step ST7 may be stopped. Therefore, as a modified example, when the power failure time detecting means 5 outputs a control mode change command for selecting the specific power control mode, the time non-setting is displayed on the time non-setting display means 10 as shown by a broken line in FIG. May be configured to output a command to stop the display operation. In this case, in the algorithm of FIG. 2, a time non-setting display operation stop step may be inserted after step ST6.

[Embodiment 2] FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an embodiment of the fourth aspect of the present invention. In this embodiment, the same components as those of the embodiment of the invention shown in FIG. 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals as those shown in FIG. In the present embodiment, when detecting that the non-power failure time of the power supply of the heating element 1 is longer than the power supply time period of the specific power, the non-power failure time detection means 6 and the power failure detection means for outputting a control mode change command to the control mode selection means 13 15 is used. The control mode selection means 13 first selects the specific power control mode, and when a control mode change command is input from the non-power failure time detection means 6, selects the normal power control mode as the control mode.
Upon detecting a power failure of the heating element power supply, the power failure detection means 15 outputs a control mode change command for changing the control mode to the specific power control mode to the control mode selection means 13. Select
Note that the power failure detection means 15 may output a control mode change command immediately after detecting a power failure, but it may take a predetermined time (several seconds).
A reset command may be output when the above power failure occurs. The non-power failure time detection means 6 includes a heating element power supply non-power failure detection means 6a, a non-power failure time counting means 6b, a reference non-power failure time storage means 6c, and a non-power failure time comparison means 6d. The heating element power supply non-power failure detecting means 6a continues to output a start command to the non-power failure time counting means 6b while detecting that the power supply of the heating element (not shown) is not in a power failure state. As the heating element power supply non-interruption detecting means 6a, the same configuration as the heating element power supply interruption detecting means 5a of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 1 can be used. The non-power failure time counting means 6b counts the non-power failure time based on the time counted by the timer means 7 while the start command is input from the heating element power source non-power failure detection means 6a, and counts the counted time as the non-power failure time. Output to comparison means 6d. Non power failure time comparison means 6d
Compares the reference non-power failure time (8 hours in this example) stored in the reference power failure time storage means 6c with the non-power failure time Tn counted by the non-power failure time counting means 6b. If a non-power failure condition for more than an hour is detected,
A control mode change command is output to the control mode selection means 13. In this embodiment, in order to increase the versatility of the control device, the reference non-power failure time storage means 6c uses a variable reference power failure time, but the reference non-power failure time may be a constant.

In the present embodiment, when the control mode is selected using a micro computer, the algorithm is basically the same as the algorithm in FIG. When the specific power control mode is selected first as in this embodiment, steps ST8 and ST8 in the algorithm of FIG.
4. An algorithm omitting ST5 may be used. When the normal power control mode is selected first, FIG.
An algorithm in which steps ST4 and ST5 of the above algorithm are omitted may be used. In these cases, it is naturally unnecessary to set the reference power outage time. Also in this embodiment, similarly to the embodiment of FIG. 1, when the power source of the heating element 1 is the specific power, the time setting of the timer means 7 is not necessarily required, so that the power failure detection means 15 When a control mode change command for selecting the power control mode is output, a command to stop the time-unset display operation is output to the time-unset display means 10 as shown by a broken line in FIG. You may comprise.

[0032]

In any of the first, second and fourth aspects of the present invention, when the time setting determining means determines that the time has not been set, the control mode for selecting the specific power control mode. Since the change command is output to the control mode selecting means, the power supply to the heating element is always controlled in the specific power control mode when the time of the timer is not set. Therefore, even when the time of the timer is not set, the water heater can be operated, so that there is an advantage that a situation in which the operation cannot be performed due to forgetting to set the time of the timer does not occur. In addition, since the time non-setting display unit performs an operation of displaying the time non-setting, a warning is given to the user who uses the normal power by this display, and the operation can be performed in an appropriate control mode. .

When the power failure time detecting means detects a power failure for a predetermined time or more, the time non-setting display means stops displaying the time in which the time has not been set. There is an advantage that the display is not continued forever.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a first exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart of an algorithm when the control mode is selected using a microcomputer according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a second exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

[Description of Signs] 1 Heating Element 2 Energization Control Means 3, 13 Control Mode Selection Means 4 Control Mode Storage Means 5 Power Failure Time Detection Means 6 Non-Power Failure Time Detection Means 7 Timer Means 8 Time Setting Means 9 Time Setting Determination Means 10 Time Not Time Setting display means 15 Power failure detection means

Claims (4)

(57) [Claims] 1. Timer means having a clock function; time setting means for setting the time of the timer means; and a power source for a heating element of the hot water storage type electric water heater, which is supplied with specific power such as midnight power or for 24 hours. A power control mode that determines which of the powers the power is, and controls the power supply to the heating element by using the specific power or the normal power control that controls the power supply to the heating element by using the normal power A control mode selection type energization control means for selecting one of the control modes according to a control mode change command and controlling energization to the heating element based on the selected control mode. An apparatus, comprising: a time setting determining unit that determines whether a time is set by the time setting unit; and a time when the time setting determining unit determines that the time is not set. A time non-setting display means for displaying non-setting, a control mode change command for selecting the specific power control mode while the time setting determining means determines that the time is not set. Is output to the control mode selection type energization control means. 2. Timer means having a clock function; time setting means for setting the time of the timer means; and controlling power supply to a heating element of a hot water storage type electric water heater using specific power such as midnight power. Control mode storage means for storing a specific power control mode and a normal power control mode for controlling energization of the heating element using normal power supplied for 24 hours; first, the specific power control mode and the normal power Control mode selection means for selecting one of the control modes and selecting a control mode stored in the control mode storage means in response to a control mode change command input thereafter; control mode selected by the control mode selection means Energization control means for controlling energization of the heating element in accordance with the following. When the power interruption time of a power supply of the heating element is detected and a power interruption for a predetermined time or more is detected, the specific power A power outage time detecting means for outputting a control mode change command for selecting a control mode to the control mode selecting means; and a non-power outage state longer than a power supply time period of the specific power by detecting a non-power-out time of a power supply of the heating element. Detecting a control mode change command for selecting the normal power control mode to the control mode selection means, and a non-power failure time detection means, comprising: Time setting determining means for determining whether or not the time has been set by the setting means; and time non-setting displaying means for displaying the unset time when the time setting determining means determines that the time has not been set. The time setting determining unit may further include a control mode change command for selecting the specific power control mode while determining that the time is not set. Controller of the hot water storage type electric water heater, characterized in that to the control mode selection means. 3. The time non-setting display means stops the operation of displaying the time non-setting when the power outage time detecting means outputs a control mode change command for selecting the specific power control mode. The control device of the hot water storage type electric water heater described in the above. 4. Timer means having a clock function; time setting means for setting the time of the timer means; and controlling power supply to a heating element of a hot water storage type electric water heater using specific power such as midnight power. Control mode storage means for storing a specific power control mode and a normal power control mode for controlling energization of the heating element using normal power supplied for 24 hours; first, the specific power control mode and the normal power Control mode selection means for selecting one of the control modes and selecting a control mode stored in the control mode storage means in response to a control mode change command input thereafter; control mode selected by the control mode selection means Energization control means for controlling energization to the heating element according to the following: when it is detected that the non-interruption time of the power supply of the heating element is longer than the energization time zone of the specific power A non-power failure time detecting means for outputting a selection control mode change command for selecting a normal power control mode to the control mode selecting means, and the specific power control is transmitted to the control mode selecting means upon detecting a power failure of the power supply of the heating element. A control device for a hot-water storage type electric water heater, comprising: a power failure detection unit that outputs a control mode change command for selecting a mode, wherein a time for determining whether a time is set by the time setting unit is determined. Setting determination means, and time non-setting display means for displaying time non-setting when the time setting determining means determines that time has not been set, wherein the time setting determining means has a time setting function. Outputting a control mode change command for selecting the specific power control mode to the control mode selection means while determining that the control is not performed. Storage type electric water heater controller.