JP6167305B2 - Air conditioner - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an air conditioner, and more particularly to air conditioning control therein.

  In general, air conditioners are becoming the mainstream air conditioning control that detects the position of a person by installing an infrared sensor in addition to a temperature sensor that detects the room temperature, and makes this person's position comfortable. Has been.

  Among such air-conditioning controls, one infrared sensor detects the person's position as well as the floor temperature at the person's position, and the comfort is improved in consideration of the floor temperature and the like (for example, Patent Documents). 1).

  FIG. 12 shows an air conditioner described in Patent Document 1. This air conditioner is provided with a human body detection / floor temperature detection sensor 102 formed of an infrared sensor on the front surface of a main body 101, and the human body detection / floor temperature detection sensor 102 is provided. It moves right and left to detect the person in the room and the floor temperature, and controls airflow by controlling at least one of the wind direction, air volume, and compressor speed based on both information. .

  According to this air conditioning control, it is possible to perform air conditioning in consideration of the floor temperature at a position where a person is present, and more comfortable air conditioning can be performed.

  In addition to the above, air conditioning control using an infrared sensor detects the number of people and the amount of activity of the person along with the position of the person using the infrared sensor, and considers the air conditioning load based on the number of people and the amount of activity. Many control methods have been proposed, such as those that enable comfortable air conditioning.

JP 2009-92252 A

  As described above, in recent air conditioners, advanced control using an infrared sensor has progressed, and the degree of completeness of comfort control has become considerably high.

  However, in the conventional air conditioner, particularly in the air conditioning control that makes the air conditioning of the person comfortable based on the output from the infrared sensor, when the person moves, the air conditioning is performed aiming at the position where the person moved, so that the comfort is high. However, the comfort of the transitional period immediately after the person moved was in a state of being left to the task because the transition time was short, and it could not be said that the comfort was good.

  The poor comfort in the air conditioning transition period was not so much noticed because it was short in time, but now it has begun to stand out in recent years when the comfort in the air conditioning stability period has greatly improved.

For example, in an air conditioner configured to move an infrared sensor as in the air conditioner described in Patent Document 1 and detect a person's position and floor surface temperature with a single infrared sensor, the infrared sensor can be moved every predetermined time. Or, even if it is always movable, it takes about ten seconds to several minutes to move from one end of the room to the other end. Therefore, during this time, human movement cannot be detected and followability is lacking, and when a person moves while this infrared sensor is moving, the infrared sensor detects the person moving position and the floor temperature of that part, and accordingly It took time to change the air volume and direction, and for some time it was uncomfortable and felt uncomfortable.

  And such discomfort during the transition period is as short as a few minutes, and as mentioned above, it has not been very noticeable so far, but as the comfort in the air conditioning stable period improves, the discomfort becomes new. As a major issue.

  In addition, in an air conditioner configured to move an infrared sensor and detect a person position and a floor surface temperature with one infrared sensor as in the air conditioner described in Patent Document 1, in the front-rear direction with respect to the indoor unit In order to detect that a person has moved, it is necessary to provide a plurality of sensor elements (elements for detecting infrared rays) in one infrared sensor, and there is a problem that the infrared sensor becomes expensive.

  The present invention has been made in view of such newly emerging problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide an air conditioner capable of comfortable air conditioning even in a transition period leading to an air conditioning stability period.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a movable body detection sensor that detects a movable body that moves, a fixed body temperature detection sensor that is provided separately from the movable body detection sensor and detects the temperature of a stationary body that does not move, A control unit that controls at least one of a wind direction, an air volume, and a compressor rotation speed based on outputs of the movable body detection sensor and the fixed body temperature detection sensor, and the movable body detection sensor includes a pyroelectric element type infrared ray The fixed body temperature detection sensor is composed of a thermoelectric element type infrared sensor and is movable.

  As a result, a fixed body temperature detection sensor composed of an expensive infrared sensor such as a thermoelectric element type infrared sensor typified by a thermopile is moved to detect the temperature of the floor surface, etc. A movable body detection sensor composed of an inexpensive infrared sensor is fixed, and the entire detected portion such as a room to be air-conditioned is constantly monitored, and if a person moves, the moving position can be detected instantaneously. Therefore, if the movable body detection sensor detects the movement of a person, even if it takes time to detect the floor surface temperature by the movable fixed body temperature detection sensor, the person detected by the fixed body temperature detection sensor The position where the person exists without delay from the movement of the person, can be controlled to immediately change any of the wind direction, air volume, or compressor speed using the floor surface temperature before the movement of the person in the position after the movement Comfort can be improved.

  The present invention can provide an air conditioner that can improve the comfort of the air conditioning in the transition period that shifts to the air conditioning stability period and that can perform more comfortable air conditioning.

1 is an external perspective view of an air conditioner according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. Sectional drawing of the air conditioner in Embodiment 1 The perspective view which shows the movable body detection sensor of the air conditioner in Embodiment 1 The perspective view which shows the stationary body temperature detection sensor of the air conditioner in Embodiment 1 Control block diagram of the air conditioner in the first embodiment The flowchart explaining the control action of the air conditioner in the first embodiment Explanatory drawing of the area | region for the presence or absence and movement detection of the air conditioner in Embodiment 1 Explanatory drawing of the area | region for the floor temperature detection of the air conditioner in Embodiment 1 Flowchart for explaining presence / absence and movement detection of the air conditioner in the first embodiment Explanatory drawing explaining the floor temperature detection operation | movement of the air conditioner in the same Embodiment 1. The flowchart explaining the wind direction control operation | movement to the human position of the air conditioner in the same Embodiment 1. External view of conventional air conditioner

  1st invention is provided separately from the said movable body detection sensor which detects the movable body which moves, the fixed body temperature detection sensor which detects the temperature of the fixed body which does not move, and the said movable body detection sensor And a control unit that controls at least one of the wind direction, the air volume, and the compressor rotation speed based on the output of the fixed body temperature detection sensor, and the movable body detection sensor includes a pyroelectric element type infrared sensor. The fixed body temperature detection sensor is composed of a thermoelectric infrared sensor and is movable.

  As a result, a fixed body temperature detection sensor composed of an expensive infrared sensor such as a thermoelectric element type infrared sensor typified by a thermopile is moved to detect the temperature of the floor surface, etc. A movable body detection sensor composed of an inexpensive infrared sensor is fixed, and the entire detected portion such as a room to be air-conditioned is constantly monitored, and if a person moves, the moving position can be detected instantaneously. Therefore, if the movable body detection sensor detects movement of a person (hereinafter referred to as person movement), even if it takes time to detect the floor surface temperature by the movable stationary body temperature detection sensor, the fixed body temperature Using the floor temperature in the state before the person movement at the position after the person movement detected by the detection sensor, it is possible to control to immediately change any of the wind direction, air volume, and compressor rotation speed, and delay from the person movement. It is possible to improve comfort at a position where a person is present (hereinafter referred to as a person position).

  In a second aspect based on the first aspect, the control unit divides a space to be air-conditioned into a plurality of human detection areas, and detects the presence / absence of a person based on an output from a movable body detection sensor in the human detection area. In addition, the space to be air-conditioned is divided into a bed temperature detection area including a plurality of the human detection areas, and a floor surface temperature is detected by an output from a fixed body temperature detection sensor in the floor temperature detection area, and the movable body detection sensor And the output of the stationary body temperature detection sensor control at least one of wind direction, air volume, and compressor speed.

  As a result, even if a fixed movable body detection sensor is used, the presence / absence of a person is detected for each area, and the wind direction is accurately and immediately directed toward the position where the person has moved according to the floor temperature of the person's position. Control of changing any of the air volume and the compressor rotational speed can be performed, and the comfort of the human position can be improved without delay from the movement of the person as in the first aspect of the invention.

  In a third aspect based on the second aspect, the control unit is configured to change the wind direction so as to direct the wind direction to the plurality of human detection areas when the movable body detection sensor includes a plurality of human detection areas. And the floor temperature in the floor temperature detection area including the person detection area where the person is detected are compared, and the wind direction is long in the person detection area on the side where the air conditioning load is determined to be large based on the floor temperature. It controls to direct.

  As a result, when a person is separated or moved to the part to be air-conditioned, the blowing air is supplied to the place where the air-conditioning load is larger for a long time. can do.

The fourth invention is the second or third invention, further comprising an infrared transmission type cover that covers the front of the fixed body temperature detection sensor, and a suction temperature detection sensor that detects the temperature of the space to be conditioned, The stationary body temperature detection sensor includes a thermistor that detects infrared rays emitted from the stationary body and a temperature correction thermistor that measures the ambient temperature of the stationary body temperature detection sensor, and a control unit includes the suction temperature detection sensor and the temperature. The floor surface temperature is corrected based on both outputs from the correction thermistor.

  Thereby, even if the fixed body temperature detection sensor detects the temperature of the cover covering the front of the fixed body temperature detection sensor together with the floor surface temperature, the influence of the temperature of the cover can be corrected. Moreover, the influence of the ambient temperature of the installation part of a fixed body temperature detection sensor can be correct | amended. For this reason, the fixed body temperature detection sensor can accurately detect the floor surface temperature without erroneous detection. Thereby, the air-conditioning delay by the erroneous detection of floor surface temperature can be prevented. For example, the floor surface temperature can be accurately detected even when the air conditioning operation is started at the start of the air conditioning operation, and the temperature of the space to be air conditioned (room temperature) fluctuates rapidly.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments.
(Embodiment 1)
The air conditioner of this embodiment includes an indoor unit and an outdoor unit that are connected to each other by a refrigerant pipe and a control wiring, and the outdoor unit is provided with a compressor.

  FIG.1 and FIG.2 has shown the indoor unit of this air conditioner. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the main body 1 constituting the exterior of the indoor unit includes a suction port 2 that sucks in air and a blowout port 3 that blows out heat-exchanged air. The suction port 2 has a shape in which the opening portion 2 b on the front surface of the main body is matched with the suction opening 2 a on the top surface portion of the main body 1. The main body 1 includes a front panel 4 that covers the front surface of the main body 1.

  Inside the main body 1 are a filter 5 for capturing dust contained in room air, a heat exchanger 6 for exchanging heat from the taken-in room air, and heat exchange for room air taken from the suction port 2 through the filter 5. There is provided a once-through fan 7 for generating an airflow for exchanging heat in the vessel 6 and blowing out from the blowout port 3 into the room.

  The blowout port 3 is provided with upper and lower blades 8 that can open and close the blowout port 3 and change the blowing direction of the air up and down. The upper and lower blades 8 include an upper blade 8a and a lower blade 8b provided below the upper blade 8a. Each of the upper blade 8a and the lower blade 8b is connected to a rotation shaft of a drive motor such as a stepping motor on either one of the left and right rotation shafts (not shown). Then, by the operation of this drive motor, the upper blade 8a and the lower blade 8b rotate in the vertical direction.

  A plurality of left and right blades 10 that can change the air blowing direction to the left and right are provided in the ventilation path 9 that extends from the downstream side of the fan 7 to the upstream side of the blowing port 3. The plurality of left and right blades 10 are connected by a connecting bar that interlocks the movement of the blades, and constitutes a wind direction deflecting plate as referred to in the present invention. The connecting bar is connected to a rotating shaft of a drive motor such as a stepping motor (not shown). The plurality of left and right blades 10 are rotated in the left and right directions by the operation of the drive motor.

  An electrical unit 11 is disposed between the top surface of the main body 1, the front panel 4, and the filter 5. The electrical unit 11 is mounted using a part of the frame constituting the main body 1, and controls the fan 7, the upper and lower blades 8, the left and right blades 10, the compressor and the like to operate the air conditioner. It is a control device to control.

Here, in this air conditioner having the above-described configuration, as shown in FIG. 1, a movable body detection sensor 12 (hereinafter referred to as a human body detection sensor) for detecting a human body on the lower front portion of the main body 1 and a floor A fixed body temperature detection sensor 14 for detecting the temperature of a fixed body such as a surface or a wall surface (hereinbelow, a case where the floor surface temperature is detected will be described as an example, hereinafter referred to as a floor temperature detection sensor) is provided. . These are provided on the lower surface of the front panel 4, and the front surfaces of the human body detection sensor 12 and the floor temperature detection sensor 14 are covered with a resin cover 15 that transmits infrared rays. In FIG. 1, the cover 15 is slightly shifted downward so that the human body detection sensor 12 and the fixed body temperature detection sensor 14 provided inside the cover 15 can be seen.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the human body detection sensor 12 is composed of a plurality of (for example, three) sensor units 16, 17, and 18, and is held in a sensor holder 19 and incorporated without being moved. . The sensor elements of the sensor units 16, 17, and 18 are constituted by pyroelectric element type infrared sensors that detect infrared rays emitted from the human body. The sensor elements of the sensor units 16, 17, and 18 are The presence / absence and movement of the entire room to be air-conditioned are always detected by the change in the amount of infrared rays to be detected, and the presence / movement determination unit described below is based on the pulse signal output according to the change in the amount of infrared rays, and the presence / absence of people Etc. are determined.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 4, the fixed body temperature detection sensor 14 includes an element holder 20 provided with a sensor element 20 a and a motor 21 that rotationally drives the element holder 20 as a unit in the sensor main body 14 a. The element holder 20 has a substantially disc-shaped base portion 20b that can rotate about the vertical direction as a central axis, and a substantially rectangular flat plate-shaped inclined holder that is inclined with respect to a horizontal plane (a plane perpendicular to the central axis) of the base portion 20b. Part 20c. The sensor element 20a is provided perpendicular to the plane of the tilt holding part 20c.

  The motor 21 moves the element holder 20 from one end to the other end of the room to be air-conditioned in a predetermined cycle, and detects and measures the temperature of the fixed body such as the floor surface and wall surface of the room, in this example, the floor surface. The sensor element 20a of the fixed body temperature detection sensor 14 is a thermoelectric element type infrared sensor called “cer-mobile”. The sensor element 20a includes a thermistor (not shown) for detecting infrared rays emitted from the fixed body and a temperature correction thermistor (not shown), and detects the absolute temperature of the fixed body from these outputs. It can be done.

  Since the sensor element 20a is provided to be inclined with respect to the central axis via the inclination holding portion 20c, the sensor element 20a can detect a region to be air-conditioned forward and lower than the air conditioner. .

  FIG. 5 is a control block diagram of an air conditioner that performs air conditioning control based on outputs from the human body detection sensor 12 and the floor temperature detection sensor 14.

  The air conditioner control device shown in the control block diagram of FIG. 5 includes a control unit 22 that controls the entire air conditioner, and detects the room temperature described later in addition to the human body detection sensor 12 and the floor temperature detection sensor 14. The air conditioner is controlled according to a predetermined sequence based on outputs from many sensors such as a suction temperature sensor.

  In the following, the configuration will be described. In FIG. 5, the present control device has an input device 23, a room temperature detection unit 24, a presence / absence / movement determination unit 25, and a fixed body temperature determination unit 26 (this example) centering on the control unit 22. Then, since the floor temperature is determined, it is hereinafter referred to as a floor temperature determination unit), a storage unit 27, and an air conditioning output unit 28.

The input device 23 includes a room temperature setting unit 29 that accepts an input of a room temperature desired by the occupant, that is, a set room temperature, and an air conditioning mode selection unit 30 for selecting an air conditioning mode. Has an instruction unit for activating. The input device 23 is an operation device that can be input by, for example, a remote control method (hereinafter referred to as a remote control), and thereby information on the room temperature and the air conditioning mode set by the resident is transmitted to the control unit 22 by radio. The

  The room temperature detection unit 24 has a suction temperature detection sensor 31 formed of a thermistor or the like provided in the suction port 2 of the main body 1, and detects the temperature of the suction air that is almost room temperature at all times and sends the information to the control unit 22. ing.

  The presence / absence / movement determination unit 25 determines the presence / absence and movement of a person based on the output information from the human body detection sensor 12. The entire room to be air-conditioned is referred to as a plurality of areas (hereinafter referred to as human detection areas). ) And the presence / absence and movement of a person are determined and output to the control unit 22.

  The floor temperature determination unit 26 determines the temperature of the fixed body, in this example, the floor surface, based on the output information from the floor temperature detection sensor 14, and the human body detection sensor 12 is used to determine the presence / absence and movement of the person. For each region (hereinafter referred to as a “floor temperature detection region”), the floor surface temperature is determined and output to the control unit 22.

  The storage unit 27 includes a read only memory (ROM) and a random access memory (RAM), and stores a program that defines the control procedure of the control unit 22 and temporary temperature data calculated by the control unit 22. For example, the storage unit 27 also processes the temperature for each bed temperature detection region detected by the floor temperature detection sensor 14 at a predetermined cycle by the floor temperature determination unit 26, and then overwrites and stores it as needed via the control unit 22.

  The control unit 22 is configured mainly with a microprocessor, and includes a control target temperature calculation unit 32, a temperature arrival detection unit 33, and an output control unit 34. These operate according to programs stored in the storage unit 27. Although not shown, the control unit 22 has a timer inside, and can also measure and judge time.

  Based on the set room temperature set by the input device 23, the control target temperature calculator 32 calculates a reference set temperature that is a target value of the room temperature (suction temperature) that should be reached for control.

  The output control unit 34 compares the calculated reference set temperature with the room temperature (suction temperature) detected by the suction temperature detection sensor 31, and controls the output of the cooling / heating output unit 28 so that the difference between the two temperatures becomes zero. To do. The temperature arrival detection unit 33 determines whether the room temperature (suction temperature) has reached the reference set temperature.

  The cooling / heating output unit 28 includes an output unit to a compressor, an expansion valve, an inverter, and the like, and a motor that drives the blowing elements such as the fan 7, the upper and lower blades 8, and the left and right blades 10, and is based on a signal from the output control unit 34. The direction and volume of the air blown into the room, the temperature of the blowout air, the set temperature, etc. are adjusted.

  Next, the operation of the air conditioner configured as described above will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  In this air conditioner, as described above, the input device 23 is constituted by a remote controller, and a user operates this remote controller to give instructions for cooling operation or heating operation and setting a desired indoor temperature (set temperature). And start driving.

  As a result, first, the human body detection sensor 12 detects the entire area of the room to be air-conditioned, detects a portion where the amount of infrared rays fluctuates therein, and based on this, the presence / absence / movement determination unit 25 determines the person's position. Judgment is made (step S1).

  The presence / absence and movement detection is performed by dividing the room space to be air-conditioned into a plurality of areas, and determining from which of the plurality of areas the infrared amount variation detection output from the human body detection sensor 12 is output. Determine the presence and movement of people.

  FIG. 7 schematically shows a room in which the presence / absence / movement determination unit 25 detects a human body, that is, a region to be detected by the human body detection sensor 12 (that is, a detectable region). In the present embodiment, by appropriately arranging the three sensor units 16, 17, and 18 constituting the human body detection sensor 12, in a plurality of regions A to G (human detection regions) as shown in FIG. 7. Human body detection is possible. A specific example for making such a determination will be described later.

  Next, at the same time as determining the position and movement of the person as described above, the floor temperature detection sensor 14 starts moving from one end of the room to the other end and scans the floor surface temperature (step S2).

  FIG. 8 schematically shows a room in which the floor temperature determination unit 26 detects the floor temperature, that is, a region that is detected by the floor temperature detection sensor 14 (that is, a detectable region). In the present embodiment, one floor temperature detection sensor 14 constituting the floor temperature detection sensor 14 is movably disposed, so that a plurality of areas of the blocks L, CN, and R (floor temperature detection as shown in FIG. 8). The floor temperature in the area) can be detected.

  Hereinafter, the bed temperature detection area will be described. All of the bed temperature detection areas (the sum of the block L, the block CN, and the block R) are made to coincide with all of the person detection areas (the sum of the areas A to G). Each floor temperature detection area is set so as to include a plurality of human body detection areas, and the boundary of the human body detection area and the boundary of the floor temperature detection area are substantially coincident.

  More specifically, the block L includes a part of the area A (a part of approximately 1/3 on the right side when viewed from the main body 1), the area B, and the area E. The boundary of the block L is the area B. And the boundary of the end of region E. The block CN includes a part of the region A (a portion that is approximately 1/3 of the center when viewed from the main body 1), the region C, and the region F. The boundary of the block CN is an end portion of the region C and the region F. Is consistent with the boundary. The block R includes a part of the region A (a portion of approximately 1/3 on the left side when viewed from the main body 1), the region D, and the region G. The boundary of the block R is the end of the region D and the region G. Is consistent with the boundary.

  As described above, the floor temperature detection area is set so as to collect a plurality of human body detection areas arranged in the front-rear direction with respect to the indoor unit. Therefore, the floor temperature detection sensor 14 is an area in the front-rear direction with respect to the indoor unit. Therefore, it is not necessary to arrange a plurality of sensor elements 20a. As a result, the cost of the floor temperature detection sensor 14 can be reduced.

  The floor surface temperature detection by the floor surface temperature scan in step S2 is to measure the floor surface temperature for each block corresponding to the area where the human body detection sensor 12 detects the human body. A specific detection method will be described later.

  The floor temperature detection sensor 14 for detecting the floor surface temperature includes the infrared rays from the floor surface and the infrared temperature variation caused by the ambient temperature of the portion where the floor temperature sensor is installed, and the cover 15 itself covering the floor temperature detection sensor 14. In order to eliminate these effects, temperature correction is performed (step S3). This makes it possible to detect the floor surface temperature with high accuracy. A specific temperature correction method that enables this temperature correction will be described later.

Next, the floor temperature for each of the blocks L, CN, and R is specified based on the temperature correction (step S4), and this is overwritten and stored in the storage unit 27 (step S5), and includes the region where the person is detected. The floor surface temperature of the block is determined (step S6).

  Thereafter, a reference set temperature, which is a target value for controlling the temperature of the room to be air-conditioned, is determined from the set temperature (step S7). The reference set temperature is usually a temperature equivalent to the room set temperature, but is a set temperature that is corrected in accordance with various operation settings set by the input device 23 such as a remote controller.

  More specifically, when a special operation such as a power saving operation in which an energy-saving air conditioning operation is performed rather than a normal air conditioning operation is set by the input device 23 such as a remote controller, the reference set temperature is set, for example, during a power saving operation in a cooling operation Correction is made higher than the reference set temperature during normal air-conditioning operation, and correction is made lower than the reference set temperature during normal air-conditioning operation during heating operation. Alternatively, when a special operation such as a powerful operation that performs a stronger air-conditioning operation than the normal air-conditioning operation is set by the input device 23 such as a remote controller, the reference set temperature is set to the normal air-conditioning, for example, during the cooling operation powerful operation. Correction is made lower than the reference set temperature during operation, and during heating operation, correction is made higher than the reference set temperature during normal air conditioning operation. Thus, a special operation such as a power saving operation or a powerful operation in accordance with the user's intention is executed based on the indoor set temperature set by the user.

  Next, the floor control target temperature is determined from the indoor set temperature (step S8). The floor control target temperature is usually a temperature equivalent to the indoor set temperature, but is a temperature corrected in accordance with the floor surface temperature measured in step S6. More specifically, for example, if the floor surface temperature measured during cooling is higher than the indoor set temperature, the temperature is corrected to be lower than the indoor set temperature, and if the floor surface temperature measured during heating is lower than the indoor set temperature, Correct higher. Thereby, the high floor surface temperature can be lowered more quickly during the cooling operation, and the low floor surface temperature can be raised more quickly during the heating operation.

  After the floor surface control target temperature is determined, the refrigeration cycle components such as the compressor and the fan 7 are controlled so that the suction temperature, which is room temperature in the air conditioning region, becomes the reference indoor set temperature, and the indoor air conditioning operation is performed. (Step S9).

  The difference between the floor surface temperature of the block including the region where the person is detected and the floor control target temperature is compared (step S10). If the absolute value of the difference is greater than a predetermined value (eg, 1K), the reference The set temperature is corrected (step S11). For example, the reference set temperature is corrected to be lower during cooling operation, and the reference set temperature is corrected to be higher during heating operation. If the reference set temperature can be corrected in a plurality of stages depending on the degree of difference between the floor surface temperature and the floor control target temperature, a more comfortable comfortable space can be realized as will be described in detail later. .

  Next, based on the difference between the set reference set temperature and the room temperature after the air conditioning represented by the suction temperature detected by the suction temperature detection sensor 31, at least one of the air conditioning output, that is, the air volume and the compressor rotational speed. One is set (step S12). More specifically, the compressor rotation speed is set according to the difference between the reference set temperature and the suction temperature, and the air volume, that is, the rotation speed of the fan 7 is set according to the compressor rotation speed.

In this setting of the air conditioning output, the reference set temperature to be compared with the suction temperature is obtained by taking into consideration the floor surface temperature of the block including the region where the person is detected in step S11. It reflects the floor temperature at the position where there is. In other words, by performing this air-conditioning output, the blowing temperature decreases during the cooling operation, and the floor surface temperature at the position where the person is present can be quickly decreased. In addition, during the heating operation, the blowing temperature rises, and the floor surface temperature at a position where a person exists can be quickly raised. For this reason, a person movement area can be made into a comfortable space efficiently and quickly.

  In addition, since the air conditioning output is set so that the reference set temperature to be compared with the suction temperature takes into account the special operating conditions set by the user in step S7, the air conditioning output is also set by the user. It reflects the intention of special driving. Therefore, it is possible to efficiently and quickly make the person movement area a comfortable space in accordance with the user's special driving intention.

  Further, control is performed to direct the blown air to the position where the person is present with the air conditioning output set as described above (step S11). In addition, an example of the specific wind direction control method of this blowing wind is mentioned later.

  When air conditioning is performed and a predetermined time, for example, 15 minutes elapses in this example (step S14), the process returns to step S2 to scan the floor surface temperature by the floor temperature detection sensor 14, and repeats steps S3 to S14.

  During this time, the human body detection sensor 12 detects the entire room to be air-conditioned, and continues to detect the portion in which the amount of infrared rays fluctuates, and if it is detected from the region in which the amount of infrared rays fluctuates, The movement determination unit 25 recognizes this instantly, and determines that a person has moved or a new person has been added (step S1).

  And the floor surface temperature of the block containing the area | region which detected the said person newly is determined by step S6. This is the floor temperature of the previous block detected in the previous step S4 and overwritten and stored in step S5, that is, the floor temperature detected last time for the block including the area where the person is newly detected this time. The temperature is determined (step S6).

  When the floor temperature at the position where the person is newly detected, that is, the position where the person has moved, is determined, the air conditioning output is set in step S12 through steps S7 to S11, and the blowing air is moved to the position of movement of the person in step S13. The air conditioning is executed by driving the left and right blades 10 which are wind direction deflecting plates so as to face the air.

  Thereby, when the human body detection sensor 12 detects the movement of the person, the left and right blades 10 can be driven to change the blowing air to the area where the person is newly detected, and the area can be cooled or heated with the blowing air. That is, when the person moves, the blowing wind can be directed to the person moving position instantaneously following the person movement. Therefore, air conditioning by blowing air is obtained immediately after movement, and comfortable air conditioning can be obtained immediately.

  Further, the temperature of the blowing air directed toward the person movement position is changed by an air conditioning output set according to the floor temperature at the person movement position. As a result, when a person moves, the temperature of the blowing air directed toward the moving position is increased during heating, and is lower during cooling. A comfortable space can be made quickly. Moreover, by supplying this higher or lower blown air, the user can soften the cooling radiation or thermal radiation received from the floor surface, and immediately after moving, a feeling close to the feeling of heating or cooling before moving can be obtained. More comfortable air conditioning is possible.

  Further, when the air conditioning is performed and the time elapses and the difference between the floor temperature in the human position area and the floor control target temperature becomes smaller, the reference set temperature is corrected in the opposite manner, and The difference gradually decreases and the air-conditioning output also decreases accordingly, and the user can move to a comfortable space without causing the user to feel the fluctuation of the air-conditioning output.

  Here, the floor surface temperature of the block including the area where the person is newly detected is set as the floor surface temperature of the corresponding block at the time of the previous detection. Since the floor has a large heat capacity, the floor temperature detection sensor 14 detects the floor temperature. If the scan detection interval of the surface temperature is about 15 minutes, the floor surface temperature does not fluctuate greatly during that time, so there is no particular problem.

  As described above, the reference set temperature to be corrected in step S11 according to the difference between the floor surface temperature of the block including the region where the person movement is detected and the floor control target temperature is the floor surface temperature and the floor control target temperature. Since it can be corrected in a plurality of stages according to the degree of difference, it is possible to speed up the comfort space. For example, if the difference between the floor surface temperature and the floor control target temperature in the area where human movement is detected is 1K, the correction is, for example, + 0.5 ° C. during heating and −0.5 ° C. during cooling. If so, the correction is, for example, + 3 ° C. during heating and −3 ° C. during cooling.

  As a result, the reference set temperature is changed according to the floor temperature of the person movement area, and as a result, the air conditioning output in step S12 set by the difference between the reference set temperature and the suction temperature becomes large. The area immediately after the person moves can be quickly brought close to the reference set temperature, and the speed to the comfort space can be increased.

  Next, examples of “person position detection”, “floor surface temperature scan”, “temperature correction of floor surface temperature detection sensor”, and “wind direction control to person position” used in the above-described series of operations will be described.

  First, an example of the “person position detection” operation performed in step S1 will be described with reference to FIG.

  In the flow of FIG. 9, first, in step S21, the presence or absence of a person in each area is determined at a predetermined cycle T1 (for example, 5 seconds).

  This person's determination method will be described below. For example, the sensor unit 16 is configured to be able to detect the region A, the region B, the region C, and the region D. The sensor unit 17 is configured to detect the region B, the region C, the region E, and the region F. The sensor unit 18 is configured to be able to detect the region C, the region D, the region F, and the region G.

  By adopting such a configuration, for example, when the human body is detected by the sensor unit 16 and the sensor unit 17, but the human body is not detected by the sensor unit 18, the air conditioner determines that the human body exists in the region B. can do.

  As described above, the presence / absence of a person in each of the regions A to G is determined for each period T1, and 1 (with a reaction) or 0 (without a reaction) is output as a reaction result (determination) of the period T1. After repeating a plurality of times, it is determined in step S22 whether or not a predetermined number of presence reactions have been obtained, and if it is determined that the predetermined number has not been reached, the process returns to step S21 while it is determined that the predetermined number M has been reached. Then, in step S23, it is estimated that a person exists in the area based on the area characteristics determined at the time of human body detection.

  In this example, the number of areas that can be detected using the human body detection sensor 12 is seven, but this is an example, and the present invention is not limited to this.

Further, in the air conditioner according to the present embodiment, it is possible to set so as to determine the magnitude of the activity amount of the human body based on the signal (movement of the human body) output from the human body detection sensor 12. The amount of activity of the human body is judged in three stages of “large”, “medium”, and “small”. That is, the amount of human activity is determined in three stages according to the number of times that a human is detected by the human body detection sensor 12 during a predetermined detection time (for example, 2 minutes). More specifically, when the number of person detections is smaller than the predetermined number X, the amount of activity is determined to be “small”. The number of human detections is a predetermined number Y
If it is greater than the predetermined value, the activity amount is determined to be “large” (predetermined number X <predetermined number Y). When the amount of activity is determined to be “large” and “medium”, the movement of the person is large (the amount of activity is larger than the predetermined amount). In particular, the amount of activity is determined to be “large” when the movement of a person is intense. On the other hand, when the amount of activity is determined to be “small”, the movement of the person is small (the amount of activity is smaller than the predetermined amount). The information on the amount of activity may be added to the floor surface temperature information to perform the air conditioning control at the person position described above, and the comfort can be further enhanced by such a configuration. Needless to say, the judgment may be made in four or more stages.

  Next, an example of the “floor surface temperature scanning” operation performed in step S2 will be described with reference to FIG.

  First, the direction of the floor temperature detection sensor 14 is directed to the direction of the detection start position ST by the motor 21. Here, since the floor temperature detection sensor 14 has a predetermined detection width (for example, 20 deg) in the width direction, the detection start position ST is set to the inner side of the boundary closer to the main body 1 of the block L, specifically, Is set to ½ inside the detection width (for example, 10 deg inside), so that the floor temperature detection sensor 14 is not rotated at an unnecessarily large angle.

  The motor 21 smoothly rotates the floor temperature detection sensor 14 from the detection start position ST to the detection end position EN, and detects the floor surface temperature in the direction in which the floor temperature detection sensor 14 is facing in the process. Then, the detected values are sequentially stored in the storage unit 27. Note that the detection end position EN is also set to an inner side from the boundary of the block R closer to the main body 1, specifically, to a half inner side of the detection width (for example, 10 deg inner side). Thus, the floor temperature detection sensor 14 is not rotated.

  Next, the maximum value and the minimum value among the floor surface temperatures stored in the storage unit 27 are calculated for each of the blocks L, CN, and R. Here, by setting the calculation range of each block to the inside of the boundary of each block, specifically, to the inside of the detection width 1/2 (for example, 10 deg inside), the floor temperature of the adjacent block is calculated. Can be prevented.

  In the cooling operation, the maximum value is the floor surface temperature of the block, and in the heating operation, the minimum value is the floor temperature of the block. As a result, the air conditioning output can be determined based on the least comfortable portion included in each block, so that the comfort can be improved.

  Next, an example of “temperature correction of the floor surface temperature detection sensor” performed in step S3 will be described.

  The controller 22 outputs two outputs of the floor temperature detection sensor 14, that is, both outputs of a thermistor that detects infrared rays emitted from the stationary body and a temperature correction thermistor that measures the ambient temperature of the floor temperature detection sensor 14, and suction. The floor surface temperature is corrected from the output of the temperature detection sensor 31. More specifically, the correction is performed based on the following formula 1.

That is, the corrected floor surface temperature is calculated based on the floor temperature before correction (output of the floor temperature detection sensor 14), the estimated temperature of the cover 15 and the ambient temperature of the floor temperature detection sensor 14 (output of the temperature correction thermistor). And the product of the gain α calculated as a specific value corresponding to the floor temperature detection sensor 14 and the cover 15 is subtracted. Here, the estimated temperature of the cover 15 may be an average of the suction temperature (output of the suction temperature detection sensor 31) and the ambient temperature of the floor temperature detection sensor 14 (output of the temperature correction thermistor).

  By this correction, even if the floor temperature detection sensor 14 detects the temperature of the cover 15 together with the floor surface temperature, it can compensate for this. A detection sensor that detects the temperature inside the cover 15 (the portion where the floor temperature detection sensor 14 covered by the cover 15 is installed) may be newly provided, and this output value may be used as the estimated temperature of the cover 15.

  As a result, the floor temperature detection sensor 14 can accurately detect the floor temperature without erroneously detecting the floor surface temperature. As a result, it is possible to reliably prevent air conditioning delays caused by false detection of floor surface temperature, for example, by detecting that the floor surface temperature is higher than actual during heating and performing air conditioning with weak air conditioning output, and quickly and comfortably It can be a space. Moreover, the floor temperature detection sensor 14 and the human body detection sensor 12 of the air conditioner can be covered with a cover 15 so that the external appearance of the main body 1 can be made clean.

  Even if the floor temperature detection sensor 14 is not covered with the cover 15, the ambient temperature of the floor temperature detection sensor 14 (output of the temperature correction thermistor) cannot be accurately detected, so that the floor temperature detection sensor 14 The surface temperature may be falsely detected. This is because the floor temperature detection sensor 14 is arranged at the lower front portion of the main body 1 having a slower wind speed than the suction air sucked into the suction port 2 and the blowout air blown out from the blowout port 3. This is because the temperature of the wind cannot be followed and the ambient temperature of the true floor temperature detection sensor 14 cannot be detected.

  In order to prevent this, correction may be performed based on the following Equation 2.

That is, the corrected floor surface temperature is calculated based on the floor temperature before correction (output of the floor temperature detection sensor 14) and the ambient temperature of the true floor temperature detection sensor 14 and the ambient temperature of the floor temperature detection sensor 14 (for temperature correction). The product of the difference from the output of the thermistor) and the amplification factor β calculated as a specific value corresponding to the floor temperature detection sensor 14 is subtracted. Here, the ambient temperature of the true floor temperature detection sensor 14 may be an average of the suction temperature (output of the suction temperature detection sensor 31) and the ambient temperature of the floor temperature detection sensor 14 (output of the temperature correction thermistor).

  According to this, even when the temperature correction thermistor cannot detect the true ambient temperature, such as when the indoor temperature suddenly fluctuates at the start of air conditioning at the start of air conditioning operation, the floor temperature The floor surface temperature detected by the detection sensor 14 can be accurately detected. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the floor surface temperature from being erroneously detected when the temperature fluctuation is large, such as when the air conditioner starts up, and to affect the subsequent control. it can.

  Finally, an example of the “wind direction control to the person position” performed in step S13 will be described with reference to FIG.

  In FIG. 11, the presence / absence determination of a person in areas A to G is first performed in step 31, and if there is one block including the area determined to have a person in step S32, the control of mode 1 is performed in step S33. Do. If it is determined in step S32 that there is not one block including an area determined to have a person, it is determined in step S34 whether there are two blocks including an area determined to have a person. In such a case, the mode 2 is controlled in step S35. Further, if it is determined in step 34 that there are not two blocks including the area determined to have a person, it is determined in step 36 whether there are three or more (three if the block is divided into three or more). In the case of three (if the block is divided into three or more), the control of mode 3 is performed in step 37.

  Various examples of wind direction control in each mode performed after the block including the area determined to have the person, that is, the block to be air-conditioned intensively, can be considered. Typical examples are shown in FIG. It is written together in the form of a table and explained below.

  First, mode 1 drives the left and right blades 10 to direct the blowing air to the block including the area where it is determined that the person is present, and the reference set temperature and the suction temperature corrected based on the floor surface temperature of the area. Air conditioning is performed by the air conditioning output corresponding to the difference between the two.

  For example, when it is determined that there is a person in the area B, the left and right blades 10 are fixed in the direction of the block L including the area B. Further, the air conditioning is performed by the air conditioning output corresponding to the difference between the reference set temperature corrected based on the floor surface temperature of the block L and the suction temperature.

  If it is determined that a person is located in the area A, the person is located in one or both sides or the middle of the room, that is, in any of the blocks L, CN, and R. Cannot determine whether it is present. Therefore, in this case, the left and right blades 10 are swung (swing) at a predetermined cycle (for example, one reciprocation per minute) so that the airflow reaches the entire region A. At this time, the left and right blades are not stopped for a predetermined time at both ends of the region A, so that the wind can reach the entire region A uniformly.

  In mode 2, the left and right blades 10 are swung between the blocks including the region where it is determined that there is a person, and the blowing air is directed to the two corresponding regions, and the correction is made based on the floor temperature of the block. The air conditioning is performed by the air conditioning output corresponding to the difference between the set reference temperature and the suction temperature. At this time, the left and right blades 10 oscillate between the two blocks, but stop for a while at each block so that a large amount of blown air is blown into the block so that the corresponding block can be quickly heated or cooled. It has become. In this case, when the floor surface temperatures of the two blocks are different from each other, it is set so that the blowing air is blown out for a longer time when the difference between the floor surface temperature and the floor control target temperature is larger.

  For example, when it is determined that there are people in the region B and the region F, the left and right blades 10 are swung between the block L including the region B and the block CN including the region F. Alternatively, when it is determined that there are people in the region B and the region G, the left and right blades 10 are swung between the block L including the region B and the block R including the region G. In this case, when the floor surface temperature of the block L is lower than the floor surface temperature of the block R, the time for stopping in the block L is made longer than the block R, and the floor surface temperature of the block L is further increased.

  Accordingly, the block having a larger difference between the floor surface temperature and the floor control target temperature can be made comfortable at the same speed as the other block.

Finally, in mode 3, the left and right blades 10 are swung by a block including a region where it is determined that a person is present, the blowing air is directed to the corresponding three blocks, and corrected based on the floor temperature of the block. Air conditioning is performed by the air conditioning output corresponding to the difference between the reference set temperature and the suction temperature. The left and right blades 10 swing between the three blocks. In this case, the floor surface temperature of the middle block (block CN) of the three blocks is the lowest and the floors on both sides (block L and block R) are the same. When the surface temperature is almost the same temperature, the blocks on both the left and right sides (Block L and Block R) are stopped for a while and a large amount of blown air is blown out to the block part. As a result, the number of times the blowing air is blown out to the middle block (block CN) is increased as a result. As a result, a large amount of wind is blown out to the block CN, which is the middle block having the lowest floor temperature, and can be made comfortable at the same speed as other blocks.

  In the present embodiment, when an area determined to have a person spans a plurality of blocks, an average floor surface temperature is calculated by averaging the floor surface temperatures of the plurality of blocks. The floor control target temperature is determined according to the surface temperature.

  Note that the wind direction control example of the blown wind by the swinging of the left and right blades in the mode 1, mode 2, and mode 3 described in the above wind direction control is only an example, and many other control examples are conceivable. In mode 3, there are various considerations such as the swinging / stopping time distribution of the left and right blades and the speed / cycle of the swinging itself. Although this wind direction control has not been specifically described, it is more effective when performed in a form including the upper and lower blades 8. In this case, the upper and lower blades 8 together with the left and right blades 10 serve as wind direction changing plates. Furthermore, as already mentioned, since the human activity sensor 12 can detect the amount of activity of the person, if the control of the amount of activity of the person is taken together with the floor temperature, more comfortable air conditioning control can be performed. Become.

  Thus, in this air conditioner, if the human body detection sensor 12 detects the movement of the person, even if it takes time to detect the floor surface temperature by the movable floor temperature detection sensor 14, the floor temperature detection sensor 14 Using the detected floor temperature in the post-movement position before moving the person, you can immediately change any of the wind direction, blowing air temperature, air volume, set temperature, and compressor speed, and move the person. Therefore, the comfort of the person position can be improved without delay. Therefore, the comfort of the air conditioning in the transition period that shifts to the air conditioning stability period can be greatly improved.

  As mentioned above, although the air conditioner concerning the present invention was explained using the above-mentioned embodiment, the present invention is not limited to this. That is, the embodiment disclosed this time should be considered as illustrative in all points and not restrictive. That is, the scope of the present invention is shown not by the above description but by the scope of claims, and is intended to include all modifications within the meaning and scope equivalent to the scope of claims.

  For example, the fixed body temperature detection sensor 14 has been described in the case of detecting the temperature of the floor surface in this example, but this may include the case of detecting both the wall surface and furniture, or both the wall surface and furniture together with the floor surface. .

  Also, examples of human presence / absence and movement detection, floor surface temperature detection, wind direction control to human positions, etc. have been shown in this embodiment. Such a method may be used, and any of them may be included.

  As described above, the present invention can improve the comfort of the air conditioning in the transitional period that shifts to the air conditioning stable period, and can provide an air conditioner that can perform a more comfortable air conditioning. Of course, it can be widely applied to commercial air conditioners.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Main body 2 Suction port 3 Outlet 4 Front panel 5 Filter 6 Heat exchanger 7 Fan 8 Upper and lower blades 9 Ventilation path 10 Left and right blades 11 Electrical unit 12 Movable body detection sensor (human body detection sensor)
14 Fixed body temperature detection sensor (floor temperature detection sensor)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 15 Cover 16, 17, 18 Sensor unit 19 Sensor holder 20 Element holder 20a Sensor element 21 Motor 22 Control part 23 Input device (remote control device)
24 Room temperature detection unit 25 Human existence / movement determination unit 26 Fixed body temperature determination unit (floor temperature determination unit)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 27 Memory | storage part 28 Air conditioning output part 29 Room temperature setting part 30 Air conditioning mode selection part 31 Suction temperature detection sensor 32 Control target temperature calculation part 33 Temperature arrival detection part 34 Output control part

Claims (2)

A movable body detection sensor that detects a movable body that moves, a fixed body temperature detection sensor that is provided separately from the movable body detection sensor and detects the temperature of a stationary body that does not move, and an infrared that covers the front of the fixed body temperature detection sensor It has a transmission type cover and a suction temperature detection sensor for detecting the temperature of the space to be air-conditioned. The fixed body temperature detection sensor detects the ambient temperature of the thermistor and the fixed body temperature detection sensor for detecting the infrared rays emitted from the fixed body. A temperature-correcting thermistor to be measured, and a control unit that controls at least one of a wind direction, an air volume, and a compressor rotational speed based on outputs of the movable body detection sensor and the fixed body temperature detection sensor; The movable body detection sensor is composed of a pyroelectric element type infrared sensor and is fixed, and the fixed body temperature detection sensor is composed of a thermoelectric element type infrared sensor. And movable, the control unit divides the space to be conditioned to a plurality of human detection area, detects the presence or absence of a person in the output from the movable body detection sensor in the person detection region, the space to be conditioned The floor temperature detection area is divided into a plurality of the human detection areas, the floor surface temperature is detected by the output from the stationary body temperature detection sensor in the floor temperature detection area, and the suction temperature detection sensor and the temperature correction thermistor The air conditioner corrects the floor surface temperature based on both the output and controls the at least one of the wind direction, the air volume, and the compressor rotation speed by the output of the movable body detection sensor and the output of the stationary body temperature detection sensor. Machine. The control unit moves the wind direction changing plate so that the wind direction is directed to the plurality of person detection areas when the movable body detection sensor detects a plurality of person detection areas, and detects the person. 2. The air according to claim 1 , wherein a floor temperature in a floor temperature detection area including the air is compared, and the air is controlled so as to be directed toward the human detection area on the side determined to have a large air-conditioning load based on the floor temperature. Harmony machine.