JP6945907B2 - Snowmelt control system - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a snowmelt control system having a plurality of snowmelt devices.

Conventionally, there is known a snowmelt control system that has a snowmelting device that is electrically driven and that melts snow by driving the snowmelting device (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

The snowmelt control system described in Patent Document 1 operates the snowmelt device when it is determined that snow is accumulated when the power of the snowmelt device is restored from a power failure state, and the snowmelt device is not accumulated. When it is determined, the snow melting device is controlled so as not to operate, so that the snow accumulated during the power failure is effectively melted after the power is turned on.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2013-142267

In the snowmelt control system described in Cited Document 1, when the snowmelting implementation range is wide, it is conceivable to provide a plurality of snowmelting devices. In this case, when it is determined that there is snow after the power failure is restored, all of the plurality of snowmelting devices are driven, so that the power consumption is large, and the power supply having a large capacity is supported in order to support all the driving of the plurality of snowmelting devices. It was necessary to secure.

Further, in the snowmelt control system described in Cited Document 1, when the snowmelting device is driven, it is always driven at a constant output regardless of the difference in the situation, so that excessive power consumption may occur. There was a demand for drive control of the snowmelting device accordingly.

The present invention has been made in view of the above background, and an object of the present invention is to provide a snowmelt control system that can be driven by a power source having a small capacity and can control the drive of a snowmelting device according to a situation. And.

[1] The snowmelt control system of the present invention is a snowmelt control system having a plurality of electrically driven snowmelting devices, and controls the driving of the plurality of snowmelting devices, and is adjacent to the plurality of snowmelting devices. A control unit for sequentially turning on and off the plurality of snowmelting devices so as not to turn on the snowmelting devices at the same time is provided, and the control unit can change the applied voltage stepwise when the plurality of snowmelting devices are turned on. It is characterized in that the applied voltage is controlled according to the situation of the place where the plurality of snowmelting devices are installed.

[2] A plurality of temperature sensors for detecting the surface temperature of each of the plurality of snow melting devices are provided.
It is preferable that the control unit controls the applied voltage applied to each of the plurality of snowmelting devices so that the detected surface temperature of each of the plurality of snowmelting devices detected by the plurality of sensors is within a predetermined temperature range.

[3] A sensor for detecting the temperature of the environment in which the plurality of snow melting devices are installed is provided, and the control unit determines that the detected environment temperature detected by the sensor is equal to or higher than a preset set temperature. It is preferable to set a predetermined voltage as the applied voltage, and when the detected environment temperature is lower than the set temperature, set a voltage higher than the predetermined voltage as the applied voltage.

[4] A snow cover detection unit for detecting the amount of snow accumulated in each of the plurality of snow melting devices is provided, and the control unit includes each of the plurality of snow melting devices according to the detected snow cover amount detected by the snow melting device. It is preferable to control the applied voltage.

[5] It is preferable that the control unit controls the applied voltage of each of the plurality of snowmelting devices based on the weather information.

According to the snowmelt control system of the present invention, since the plurality of snowmelting devices are turned on and off in order, the snowmelting devices can be driven by a power source having a smaller capacity than those in which the plurality of snowmelting devices are turned on at the same time. Further, since the applied voltage can be changed stepwise when the plurality of snowmelting devices are turned on, the outputs of the plurality of snowmelting devices can be individually changed. As a result, it is possible to control the drive of the snowmelting device according to the situation. Since the drive of the plurality of snowmelting devices is controlled according to the situation of the place where the plurality of snowmelting devices are installed, for example, the output of the snowmelting device in the place where the amount of snow is large is increased based on the photographed image of the installation place. It is possible to reduce the output of the snow melting device in a place where the amount of snow is small and to perform effective snow melting such as turning off the snow melting device in a place where there is no snow. Since the drive of the plurality of snow melting devices is controlled according to the temperature of the place where the plurality of snow melting devices are installed or the snowfall condition, effective snow melting can be performed. Since the drive of a plurality of snow melting devices is controlled according to the train operation schedule, effective snow melting can be performed even when the train carries snow, for example. Since the drive of the plurality of snowmelt mats is controlled according to the surface temperature of the plurality of snowmelt mats, for example, when the surface temperature is lower than the set temperature, the plurality of snowmelt mats are turned on and the surface temperature is equal to or higher than the set temperature. In some cases, effective snow melting such as turning off a plurality of snow melting mats can be performed.

The side view which shows typically the snowmelt control system of this invention. Explanatory drawing which shows the rail and the 1st to 4th snowmelt mats. A timing chart showing on / off of the first group of snowmelt mats and the second group of snowmelt mats. The graph which shows the temperature change when the snowmelt mat of the 1st group and the snowmelt mat of the 2nd group are turned on / off. Data showing the detected temperature when the applied voltage is changed.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

First, an example of the structure of the snowmelt control system 2 will be described.

As shown in FIG. 1, the snowmelt control system 2 includes a control unit 3, a memory 4, and a communication unit 5. The communication unit 5 is for communicating with the outside, and acquires weather information via the Internet, for example. Each part 3 to 5 is connected to each other.

The snowmelt control system 2 includes first to fourth snowmelt mats 11 to 14 (snowmelting devices) in which heating wires are arranged and electrically driven. The first to fourth snowmelt mats 11 to 14 are well-known, and the detailed description thereof will be simplified. However, the first to fourth snowmelt mats are mats formed in a sheet shape, and the drive is individually controlled by the control unit 3.

In the present embodiment, the first to fourth snowmelt mats 11 to 14 are, for example, between the rails 16 for trains, the first snowmelt mat 11, the second snowmelt mat 12, the third snowmelt mat 13, and the fourth snowmelt mat 14. They are arranged side by side in the order of (see FIG. 2).

The control unit 3 can change the applied voltage stepwise when the first to fourth snowmelt mats 11 to 14 are turned on. In the present embodiment, for example, the applied voltage is set to 5% to 100% of the maximum voltage. It can be changed in 5% increments.

The memory 4 stores a program or the like for driving the first to fourth snowmelt mats 11 to 14.

The camera 20 is arranged at a position where the portions where the first to fourth snowmelt mats 11 to 14 are installed can be photographed, and transmits the photographed image data to the communication unit 5 of the snowmelt control system 2. As the camera 20, for example, a camera installed by a train operating company is used.

The first to fourth temperature sensors 21 to 24 are arranged at positions where the surface temperatures of the first to fourth snowmelt mats 11 to 14 can be detected, and the detected surface temperatures are transmitted to the communication unit 5 of the snowmelt control system 2. Send. The first to fourth temperature sensors 21 to 24 may be provided as a part of the snowmelt control system 2.

In the present embodiment, the control unit 3 controls the first snowmelt mat 11 and the third snowmelt mat 13 as the first group of snowmelt mats based on the surface temperatures detected by the first to fourth temperature sensors 21 to 24. Then, the second snowmelt mat 12 and the fourth snowmelt mat 14 are controlled as the second group of snowmelt mats.

[Snowmelt control]
When snowmelt control is performed by the snowmelt control system 2, the first to fourth temperature sensors 21 to 24 transmit the detected surface temperatures of the first to fourth snowmelt mats 11 to 14 to the snowmelt control system 2.

The control unit 3 controls the driving of the first to fourth snowmelt mats 11 to 14 according to the detected surface temperatures of the first to fourth snowmelt mats 11 to 14.

As shown in FIG. 3, when the detected surface temperature of the snowmelt mats 11 and 13 of the first group is equal to or lower than the preset first set temperature, the control unit 3 uses the snowmelt mats 11 and 13 of the first group. Turn on (t1). At this time, even if the detected surface temperature of the snowmelt mats 12 and 14 of the second group is equal to or lower than the first set temperature, the snowmelt mats 12 and 14 of the second group are not turned on and are maintained in the off state (t1).

Further, when the snowmelt mats 11 and 13 of the first group are turned on, the control unit 3 changes the applied voltage stepwise based on the environmental temperature (outside air temperature) detected by the sensor (not shown). .. For example, when the detection environment temperature is equal to or higher than the preset second set temperature, a predetermined voltage is set as the applied voltage, and when the detected surface temperature is lower than the second set temperature, the voltage is higher than the predetermined voltage. A voltage (for example, a voltage 1.2 times a predetermined voltage) is defined as an applied voltage.

When the control unit 3 reaches t2, the snow melting mats 11 and 13 of the first group are turned off, and the snow melting mats 12 and 14 of the second group are turned on. At this time, similarly to the snow melting mats 11 and 13 of the first group, the control unit 3 sets a predetermined voltage as the applied voltage when the detection environment temperature is equal to or higher than the second set temperature, and the detection surface temperature is set to. When the temperature is lower than the second set temperature, a voltage higher than the predetermined voltage (for example, a voltage 1.2 times the predetermined voltage) is set as the applied voltage.

When the control unit 3 reaches t3, the snow melting mats 12 and 14 of the second group are turned off, and the snow melting mats 11 and 13 of the first group are turned on. At this time, the control unit 3 performs the same applied voltage control as described above.

When the control unit 3 reaches t4, the control unit 3 performs the same control as when it reaches t2. At this time, the control unit 3 performs the same applied voltage control as described above.

When the control unit 3 reaches t5, the control unit 3 performs the same control as when it reaches t3. At this time, the control unit 3 performs the same applied voltage control as described above.

When the control unit 3 reaches t6, the control unit 3 performs the same control as when it reaches t2. At this time, the control unit 3 performs the same applied voltage control as described above. After that, the control unit 3 alternately repeats the control when the t3 is reached and the control when the t4 is reached.

The control unit 3 has a first unit so that the detected surface temperatures of the first to fourth snowmelt mats 11 to 14 detected by the first to fourth temperature sensors 21 to 24 are within a predetermined temperature range (predetermined temperature). The applied voltage applied to the fourth snowmelt mats 11 to 14 and the on-time thereof (t1 to t2, t2 to t3, t3 to t4, t4 to t5, t5 to t6) are controlled. For example, when the applied voltage is increased, the on-time is shortened, and when the applied voltage is decreased, the on-time is lengthened. Further, each applied voltage and each on-time may or may not be constant. Further, one of the snow melting mats 11 and 13 of the first group and the snow melting mats 12 and 14 of the second group may be turned on / off after a lapse of a predetermined time.

In FIG. 4, the first group snowmelt mats 11 and 13 and the second group snowmelt mats 12 and 14 are shown at an ambient temperature (outside air temperature) of 3 ° C., an on time and an off time of 20 minutes and 1200 W / m ^2. The experimental results obtained by detecting the surface temperatures of the snowmelt mats 11 and 13 of the first group and the snowmelt mats 12 and 14 of the second group by the first to fourth temperature sensors 21 to 24 when turned on are shown.

From this experimental result, even when the snow melting mats 11 and 13 of the first group and the snow melting mats 12 and 14 of the second group are turned off, the temperature of 21 ° C. or higher is maintained, so that the snow melting performance can be maintained. rice field.

Further, since only one of the snow melting mats 11 and 13 of the first group and the snow melting mats 12 and 14 of the second group are turned on, the power consumption can be suppressed to half as compared with the one turning both. did it.

FIG. 5 shows an experiment in which an applied voltage (boosting) experiment (210 mm snow cover state, driven for 2 hours) was performed at an ambient temperature of 0 ° C using the same snow melting mats as the 1st to 4th snow melting mats 11 to 14. It is a table which shows the result. From this experimental result, it was found that the characteristic of voltage ratio <temperature ratio was obtained. Utilizing this characteristic, in the present invention, the temperature of the snowmelt mat can be effectively raised by changing (increasing) the voltage, so that the temperature of the snowmelt mat can be effectively raised, as compared with the one that is turned on for a long time without changing the voltage. , Efficient snow melting can be performed.

The present invention has been described above with respect to preferred embodiments thereof, but as can be easily understood by those skilled in the art, the present invention is not limited to such embodiments and deviates from the gist of the present invention. It can be changed as appropriate as long as it does not.

For example, in the above embodiment, the first to fourth snowmelt mats 11 to 14 are installed between the rails 16 for trains, but the place where the first to fourth snowmelt mats 11 to 14 are installed can be changed as appropriate. Therefore, it may be installed in a place where snowmelt is required, for example, a platform of a station, a staircase of a station, a sidewalk of an urban area, a staircase of an urban area, or the like.

Further, the control unit 3 performs well-known image processing based on the image data taken from the camera 20, detects the amount of snow accumulated in each of the first to fourth snowmelt mats 11 to 14, and determines the amount of snow accumulated (snow cover situation). Depending on the situation, the driving of the first to fourth snowmelt mats 11 to 14 may be controlled. For example, when the amount of snow accumulated is larger than the predetermined amount, the applied voltage when the first to fourth snowmelt mats 11 to 14 are turned on is increased.

Further, a thermography camera having a thermography function is provided at a position where all of the first to fourth snowmelt mats 11 to 14 can be photographed in addition to the first to fourth temperature sensors 21 to 24, and the thermography camera is provided. The surface temperature of the first to fourth snowmelt mats 11 to 14 may be detected accordingly. The camera 20 may be used as a camera having a thermography function.

Further, the environmental temperature of the place where the first to fourth snowmelt mats 11 to 14 are installed is detected by the temperature sensor, and the control unit 3 determines the first to fourth snowmelt mats 11 to 14 based on the detected ambient temperature. You may try to control the drive of. For example, when the ambient temperature is high, the on-time is shortened.

Further, the control unit 3 may control the driving of the first to fourth snowmelt mats 11 to 14 based on the weather information acquired by the communication unit 5 via the Internet. For example, if there is a snowfall forecast, increase the applied voltage when turning it on, or turn it on before the forecast time when it snows.

Further, when the first to fourth snowmelt mats 11 to 14 are arranged between the rails of the train, the driving of the first to fourth snowmelt mats 11 to 14 is controlled according to the train operation schedule. May be good. For example, it turns on before the train arrives to complete the snowmelt, and stays off if there is time for the train to arrive.

Further, in the above embodiment, the snowmelting device is composed of sheet-shaped snowmelting mats 11 to 14, but the shape and structure of the snowmelting device can be appropriately changed as long as it is electrically driven. A rod-shaped snow melting device may be used. In this case, for example, a lock (for example, a padlock) provided around the rail for a train is stored in a case, and a rod-shaped snow melting device is installed around the case. As a result, it is possible to prevent the lock from being frozen and damaged by snow.

2 ... Snowmelt control system, 3 ... Control unit, 11-14 ... 1st to 4th snowmelt mats (snowmelting device), 20 ... Camera, 21-24 ... 1st to 4th temperature sensors

Claims (5)

A snowmelt control system that has multiple electrically driven snowmelt devices.
A control unit that controls the drive of the plurality of snowmelting devices and turns on and off the plurality of snowmelting devices in order so as not to simultaneously turn on the adjacent snowmelting devices among the plurality of snowmelting devices is provided.
The control unit can change the applied voltage stepwise when the plurality of snowmelting devices are turned on, and controls the applied voltage according to the situation of the place where the plurality of snowmelting devices are installed. A featured snowmelt control system. In the snowmelt control system according to claim 1,
A plurality of temperature sensors for detecting the surface temperature of each of the plurality of snow melting devices are provided.
The control unit is characterized in that the applied voltage applied to each of the plurality of snowmelting devices is controlled so that the detected surface temperature of each of the plurality of snowmelting devices detected by the plurality of sensors is within a predetermined temperature range. Snowmelt control system. In the snowmelt control system according to claim 1 or 2.
A sensor for detecting the temperature of the environment in which the plurality of snow melting devices are installed is provided.
When the detection environment temperature detected by the sensor is equal to or higher than a preset set temperature, the control unit sets a predetermined voltage as an applied voltage, and when the detection environment temperature is lower than the set temperature. In addition, a snow melting control system characterized in that a voltage higher than the predetermined voltage is applied. In the snowmelt control system according to any one of claims 1 to 3.
A snow cover detection unit for detecting the snow cover of each of the plurality of snow melting devices is provided.
The control unit is a snowmelt control system characterized in that the applied voltage of each of the plurality of snowmelting devices is controlled according to the detected snowfall amount detected by the snowfall amount detecting unit. In the snowmelt control system according to any one of claims 1 to 4.
The control unit is a snowmelt control system characterized in that the applied voltage of each of the plurality of snowmelting devices is controlled based on the weather information.

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