JP7329760B2 - Device information management system and control method - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a device information management system, and more particularly to a device information management system that enables a terminal device to easily acquire device information.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, for example, in an air conditioner, a remote controller is used to perform various displays and operations.
Conventionally, for example, the basic screen (110) is provided with a message display column for displaying a message, and the control unit (20) does not receive an abnormality notification signal input for notifying an abnormality from the air conditioner. At this time, nothing is displayed in the message display column, and the control unit (20) receives an abnormality notification signal input from the air conditioner and displays a character message requesting one-time operation input by the confirmation means (15) in the message display column. After that, when one operation input is received by the confirmation means (15), the screen of the display unit (11) is switched to another screen (112), and the user asks about the abnormality corresponding to the abnormality notification signal input. A technique has been disclosed for collectively displaying on the display unit (11) the information for dealing with anomalies (131) consisting of a plurality of pieces of information (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Japanese Patent No. 4820313

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a device information management system and a control method that improve usability for users who want to use only simple browsing .

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides storage means for storing information about an air conditioner, determination means for determining a user's account, and information stored by the storage means according to the determination result of the determination means. a restriction means for restricting browsing, the user's account includes at least a first account that requires approval and a second account that does not require approval; Among the information that can be viewed by the user of the account, at least the detailed information of the property where the air conditioner is installed is restricted so that the user of the second account cannot view it, and at least the user can view the instruction manual. is characterized in that neither the user of the first account nor the user of the second account is restricted .

According to the present invention, usability is improved for users who want to use only simple browsing.

A configuration diagram showing an embodiment of an air conditioner to which the present invention is applied Block diagram showing the control configuration of this embodiment A diagram showing a display example when registering device information according to the present embodiment. A diagram showing processing for registering property information according to the present embodiment. The figure which shows the process which inputs the inspection information of this embodiment. The figure which shows the process which browses the inspection log|history of this embodiment. A diagram showing an example of the operation status of the main account and the temporary account of this embodiment The figure which shows the state where manufacturing ID of this embodiment was changed. Flowchart showing device information registration operation of the present embodiment Flowchart showing property information registration operation of the present embodiment Flowchart showing operation operation by account of this embodiment Flowchart showing management operation of unique ID information of the present embodiment

A first invention provides a device including a device control unit and a device communication unit that output an operation control signal for an air conditioner and acquire device information that constitutes the air conditioner; a terminal control unit; A terminal device having a terminal communication unit that communicates with a device and a terminal display unit is provided, and the terminal device acquires the device information sent from the device control unit.
According to this, the terminal device can acquire and register the device information from the device, thereby making it possible to collectively manage the device information constituting the air conditioner.

In a second aspect of the invention, the device communication unit is a light emitting unit, the terminal communication unit is a light receiving unit that performs visible light communication with the light emitting unit of the device, and the terminal device includes: By performing light emission control of the light emitting unit, the device information sent from the light emitting unit by visible light communication is received by the light receiving unit and the device information is obtained.
According to this, since visible light communication is used for communication between the device and the terminal device, the device information can be easily acquired, and there is no need to install a separate communication device, which increases the manufacturing cost. I don't even have to.

A third aspect of the invention is that the device is a remote controller for the air conditioner.
According to this, the device information can be transmitted from the remote controller of the air conditioner to the terminal device.

In a fourth invention, the device control section is a remote control section provided in a remote control of the air conditioner, and the light emitting section is a remote control display section provided in the remote control.
According to this, the device information can be transmitted to the terminal device by visible light communication by blinking the remote control display unit.

A fifth aspect of the invention is provided with a cloud server capable of communicating with the terminal device, and the terminal control unit having acquired the device information sent from the device control unit sends the acquired device information to the cloud server. , the cloud server stores the device information.
According to this, the terminal device can acquire and register the device information from the device, and by storing this device information in the cloud server, the device information constituting the air conditioner can be collectively managed. , and device information can be shared among users who can connect to the cloud server.

In a sixth aspect of the invention, the terminal device can input property information on which the air conditioner is installed, the terminal device sends the property information to the cloud server, and the cloud server receives the property information is stored in association with the device information.
According to this, the property information and the device information can be associated and managed, so that the air conditioners installed in one property can be collectively managed.

In a seventh invention, the terminal device can input inspection results of the air conditioner, the terminal device sends the inspection results to the cloud server, and the cloud server transmits the inspection results to the equipment. Save in association with information.
According to this, it is possible to easily browse inspection results corresponding to the device information.

In an eighth invention, the cloud server sets an account when an account request from a user of the terminal device is approved, and allows the user who has set the account to view information stored in the cloud server. and the cloud server sets a temporary account if the account request is not approved, and allows the user who has set the temporary account to partially view the information stored in the cloud server. Restrict.
According to this, it is possible to improve usability for a user who wants to use only simple browsing by setting restrictions on the operation of the temporary account with respect to the main account.

In a ninth invention, the device stores a unique ID in the device information of the air conditioner, and manages based on the stored unique ID.
According to this, by storing the unique ID information of the device in the remote controller memory, it is possible to manage the device based on the original unique ID information even when the control board is replaced.

In a tenth invention, the terminal device is a smartphone or a tablet terminal, and the light receiving unit is a camera mounted on the smartphone or the tablet terminal.
According to this, since the camera of the terminal device can be used as the light receiving section, there is no need to install the light receiving section separately in the terminal device, and the facility cost can be reduced.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of a device information management system according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram showing an embodiment of an air conditioner to which a device information management system according to the present invention is applied.
The air conditioner 1 shown in FIG. 1 includes an outdoor unit 10, a plurality of indoor units 20, and a remote controller 30 as a device.

As shown in FIG. 1, the equipment information management system includes an air conditioner 1, a terminal device 40, and a cloud server 50 as a server.
In this embodiment, one system of the air conditioner 1 is configured by connecting a plurality of (four in this embodiment) indoor units 20 to one outdoor unit 10 .
In this embodiment, two outdoor units 10 are connected to one remote controller 30, and two systems of air conditioners 1 are managed by one remote controller 30. FIG.

The remote controller 30 has a box-shaped main body 31 installed on a wall surface in a room. A remote control display unit 32 made up of, for example, a liquid crystal display panel is provided on the front surface of the main body 31 . Below the remote control display unit 32, a plurality of operation buttons 33 are provided for the user to perform operation to start or stop operation, menu operation, cursor key operation, and the like.
A display lamp 34 such as an LED for displaying the operating state of the air conditioner 1 is provided at the lower right portion of the front surface of the main body 31 .

In addition, the terminal device 40 includes a terminal display section 41 such as a liquid crystal display panel. In this embodiment, as the terminal device 40, for example, a smart phone, a tablet terminal, or the like is used. The terminal display unit 41 is configured by a touch panel or the like, and is configured to function also as an operation unit.
The terminal device 40 includes a camera 42 as a light receiving section for receiving light emitted by the remote control display section 32 .

Next, the control configuration of this embodiment will be described.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the control configuration of this embodiment.
As shown in FIG. 2, the remote control 30 includes a remote control section 35 as a device control section. A room temperature sensor 61 for detecting the room temperature is provided inside the remote controller 30, and a remote controller memory 36 for storing predetermined information is provided inside the remote controller 30. .
The remote control unit 35 controls the display of the remote control display unit 32 and controls the display of the remote control display unit 32 in response to various operation signals such as an operation to start operation by the operation button 33, an operation to switch operation such as cooling operation or heating operation, and a setting temperature operation. to control the blinking of Further, the remote controller 35 is configured to output an operation control signal to the indoor unit 20 based on the room temperature detected by the room temperature sensor 61 .

Also, the indoor unit 20 includes an indoor controller 21 . The indoor controller 21 is configured to control the driving of the indoor blower fan 22 and the flap 23 based on the driving control signal from the remote controller 35 .
The outdoor unit 10 also includes an outdoor control unit 11 . The indoor control unit 21 is configured to output an operation control signal to the outdoor control unit 11, and the outdoor control unit 11 receives the operation control signal sent from the indoor control unit 21, the outside air temperature sensor 62, and the refrigerant pressure sensor 63. The drive frequency of the compressor 12 and the drive control of the outdoor blower fan 13 are configured to be performed based on the detected value.
In the present embodiment, the remote controller 35 is configured to integrally manage the controls by the indoor controller 21 and the outdoor controller 11 .

In addition, the outdoor control unit 11 sends information on the drive frequency of the compressor 12, information on the outside temperature from the outside temperature sensor 62, and information on the pressure of the refrigerant from the refrigerant pressure sensor 63 to the remote control unit 35, and the remote control unit 35 receives this information. are sequentially stored in the remote controller memory 36 .
In addition, the outdoor control unit 11 and the indoor control unit 21 send the unique ID information of the outdoor unit 10 and the indoor unit 20, specifically, the management number and model name at the time of manufacture to the remote control unit 35, and the remote control unit 35 stores these pieces of information in the remote control memory 36 sequentially. The ID information is managed as device information.

The terminal device 40 has a terminal control section 43 . The terminal device 40 has a terminal memory 44 for storing predetermined information. The terminal device 40 also includes a terminal communication unit 45, and is configured to be able to communicate with the cloud server 50 through the network by the terminal communication unit 45. FIG.
Also, the terminal device 40 is configured to receive an optical signal from the remote controller display section 32 of the remote controller 30 via an image sensor provided in the camera 42 .
The remote control memory 36 stores a program for blinking light signals from the remote control display unit 32. The remote control control unit 35 reads and executes this program to cause the remote control display unit 32 to blink. It is configured so that various information stored in the remote controller memory 36 can be transmitted.
For example, the order of pressing the operation buttons 33 for performing transmission by light emission is set in advance, and the user presses the operation buttons 33 in the set order. By performing a dynamic operation, the remote control display section 32 is controlled by the remote control section 35 to perform transmission by blinking light emission.

Further, the terminal control unit 43 is configured to receive various information transmitted by the light emission of the remote control display unit 32 by receiving the transmission by the light emission of the remote control display unit 32 with the camera 42 .
The terminal memory 44 stores a program for the camera 42 to receive visible light communication emitted by the remote control display unit 32. By reading and executing this program, the terminal control unit 43 Various information can be obtained from the remote controller 30 . This program can be obtained by downloading a dedicated application via a network when using a smartphone or a tablet terminal as the terminal device 40 .

As means for transmitting information from the remote controller display unit 32 of the remote controller 30, for example, a technique called visible light communication is used.
For example, the technique disclosed in the document "Development of Image Sensor Receiving Type Visible Light Communication Technology (Panasonic Technical Journal Vol.61 No.2 Nov.2015)" is used. Such visible light communication technology is a visible light communication technology capable of transmitting various information at high speed by blinking an LED light source at high speed. Specifically, for example, by blinking the LED light source at high speed, 128-bit information can be transmitted in 0.3 seconds.

(Device information registration processing)
Next, processing for registering device information by the terminal device 40 will be described.
FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a display example of the terminal display section 41 of the terminal device 40 when registering device information.
The user uses the terminal device 40 to register each device of the air conditioner 1 .
As shown in FIG. 3A , the terminal display unit 41 of the terminal device 40 displays the outdoor unit 10 used in the air conditioner 1 based on the device information sent from the remote control 30 .
The user first designates the relevant outdoor unit 10 and registers it as the outdoor unit 10 of the air conditioner 1 . Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 3B, the user designates the second outdoor unit 10 displayed on the terminal device 40 and registers it as the second outdoor unit 10 of the air conditioner 1. do.

Next, based on the device information sent from the remote controller 30, the indoor units 20 used in the air conditioner 1 are displayed on the terminal display section 41 of the terminal device 40 in FIG. 3(c).
The user designates the corresponding indoor unit 20 and registers it as the indoor unit 20 of the air conditioner 1 . Each indoor unit 20 connected to the outdoor unit 10 for which this operation has already been registered is sequentially registered, and all the indoor units 20 are registered as shown in FIG. 3(d).

The terminal device 40 acquires the device information of the registered outdoor unit 10 and the indoor unit 20, transmits the device information to the cloud server 50, and the cloud server 50 saves the device information.
Here, the device information includes, for example, system numbers of the outdoor unit 10 and the indoor unit 20, unique IDs, model names, unit numbers, master unit IDs, remote controller IDs, and the like.

(Property information registration process)
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing processing for registering property information.
As shown in FIG. 4(a), after completing the registration of the equipment information, the information of the property where the air conditioner 1 is installed is registered. The property information includes, for example, property name, address, manager name of air conditioner 1, telephone number, and the like.
The user operates the terminal display section 41 of the terminal device 40 to register property information. The upper part of FIG. 4 shows an example of newly registering property information.
As shown in FIG. 4(b), when newly registering the property information, the user selects "new registration" on the terminal display section 41 to display the property information as shown in FIG. 4(c). registration screen is displayed. Following this display, enter the "administrator's name", "address", "telephone number", and "facility name".
In this state, when the user selects "Complete", the input property information is displayed as shown in FIG. 4(d). As a result, as shown in FIG. 4E, the property information is registered, sent to the cloud server 50, and stored by the cloud server 50 in association with the device information.

On the other hand, when adding equipment information to existing property information, such as when a new air conditioner 1 is installed in a property that has already been registered, the user must: Select "Add to existing property information".
As a result, a list of already registered property information is displayed as shown in FIG. 4(g). The user selects and confirms the relevant property in the list, thereby associating the device information with the existing property information, as shown in FIG. 4(h). This property information and device information are sent to the cloud server 50 and stored by the cloud server 50 .

(Inspection information input processing)
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a process of inputting inspection information of the air conditioner 1. As shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 5A, when inputting inspection information, the user selects "inspection input". In addition, in this embodiment, an example of performing a simple inspection based on the Fluorocarbon Emission Control Law is shown.
When "inspection input" is selected, the already registered device information is displayed on the terminal display section 41 as shown in FIG. 5(b), and the user selects the device to be inspected.

When a device is selected, a list of inspection details is displayed on the terminal display unit 41 as shown in FIG. 5(c), and the user inputs the inspection result. Inspection contents include, for example, ``frost on the heat exchanger of the indoor unit'', ``bleeding of oil in the heat exchanger and piping of the indoor unit'', ``abnormal vibration/abnormal operating sound of the indoor unit'', and the outdoor unit 10 "Abnormal vibration/abnormal operation sound situation". Note that the inspection contents shown in FIG. 5 are only examples, and arbitrary inspection contents can be set as necessary.
When the user inputs the inspection result, selects "save", and then "confirms", the inspection result is sent to the cloud server 50, and the cloud server 50 stores the device information as shown in FIG. 5(d). stored in association with

(Inspection history viewing process)
FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a process of browsing the inspection history of the air conditioner 1. As shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 6(a), when the user selects "inspection history", the already registered equipment information is displayed on the terminal display unit 41 as shown in FIG. 6(b). selects the device whose inspection history you want to view.
As shown in FIG. 6(c), when a device is selected, a list of inspection history dates and times is displayed on the terminal display unit 41, and the user selects a desired date and time.
As a result, as shown in FIG. 6(d), the terminal display unit 41 displays the inspection result of the selected device and the date and time.

(account setting process)
In order to view the device information, property information, inspection history, etc., it is necessary to set an account that allows the user to log in.
In this embodiment, account settings are managed within each corporation. That is, each corporation related to the air conditioner 1, such as a corporation that manufactures the air conditioner 1, a corporation that sells the air conditioner 1, a corporation that installs the air conditioner 1, and a corporation that inspects and repairs the air conditioner 1 , each administrator is set, and each administrator sets an account for a user belonging to each corporation.
By setting the account in this way, the corporation recognizes the user, so that the corporation can easily approve the account and manage it easily.

Further, in this embodiment, in addition to setting a formal account (referred to as a permanent account in this embodiment), a provisional account is set. Temporary accounts are set up until a permanent account is set up or when only simple browsing is performed.
FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of the operational status of a permanent account and a temporary account.
As shown in FIG. 7, for users who have set up this account, it is possible to operate all of browsing of various materials, browsing of property information, and information sharing.
On the other hand, a user who has a temporary account can browse various materials, but is not permitted to browse property information or share information. These are determined by the cloud server 50 . In the case of a temporary account, the viewing operation icon for the property information should not be displayed.
By thus limiting the operation of the temporary account with respect to the main account, it is possible to improve usability for users who want to use only simple browsing.

Further, in this embodiment, the remote controller memory 36 of the remote controller 30 is configured to store unique ID information of each device of the air conditioner 1 . That is, the remote controller memory 36 stores the unique ID in the device information of the air conditioner 1, and the remote controller 30 is managed based on the stored manufacture ID.
Normally, there is no problem if the remote controller 30 acquires the unique ID information of the device, but for example, when one indoor unit 20 has its control board replaced due to repair, as shown in FIG. 8, the EEPROM of the control board Since the manufacturing ID information is stored, the unique ID information may change from "PID003" to "XXXXXXX".
By storing the device's unique ID information in the remote control memory 36 as in the present embodiment, even when the control board is replaced, it is possible to manage the device based on the original unique ID information.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described.
First, the device information registration operation will be described. FIG. 9 is a flow chart showing the device information registration operation.
When the operation of the air conditioner 1 is started (ST1), the remote controller 30 determines whether or not the operation buttons 33 have been operated in a predetermined order (ST2). ST2: YES), the remote control 30 starts visible light communication by controlling blinking of the remote control display section 32 (ST3).
The terminal device 40 acquires various information transmitted by the light emission of the remote control display section 32 by receiving the transmission by the light emission of the remote control display section 32 with the camera 42 .
The terminal device 40 first acquires ID information (ST4), and then acquires all device information that constitutes the air conditioner 1 (ST5).

Then, when all the device information is acquired (ST5: YES), the terminal device 40 displays the outdoor unit 10 and the indoor unit 20 on the terminal display unit 41 based on the acquired device information. Device information is registered by operating the terminal device 40 .
After completing the registration of the device information, the terminal device 40 communicates with the cloud server 50 via the terminal communication unit 45 (ST6) and sends the device information to the cloud server 50 .
The cloud server 50 stores the device information sent from the terminal device 40 in the cloud server 50 (ST7).

Next, the operation of registering property information will be described.
FIG. 10 is a flow chart showing the operation of registering property information.
When the registration of the device information is completed (ST11), the terminal device 40 causes the terminal display section 41 to display the property information registration screen.
The user selects whether the property information to be associated with the device information is new property information or existing property information, and when registering new property information (ST12), the user inputs the property information through the terminal device 40. (ST13).
After that, the terminal device 40 sends the property information to the cloud server 50 via the terminal communication unit 45 (ST14), and the cloud server 50 stores the property information in association with the equipment information (ST15).

On the other hand, when registering existing property information, the existing property information displayed on the terminal display section 41 of the terminal device 40 is selected (ST16), and the selected property information is sent to the cloud via the terminal communication section 45. It is sent to the server 50, and the cloud server 50 saves it in association with the existing property information and equipment information (ST15).

Next, operation operation by account will be described.
FIG. 11 is a flow chart showing operation operations by account.
When the terminal device 40 is activated (ST21) and the user logs in (ST22), the cloud server 50 determines whether the account is the real account (ST23).
When it is determined that the account is a real account (ST23), the terminal device 40 is notified that the account has been approved, and the terminal device 40 performs an operation for displaying a list of property information on the terminal display section 41. An icon is displayed (ST24).
When it is determined that the account is a temporary account, the terminal device 40 is notified that the account is a temporary account, and the terminal device 40 does not display the operation icon for displaying the property information list on the terminal display unit 41. control (ST25).

Next, the management operation of device unique ID information by the remote controller 30 will be described.
FIG. 12 is a flow chart showing the management operation of unique ID information.
The remote controller 30 acquires the unique ID of the device number (n) of the outdoor unit 10 and the indoor unit 20 (ST31). The remote control unit 35 determines whether the acquired unique ID is valid (ST32).
If the remote controller control unit 35 determines that the acquired unique ID is valid (ST32: YES), it stores the device number and the unique ID in the remote controller memory 36 (ST33). The ID is determined with the acquired unique ID (ST34).

If it is determined that the acquired unique ID is not valid (ST32: NO), the remote control section 35 determines whether or not the unique ID is stored in the remote control memory 36 (ST35).
Then, if the unique ID is stored in the remote controller memory 36 (ST35: YES), the unique ID of the device number (n) is determined by the unique ID stored in the remote controller memory 36 (ST36).
On the other hand, if the unique ID is not stored in the remote controller memory 36 (ST35: NO), the unique ID of the device number (n) is determined as an invalid unique ID (ST37).

If the unique IDs of all devices have been acquired, the operation ends. If the unique IDs of all devices have not been acquired (ST38: NO), the next device number (n+1) is selected ( ST39), the above operation is repeated.

As described above, in the present embodiment, in addition to outputting the operation control signal of the air conditioner 1, the remote control unit 35 (device control unit) and the remote control display unit acquire information on the devices constituting the air conditioner 1. 32 (equipment communication unit); a terminal control unit 43; a terminal communication unit 45 that communicates with the remote control 30; a terminal device 40 that includes a terminal display unit 41; 40 and a cloud server 50 that can communicate with the terminal device 40, the terminal communication unit 45 acquires device information sent from the remote control unit 35 by visible light communication, and the terminal control unit 43 receives the acquired device information to the cloud server 50, and the cloud server 50 stores the device information.
According to this, the terminal device 40 can acquire and register the device information from the remote control 30, and by storing this device information in the cloud server 50, the device information constituting the air conditioner 1 can be collectively collected. It becomes possible to manage

Further, in the present embodiment, the terminal device 40 can input property information where the air conditioner 1 is installed. is associated with the device information and saved.
According to this, the property information and the equipment information can be associated and managed, so that the air conditioners 1 installed in one property can be collectively managed.

Further, in the present embodiment, the terminal device 40 can input the inspection result of the air conditioner 1, the terminal device 40 sends the inspection result to the cloud server 50, and the cloud server 50 transmits the inspection result to the device information. Save in association with
According to this, it is possible to easily browse inspection results corresponding to the device information.

Further, in the present embodiment, the cloud server 50 performs account setting when an account request from the user of the terminal device 40 is approved, and provides information stored in the cloud server 50 to the user who has the account set. The cloud server 50 sets a temporary account if the account request is not approved, and allows the user who has set the temporary account to view part of the information stored in the cloud server 50. limit.
According to this, by restricting the operation of the temporary account with respect to the main account, it is possible to improve usability for users who want to use only simple browsing.

Further, in the present embodiment, the remote control 30 stores a unique ID among the device information of the air conditioner 1 and manages based on the stored unique ID.
According to this, by storing the unique ID information of the device in the remote controller memory 36, even if the control board is replaced, it becomes possible to manage based on the original unique ID information.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described with reference to the drawings, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and can be modified without departing from the gist of the invention.
For example, in the above embodiment, the case where the remote controller 30 of the air conditioning apparatus 1 is used as the device has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the present invention can be applied to any device as long as it has a display section capable of emitting light.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the case where the remote controller display section 32 of the remote controller 30 is used as the light emitting section has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the display unit lamp of the remote controller 30 may be used as the light emitting unit. Further, the display lamp 34 provided on the decorative panel 23 of the indoor unit 20 for displaying the operating state of the indoor unit 20 may be used as the light emitting unit. In this case, the indoor controller 21 may be used as the device controller.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, an example in which communication between the remote controller 30 and the terminal device 40 is performed using visible light communication has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, communication may be performed using near field communication such as NFC (Near Field Communication) or Bluetooth (registered trademark).

In the above embodiment, the device information sent from the terminal device 40 is stored in the cloud server 50, and the device information stored in the cloud server 50 can be browsed by the terminal device 40. However, the present invention is similar to this. is not limited to For example, instead of using the cloud server 50, the device information acquired from the remote controller 30 may be stored in the terminal device 40, and the device information may be collectively managed by the terminal device 40. FIG.
Also, instead of the cloud server 50, a communicable storage device may be used.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the remote control unit 35 is used as the device control unit, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, if an integrated controller is provided for managing the outdoor control unit 11, the indoor control unit 21, and the remote control unit 35 of the air conditioner 1, the integrated controller is used as the device control unit. good too.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the case of using a smart phone or a tablet terminal as the terminal device 40 has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a dedicated terminal device 40 capable of communicating with the cloud server 50 may be used. In this case, a light-receiving sensor may be used instead of the camera 42 as the light-receiving unit.
Further, the server does not have to be the cloud server 50, and any server such as a server of a device management company may be used as long as the terminal device 40 can communicate with it.

1 Air conditioner 10 Outdoor unit 11 Outdoor controller 12 Compressor 13 Outdoor fan 20 Indoor unit 21 Indoor controller 22 Indoor fan 23 Flap 23 Decorative panel 30 Remote control 31 Main body 32 Remote control display unit 33 Operation button 34 Display lamp 35 Remote control Control unit 36 Remote control memory 40 Terminal device 41 Terminal display unit 42 Camera 43 Terminal control unit 44 Terminal memory 45 Terminal communication unit 50 Cloud server 61 Room temperature sensor 62 Outside air temperature sensor 63 Refrigerant pressure sensor

Claims (4)

storage means for storing information about the air conditioner ;
means for determining a user's account;
a restriction means for restricting viewing of the information stored by the storage means according to the determination result of the determination means;
User accounts include at least a first account that requires approval and a second account that does not require approval,
The restriction means prevents the user of the second account from viewing at least the detailed information of the property where the air conditioner is installed , among the information that can be viewed by the user of the first account. limit and
A device information management system, wherein at least browsing of the instruction manual is not restricted by either the user of the first account or the user of the second account. When the determining means determines that the user's account is the second account, the restricting means causes an operation icon for displaying restricted information whose browsing is restricted to be displayed on the terminal device of the user. control not to be displayed,
When the determination means determines that the user's account is the first account, the restriction means controls the operation icon to be displayed on the terminal device of the user. The device information management system according to claim 1. A control method for restricting viewing of information about an air conditioner,
a determination step of determining a user's account;
a restriction step of restricting viewing of the information according to the determination result of the determination step;
User accounts include at least a first account that requires approval and a second account that does not require approval,
In the restricting step, of the information viewable by the user of the account of the first type, at least the detailed information of the property in which the air conditioner is installed cannot be viewed by the user of the account of the second type. is restricted to
A control method, wherein at least viewing of the instruction manual is not restricted by either the user of the first account or the user of the second account. If it is determined in the determination step that the user's account is the second account, in the restriction step, an operation icon for displaying restricted information whose browsing is restricted is displayed on the user's terminal device. wherein the operation icon is displayed on the terminal device of the user in the restricting step when it is determined in the determining step that the user's account is the first account without being displayed. Item 3. The control method according to item 3.
Described control method.

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