JPH04174245A - Operating device for terminal equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To easily perform the monitor and operation setting for a plurality of terminal equipment by providing a central processing unit for controlling an input means, a display means and communication means, the display means and the like and displaying summarized information and detailed information on the display means. CONSTITUTION:Provisions are made of: an input means 13 for inputting operation contents of a plurality of terminal equipment 4; a display means 14 for displaying the operation contents and state information of the terminal equipment 4, which are inputted through the input means 13 and communication means 2, in the form of images and characters; a central processing unit 15 for controlling each operation of the input means 13, the display means 14 and the communication means 2; and a memory 16 for storing program and data. Display by the display means 14 consists of a summarized information display area 23a where the state of the plurality of terminal equipment 4 is displayed, and a detailed information display area 23b where information related to a designated specific terminal is displayed. By this method, the terminals 4 can be easily operated, and the monitor and operation setting for the plurality of terminal equipment 4 can be easily performed by the display on the display means.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a terminal device operating device for operating air conditioners, lighting equipment, heaters, various sensors, etc. (hereinafter referred to as terminal devices) via communication means. It is something.

[Conventional technology]

The technology for operating terminal equipment such as air conditioners, lighting equipment, heaters, and sensors via communication means is known, for example, from Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 59
There is a home control device disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 141894.

The home control device will be explained below with reference to FIGS. 7 to 10.

Figure 7 shows the configuration of the home control device.
The main controller 1 is connected to a signal line 3 via a communication means 2. Terminal devices 4 and 5 are connected to signal line 3 via terminal controller 6 and communication means 2. The signal line 3 has a bus structure. Each communication means 2 has its own address and can disassemble packets,
Generation, error checking, transmission and reception are performed based on communication protocols (protocols). With the above configuration, the main controller 1 exchanges data with the terminal controller 6 and operates and monitors the status of the terminal devices 4 and 5.

FIG. 8 is a front view of the main controller, and FIG. 9 is an enlarged view of a group of function keys and a group of room keys of the main controller.

The main controller 1 includes a CRT display 7a, which is a display device that displays operation details and status information of a plurality of terminal devices in text and graphics (hereinafter referred to as images), and an input assist display that displays input operation methods in text. A liquid crystal display 7b, a function key group 9 for selecting a desired function from among the many functions of the home control system, a room key group 10 for selecting a room to which a terminal device is connected, and operations for each terminal device. It also includes a group of operation keys 11 for performing the following operations.

First, when the air conditioner key from the function key group 9 is pressed, a screen for monitoring the operating settings and operating states of a plurality of air conditioners (hereinafter referred to as air conditioners) is displayed on the CRT display 7a.

For example, if you turn on the air conditioner in your bedroom at the same time from 10 a.m.
To heat the air conditioner at 25℃ until 1 o'clock, press the bedroom key from the room key group 10 to set the air conditioner in the bedroom.Use the operation key group 11 to set the time and temperature. settings, select and set the driving mode.

FIG. 1O is an example of a display on the CRT display of the main controller.

On the CRT display 7a, the entire surface of the display surface 8 is divided into a plurality of display areas 8a, 8b, and 8n, and the operation settings, operation status, etc. of each terminal device are collectively displayed for each division. There is.

[Law B that the invention attempts to solve]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional example, the CRT display 7a of the display device 7 displays a list of the operating settings, operating states, etc. of each terminal device so that they can be monitored.

However, as the types and number of terminal devices increase, or because there are restrictions on the size of the display surface 8, the possible display area per device becomes narrower. In addition, diversification of control contents,
As devices become more sophisticated, the amount of display content required per terminal device tends to increase, making it difficult to decipher the display content. Another problem is that a plurality of display devices are required just for monitoring purposes.

This invention was made to solve the problems of the prior art described above, and it is difficult to display list information and detailed information for monitoring a plurality of terminal devices on a limited display screen. It is an object of the present invention to provide a terminal equipment operating device equipped with a display means that can perform the following functions.

Means for Solving Problem 1] For this reason, the terminal device operating device according to the present invention transmits operation and status signals of the terminal devices to and from a plurality of terminal devices in a bidirectional serial manner via a communication means. A terminal device operating device that transmits and operates the terminal device, the device includes an input means for inputting the operation details of the terminal device, and an image of the operation details and status information of the terminal device inputted from the input means and the communication means. and a central processing unit that controls each operation of the input means, the display means, and the communication means, and a memory that stores programs and data. The above object is achieved by a configuration characterized by comprising a list information display area that displays the status of devices and a detailed information display area that displays information regarding a specified specific terminal device.

[For production]

With the above configuration, the central processing unit controls the human power means, the display means, and the communication means based on the program and data stored in the memory by operating the human key and inputting the operation details of the terminal device. Then, signals indicating the operation and status of the terminal device can be serially transmitted in both directions to and from the terminal device via the communication means, so that the terminal device can be easily operated.

The display means displays operation details and status information of the terminal device inputted from the input means and the communication means using images and characters. For example, in the list information display area of the display means, the operating status of multiple terminal devices is displayed as an image, and in the detailed information display area, information regarding a specific terminal device specified by manual means is displayed in text. , it is possible to easily monitor and set the operation of multiple terminal devices.

〔Example〕

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The terminal device operating device according to the present invention will be explained below using examples.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a terminal equipment operating system using an embodiment of the present invention. Portions that are the same as or correspond to those of the prior art shown in FIG. 7 are indicated by the same reference numerals, and redundant explanation will be omitted.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of essential parts of an embodiment according to the present invention. The terminal equipment operating device 1 connects to the signal line 3 via the communication means 2.
The operation and status signals of the terminal device 4 are bidirectionally serially transmitted between the terminal device 4 and a plurality of terminal devices 4 (not shown) which are also connected to the signal Iw3. It is something that performs operations.

Then, a group of manual keys 1 for manually controlling the operation contents of the terminal device 4.
8 and a liquid crystal display 7b, which is an input auxiliary means for displaying manual operation methods in text, and a full-color liquid crystal display (hereinafter referred to as LCD) that displays operation details and status information of a plurality of terminal devices in images and text. ) A display means 14 consisting of a display 23, a display selection key 19a for selecting and specifying a terminal device to display, and a cursor movement key 19b; a central processing unit that controls each operation of the input means 13, the display means 14, and the communication means 2; comprising a device 15 and a memory 16 for storing programs and data;
The respective means are connected via an internal bus 17 and can be controlled by the central processing unit 15.

FIG. 3 is a plan view showing the front panel of the embodiment of the terminal device operating device configured as described above. The left half of the front panel 1a is a display means 14, on which a full-color LCD display 23, a display selection key 19a, and a cursor movement key 19 are mounted. The right half is an input means 13, with a liquid crystal display 7b for assisting human power mounted on the upper part, and an input key group 18 mounted on the lower part.

The method of operating the input key group 18 is sequentially displayed on the liquid crystal display 7b according to the input operation.

FIG. 4 is a front view showing the display surface of the full-color LCD display 23 of the display means 14.

Most of the display surface is a list information display area 23a for displaying the status of a plurality of terminal devices, and the closed portion is a detailed information display area 23b for displaying information regarding a specific terminal device specified by the input means. It has become.

FIG. 5 shows an example of a display on the full-color LCD display 23 of the display means 14.

- In the display information display area 23a, a lighting terminal is selected from a group of multiple types of terminal equipment using the display selection key 19a, and the operating status of nine lighting terminal equipment is displayed as an image, and a cursor movement key is displayed. 19b, detailed information regarding lighting 1 or detailed information display area 23b
is displayed by characters. The figure shows that the control state is ON, the operating mode is not manual but scheduled operation, and the device is operating normally.

Note that it can be easily recognized at a glance from the list information display area 23a that the lights 3, 4, and 7.9 are on, the light 2.5.8 is off, and the light 6 is out of order.

FIG. 6 shows another example of the display on the full-color LCD display 23 of the display means 14, in which the cursor movement key 19b is operated to check the details of the failure of the lighting 6 displayed in FIG. and move the cursor to display detailed information about the lighting 6 in the detailed information display area 23b.
It is displayed in text, and it can be recognized that the fault is a communication abnormality.

With the above configuration, by operating a small number of display selection keys 19a, a necessary terminal device group is selected from a plurality of various terminal device groups, and the operation contents and status information of the plurality of terminal devices in the device group are displayed. can be displayed as an image in the list information display area 23a of the full-color LCD display 23 of the display means 14, and by operating the cursor movement key 19b, necessary detailed information of the terminal can be displayed in the detailed information display area 23b. It can be displayed by characters.

In the above embodiment, a configuration including the display selection key 19a has been described, but depending on the number of terminal devices and the display area of the display means, the configuration may be such that the display selection key 19a is omitted.

With the above configuration and operation, list information and detailed information can be displayed in the form of images and characters on the display surface of a display device with a limited area, making monitoring and operation much easier than before. The space can be reduced compared to the conventional method.

Moreover, by changing the program, for example, during normal operation, the list information display area 23a displays a plurality of various terminal equipment groups.The display automatically turns green in sequence according to the arrangement order of the selection keys 19a, and when the display selection keys 19a are operated. When an error occurs or an abnormality occurs in the terminal device, functions can be easily expanded or changed, such as displaying the selected display screen or the screen where the abnormality occurred.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As explained above, according to the present invention, by operating the input key and inputting the operation contents of the terminal device, the central processing unit uses the input means and display based on the program and take stored in the memory. By controlling the means and the communication means, the operation and status signals of the terminal device are bidirectionally serially transmitted between the terminal device and the terminal device via the communication means, so that the terminal device can be easily operated.

The display means displays operation details and status information of the terminal device manually input from the input means and the communication means using images and characters. As a method, the operating status of multiple terminal devices is displayed as images in the list information display area of the display means, and information regarding a specific terminal device specified by manual means is displayed in text in the detailed information display area. , it is possible to easily monitor and set the operation of multiple terminal devices.

In other words, list information and detailed information for monitoring multiple terminal devices can be displayed on the display surface of a display means with a limited area, making monitoring and operation much easier than before, and requiring less space than before. can be reduced. Moreover, it is possible to provide a terminal device operating device whose functions can be easily expanded and changed by changing the program.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a block diagram of a terminal device operation system using an embodiment of the present invention, Fig. 2 is a block diagram of main parts of an embodiment of the invention, and Fig. 3 shows a front panel of the same embodiment. FIG. 4 is a front view showing a display surface of a full-color LCD display of the display means of the above embodiment, FIG. 5 is a front view showing a display example of the same full-color LCD display, and FIG. 7 is a configuration diagram of a conventional home control device, FIG. 8 is a front view of a conventional main controller, FIG. 9 is an enlarged view of the keys of the main controller, and FIG. 10 is a front view showing an example of the main controller. FIG. 3 is a front view showing an example of a display on a CRT display of the main controller. 1 is a terminal device operating device, 1a is a front panel, 2 is a communication means, 3 is a signal line, 4.5 is a terminal device, 7b is an input auxiliary liquid crystal display, 13 is an input means, 14 is a display means, 15
is the central processing unit, 16 is the memory, 17 is the internal bus, 18
19a is a group of manual keys, 19a is a display selection key, 19b is a cursor movement key, 23 is a full-color LCD display as a display means, 23a is a list information display area, and 23b is a detailed information display area. In addition, the same symbols in the figures indicate the same or equivalent parts.
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Claims (1)

[Claims] (1) A terminal device operating device that operates a plurality of terminal devices by bidirectionally serially transmitting operation and status signals of the terminal devices via a communication means,
an input means for inputting the operation contents of the terminal device; a display means for displaying the operation contents and status information of the terminal device inputted from the input means and the communication means in images and characters; and the input means and the display means. The display means includes a central processing unit that controls each operation of the communication means and a memory that stores programs and data, and the display means displays a list information display area that displays the status of a plurality of terminal devices and a designated specific terminal device. and a detailed information display area that displays information about the terminal device.