JPH079143B2 - Control device for electric blinds - Google Patents

Description

Description: BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a control device for an electric blind, and more particularly to a control device for an electric blind that raises and lowers the blind according to rotation of an electric motor.

[Prior Art] The lower limit of the currently proposed and commercially available electric blind is set by a mechanical lower limit switch provided on the lifting shaft, or a plurality of switches are switched to set the entire length of the blind. For example, there is a method of setting the level for each of a plurality of stages. The former is provided with a cam that moves in the left-right direction by the rotation of the traveling shaft, operates the limit switch by the movement of the cam, stops the power supply to the electric motor, and stops the descent of the blind.
The latter detects the rotation of the lifting shaft, determines the current position of the blind based on the detection signal and the set value set by a plurality of switches, and lowers the blind to a predetermined position. It is what makes me.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] In the former case described above, after the blind is installed at a designated place such as a window frame, the blind must be lowered to adjust the limit switch to operate at a predetermined position. However, there is a problem that the work is complicated. In addition, the lifting tape for winding up the slats (feathers) may stretch over time due to long-term use, and adjustments are required each time, and there is a problem that maintenance adjustment after installation is complicated. .

Further, the latter one is relatively easy to perform the adjustment work, but is similar to the former one in that the adjustment work is required. Furthermore, since any one of a plurality of predetermined positions must be set as the lower limit value and an arbitrary position cannot be set as the lower limit value, the lower limit value is not necessarily set at the position desired by the user. There was a problem that I could not do it.

Therefore, a main object of the present invention is to provide a control device for an electric blind capable of reliably, accurately and easily setting a lower limit setting of a blind at an arbitrary position desired by a user.

[Means for Solving the Problems] The present invention is a control device for an electric blind that raises and lowers a blind by controlling a microcomputer according to the rotation of an electric motor, and intermittently pulses as the blind rises or falls. A photointerrupter for outputting a signal to detect a rising position or a falling position, a lower limit value setting command means for instructing the user to set a lower limit value for lowering the blind, and a lower limit value for lowering the blind are stored. The microcomputer stores the count value obtained by counting the pulse signals output from the photo interrupter as the lower limit value in the storage unit according to the instruction from the lower limit value setting instruction unit, and the value is lowered from the outside. When a command is given, the number of pulses output from the photo interrupter and the lower limit stored in the storage means The electric motor is rotated until the value matches and the blind is lowered, and when the number of pulses and the lower limit value match, the electric motor is stopped.

[Operation] The control device for the electric blind according to the present invention detects the current value when the user issues a command from the lower limit setting command means by the microcomputer and stores the current value in the storage means to lower the blind. The lower limit of the blind can be reliably and accurately set to the arbitrary position desired by the user by rotating the electric motor until the lower limit value stored in the storage means is reached and lowering it to the set lower limit position. It can be set by easy operation, and by controlling with a microcomputer, it is possible to reliably eliminate the adverse effects of wear and aging with a simple configuration,
Adjustment after installation can be eliminated.

[Embodiment] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an outline of an embodiment of the present invention. First, with reference to FIG. 2, an external configuration of an embodiment of the present invention will be described. The power cord 1 and the controller 2 are connected to the control unit 3. The controller 2 has a lower limit setting switch 20 for instructing that the lower limit value of the blind should be set and stored, an ascending switch 21 for instructing the blind ascending, and a stop switch 22 for instructing stop.
, A lowering switch 23 for instructing lowering, an open switch 24 for instructing to open the slat 13, and a closing switch 25 for instructing to close the slat 13. The control unit 3 includes a microcomputer, a power supply unit, and the like.
A geared motor 4 including an electric motor and a reduction gear is connected to the control unit 3.

The rotation shaft of the geared motor 4 is connected to the lifting shaft 12 via the coupling 5. Lifting units 6, 7, and 8 are connected to the lifting shaft 12. Sensors, fault switches (not shown), and upper limit switch 16 built in these lifting units 6, 7 and 8 are connected to the control unit 3 by a wiring member 9. The wiring material 9 includes
Wiring to the geared motor 4 and wiring to the controller 2 are also included. The lifting units 6 and 8 include a winding drum 37 and a ladder drum 39, and the lifting unit 7 is a ladder drum.
Includes only 39. One end of a lifting tape (which may be a string) 10 is fixed to the winding drum 37. The other end of the lifting tape 10 penetrates a plurality of slats 13 and is fixed to a bottom rail 14. Then, the winding drum 37 winds or unwinds the lifting tape 10 in accordance with the rotation of the lifting shaft 12, and raises and lowers the slats 13 and the bottom rail 14. Further, one end of the ladder cord 11 is fixed to the ladder drum 39, and the other end of the ladder cord 11 is fixed to the bottom rail 14. Then, the ladder drum 39 rotates with the rotation of the elevating shaft 12, and controls the opening degree of the slat. The bottom rail 14 functions as a weight for lowering the blind and a weight for preventing the blind from swaying due to wind after descent.

The control unit 3, the geared motor 4, and the lifting units 6, 7 and 8 are covered by a head box 15 forming an outer box. At the bottom of this head box 15, the upper limit switch
16 is provided, and this upper limit switch 16 is pressed by the slat 13 to operate when the blind is wound up, and detects the upper limit position.

FIG. 3 is a schematic block diagram of an embodiment of the present invention.
Next, with reference to FIG. 3, an electrical configuration of an embodiment of the present invention will be described. AC power is input to the power transformer 31 via the power cord 1. The power transformer 31 steps down the input AC power and stabilizes the low voltage Power supply 32
To generate the power required for the control unit 3 and the geared motor 4. A motor drive circuit 33 is connected to the microprocessor (hereinafter referred to as MPU) 34, and the MPU 34
The geared motor 4 is controlled in the forward rotation, the reverse rotation, or the brake mode according to the command from the.

Here, the brake mode is to short-circuit the input terminal of the geared motor 4 via the motor drive circuit 33,
By thus short-circuiting the input terminals of the geared motor 4, the geared motor 4 can be braked. That is, for example, when mechanical force is applied to the geared motor 4 such as inertia caused by the descent of the blind or when the blind is strongly pulled in the direction in which it is artificially lowered, the geared motor 4 causes the principle of the DC generator. By generating a counter electromotive force and short-circuiting between the input terminals, a current for causing this rotation to be blocked, that is, a reverse rotation current flows, and the geared motor 4 is stopped.
A voltage detection circuit 35 is connected to the MPU 34. The voltage detection circuit 35 detects the voltage of the power supply Vcc supplied to the control unit 3. That is, the voltage detection circuit 35 monitors the voltage supplied from the power cord 1 on the low voltage side via the transformer 31.

The obstacle switch 36 is built in the elevating unit 6, and if the geared motor 4 continues to rotate in the descending direction when it hits an obstacle or the like while the blind is descending and the descending operation is stopped. If the lifting tape 10 is slackened and this continues, the lifting tape 10 may deviate from the winding drum 37, and the lifting tape 10 cannot be wound even if the blind is raised next time, which causes a serious failure. become.

In order to prevent this, the slack of the lifting tape 10 is detected by a mechanical switch or an optical or magnetic sensor, the detection output is input to the MPU 34, and the geared motor 4 is stopped via the motor drive circuit 33. I am trying. That is, the motor drive circuit 33 is set to the brake mode. Further, the MPU 34 reverses the geared motor 4 for an arbitrary time and winds up the blind to eliminate the slack of the lifting tape 10, and then stops the geared motor 4.

The take-up drum 37 takes up or rewinds the lifting tape 10 in accordance with the rotation of the geared motor 4, and raises or lowers the blind.
Includes 10 guides 371,372. A slit 373 is formed around the guide 371. A disc may be attached to the other part of the lifting shaft 12 separately from the winding drum 37, and a slit may be formed in the disc, so that rotation of the lifting shaft 12, the geared motor 4, or the motor of the geared motor 4 may be performed. Even if the rotation of the shaft is detected, the same effect can be obtained, so that the mounting position and method are not limited.

A photo interrupter 38 is provided in association with the guide 371 of the winding drum 37. The photo interrupter 38 optically detects the connection / disconnection of the slit 373 formed in the guide 371 of the winding drum 37, converts the rotation of the elevating shaft 12 into an electric signal, and inputs the electric signal into the MPU 34. That is, the MPU 34 can know the amount of lifting or lowering of the lifting tape 10 by the rotation of the winding drum 37 by an electric signal. As described above, one end of the ladder cord 11 is fixed to the ladder drum 39, and the rotation of the ladder drum 39 changes the angle of the slats 13 to change the incident amount of outside light to make the room have an appropriate brightness. Or block outside light.

The ladder drum 39 is fitted in a frictional state via a drum shaft 40 that penetrates the lifting shaft 12. The elevating shaft 12 and the drum shaft 40 rotate integrally (synchronously), but when the ladder drum 39 rotates about half a turn, a protrusion (not shown) provided on the head box 15 or the drum receiver, etc.
The rotation is stopped by, and slips with the drum shaft 40 to idle. Further, when the elevating shaft 12 is reversed, the ladder drum 39 is also reversed in the same manner, but similarly to the above description, it hits a protrusion such as the head box 15 and spins idle. When the ladder drum 39 rotates about half a turn, the slat 13 rotates clockwise and the angle of the slat 13 changes. That is, the slat 13 changes from a state in which it is slanted and closed on the indoor side to a horizontal state where it is opened and is slanted and closed to the outdoor side. When the elevating shaft 12 rotates in the direction opposite to that described above, the angle of the slats 13 changes counterclockwise. That is, the state in which the outdoor side is tilted and closed is changed to the horizontal state and the state is opened, and the indoor side is tilted and closed.

A slit 391 for detecting the rotation of the ladder drum 39 is formed at one end of the ladder drum 39. The slit 391 is formed at an angle corresponding to almost half rotation of the ladder drum 39, and a photo interrupter 41 is provided to detect the position of the slit 391.
The photo interrupter 41 detects the position of the slit 391, converts it into an electric signal, and gives it to the MPU 34. The MPU 34 responds to this electric signal by changing the angle of the ladder drum 39, that is, the slat.
You can know 13 angles.

The switches 20 to 25, the clock generation circuit 43 and the reset circuit 44 of the controller 2 are connected to the MPU 34.

1A to 1B are flow charts for explaining a specific operation of an embodiment of the present invention. In particular, FIG. 1A shows a lower limit setting operation, and FIG. 1B shows a blind automatic stop operation. Indicates.

Next, before explaining the operation of the embodiment of the present invention, a general operation method of the electric blind and its operation will be explained. When the descent switch 23 of the controller 2 is operated, the MPU 34 gives a control signal to the motor drive circuit 33 to rotate the geared motor 4. That is, the geared motor 4 rotates the elevating shaft 12 in the direction of lowering the blind, rewinds the lifting tape 10 by the winding drum 37, and lowers the blind. Along with the rotation of the winding drum 37, the slit 373 formed in the guide 371 interrupts the photo interrupter 38, and gives a pulse signal as a rotation signal to the MPU 34. The MPU 34 counts this pulse signal and can determine the amount of descent of the blind based on the counted value.

Unless the stop switch 22 of the controller 2 is operated, the MPU 34 further lowers the blind and continues counting the pulse signal from the photo interrupter 38.

Next, the operation of setting the lower limit and the subsequent operation in the above-mentioned electric blind will be described.

First, the lower limit setting operation will be described. In the initial state of the blind, the memory of MPU 34 is cleared and the blind can descend to its maximum length. After installing the blinds on the window frame, turn on the power and the MPU3
The number 4 stands by until any switch of the controller 2 is operated. Here, when the lowering switch 23 is pressed, the MPU 34 rotates the geared motor 4 to lower the blind. During the descent of the blind, the MPU 34 counts the output pulse signals of the photo interrupter 38, and the count value confirms the current position of the blind. And
When the stop switch 22 is pressed, the MPU 34 stops the geared motor 4 and confirms the lowered position at that time. After that, when the lower limit setting switch 20 is pressed, the current position at that time, that is, the number of output pulses of the photo interrupter 38 is stored in the memory of the MPU 34 as the lower limit setting value.

Next, a method of changing the lower limit setting will be described. To change the setting to a position above the current lower limit setting, raise the blind and stop it at the desired position, then set the lower limit setting switch.
Press 20. When the setting is changed to a position lower than the current lower limit setting, the descent switch 23 is pressed to lower the blind, the blind is stopped at a desired position, and then the lower limit setting switch 20 is pressed. This clears the contents of the lower limit setting, and the position when the lower limit setting switch 20 is pressed is stored in the memory as the lower limit setting. For changing the lower limit set value, a cancel switch or the like may be provided in addition to the method described above. Also, when the power is turned off, the memory is cleared and the lower limit must be set again.However, by backing up the memory with a battery, etc., the stored contents can be saved even if the power is turned off. Can be held.

Next, the blind automatic stop operation will be described. MP
The U34 waits until any switch of the controller 2 is operated. For example, when the raising switch 21 is pressed, the MPU 34 rotates the geared motor 4 to raise the blind, and at the same time reads the output pulse signal of the photo interrupter 38 to confirm the current position. Next, when the lowering switch 23 is pressed, the geared motor 4 is rotated to lower the blind. While lowering the blind, the MPU 34 compares the present position, which changes every moment, that is, the count value of the output pulse of the photo interrupter 38, with the lower limit setting value stored in the memory. When the current count value matches the lower limit setting value, even if the stop switch 22 is not pressed, the MPU3
4 automatically stops the geared motor 4.

[Effects of the Invention] As described above, according to the present invention, a pulse signal is generated according to the rotation of the winding mechanism that winds up the blind, and the movement amount of the blind is electrically calculated based on the pulse signal. As a result, even if the blind moving amount per unit pulse decreases due to the decrease in the winding diameter of the lifting tape when the blind is descending, it is possible to accurately perform the correction according to the rotation amount of the winding drum at that time. The descent height can be set reliably. In addition, it is possible to reliably eliminate the adverse effects caused by wear and aging with a simple configuration, eliminate the fluctuations in the descent position caused by changes in frictional force, and make adjustments after installation unnecessary. In addition, the control unit can be easily computerized by a microcomputer, the device itself can be easily made compact, accurate control can be performed, and failures can be reduced. The reliability can be improved significantly, and the cost can be significantly reduced. In addition, the electronic control unit makes it possible to reliably change and set the lower limit position during blind descent simply by operating the lower limit value setting command means, and the descent height of the blind after the electric blind is attached to the window frame. If you can simplify the adjustment process and use a large number of blinds, such as a building that requires uniform movement, if the state of the window frame is known in the assembly process of the electric blind, the assembly process In, it is possible to set the lower limit lowering height extremely easily and accurately.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1A and FIG. 1B are flow charts for explaining the concrete operation of the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an outline of an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a schematic block diagram of an embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, 2 is a controller, 3 is a control unit, 4 is a geared motor, 6, 7 and 8 are lifting units, 10 is a lifting tape, 11 is a ladder cord, 12 is a lifting shaft, 13 is a slat, 14 is a bottom rail, 20 is the lower limit setting switch, 23
Is a descent switch, 33 is a motor drive circuit, 34 is an MPU, 37 is a take-up drum, 38 and 41 are photointerrupters, and 39 is a ladder drum.

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Shu Osaka 3-15-4 Nihonbashi, Chuo-ku, Tokyo Within Nichibei Co., Ltd. (56) References JP 62-55392 (JP, A) JP 62- 225685 (JP, A) JP 59-199984 (JP, A) Actually developed 50-130956 (JP, U)

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A control device for an electric blind, which raises and lowers a blind according to the rotation of an electric motor under the control of a microcomputer, and outputs a pulse signal intermittently in response to the rise or fall of the blind to raise the blind. A photointerrupter for detecting a position or a descent position, a lower limit setting command means provided at the user's hand to instruct the user to set a lower limit value for lowering the blind, and a lower limit for lowering the blind A storage unit for storing a value, wherein the microcomputer stores the count value obtained by counting the pulse signals output from the photo interrupter as a lower limit value in response to a command from the lower limit value setting command unit. When a downward command is given from the outside,
When the number of pulses output from the photo interrupter and the lower limit value stored in the storage unit match, the electric motor is rotated to lower the blind, and when the number of pulses matches the lower limit value, A control device for an electric blind, which controls to stop the electric motor.