JPH0944236A - Control equipment and its external inspection device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide the control equipment which can obtain internal control information without making the constitution complex by making good use of the existent constitution. SOLUTION: Of the control equipment equipped with a control part C which controls the operation of an operation part K and an informing means F which indicates operation control information on the operation part K by the control part C to the outside, the control part C controls the operation of the operation part K and freely switches a normal control state wherein the operation control information on the operation part K is reported to the outside and an information control state wherein internal control information of the control part C is reported. Further, when the equipment is switched to the information control state, control is so performed that the internal control information is indicated to the outside by the informing means F.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a control device provided with a control means for controlling the operation of an operation part, and provided with an informing means for informing the operation control information of the operation part by the control means to the outside. .

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a control device having the above-mentioned structure, as means for an operator to obtain internal control information in the control means, for example, at the time of maintenance work, the control means is provided with an external device for maintenance. A dedicated connection portion for connecting the device is provided, and a terminal of the connection wiring on the external device side is connected to this connection portion so that the internal control information is transmitted to the external device through the connection wiring. There was one configured in.

[0003]

In the above-mentioned conventional structure, when performing the above-mentioned maintenance work and the like, it is necessary to perform the troublesome work of connecting the terminal of the connection wiring to the connection portion each time. In addition to the disadvantage that the efficiency is likely to decrease, the connection portion may be damaged by performing such connection or disconnection work a plurality of times, and there is also a problem in terms of durability. In addition, as described above, when transmitting the internal control information to the external device, when it is necessary to convert the signal form suitable for the external device, a dedicated signal processing device is provided and the configuration becomes complicated. There was also a possibility that there was room for improvement.

The present invention has been made paying attention to such a point, and an object of the present invention is to effectively use an existing configuration so far to obtain internal control information without complicating the configuration. The point is to provide possible control equipment.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an external inspection device capable of processing the internal control information into a state recognizable by a user.

[0006]

According to a characteristic configuration of a control device according to a first aspect, the control means controls the operation of the operation section and informs the operation control information of the operation section to the outside. It is configured to be switchable between a control state and a notification control state for notifying the internal control information in the control means, and in the case of being switched to the normal control state, the control means controls the operation of the operation unit, Since the operation control information of the operation unit is notified to the outside by the notification means, the user can confirm the operation state of the operation unit.

When the control means is switched to the notification control state, the control means is configured to control the internal control information to notify the outside by the notification means. Therefore, in the notification control state, The internal control information is notified to the outside of the control device by the notification means without requiring a complicated operation such as wiring connection.

As a result, the internal control information can be obtained by effectively utilizing the existing configuration for notifying the operation control information of the operating section in the normal control state. In addition, the structure does not become complicated, such as providing a dedicated member for connecting an external device or a special member such as a signal processing device,
This eliminates the need for troublesome operations such as wiring connection, improves work efficiency, and has excellent durability.

According to the characteristic configuration of the control device of claim 2, the notifying means is configured to notify the operation control information and the internal control information by a voice signal, so that the normal operation state. In this case, for example, it is possible to reliably notify the operation control information by voice even to a user in another place a little far away, and in the notification control state, the information can be reliably notified without using connection wiring or the like. It can be notified to the outside.

According to the characteristic configuration of the control device of the third aspect, since the notification means is configured to notify the operation control information and the internal control information by an optical signal, the notification control state. In addition, it is possible to reliably notify information to the outside without using connection wiring, etc.
Since the information transmission medium is light, it is possible to perform communication at a higher speed than in the case of voice, and the transmission time can be shortened.

According to the characteristic configuration of the control device of claim 4, in the normal operation state, the execution of the control is instructed by the instruction means provided in the external operation section, and the operation control information is external. It is displayed by the display means provided in the operation unit. At this time, the control unit controls the notification unit to notify the external operation unit of the operation control information by an optical signal.

In such a structure, when the control means is switched to the notification control state, it becomes possible to notify the internal operation information to the external operation section by an optical signal from the notification means, and the operation control information is displayed. It is also possible to display the internal control information on the display means provided for this purpose.

Therefore, the internal control information can be displayed without complicating the configuration by effectively utilizing the existing external operation section provided for displaying the operation control command and the operation control information. It will be possible.

According to the characteristic configuration of the control device according to the fifth aspect, the states of the respective parts in the operating part are detected by the plurality of detecting means, and the controlling means is based on the detection information of each detecting means. Is controlled. Then, when the control means is switched to the notification control state, the detection information of each of the detection means is notified to the outside by the notification means as internal control information.

Therefore, in the maintenance work and the like, the detection information of each detecting means, that is, the state of each part of the operating portion is effectively notified to the outside, and the work can be performed efficiently.

According to the characteristic configuration of the external inspection device for a control device according to claim 6, the internal control information notified to the outside of the control device by the notification means is received by the reception means,
Since the received internal control information is output by the output means, a maintenance worker or the like can effectively determine the internal control information by the output of the output means.

According to the characteristic configuration of the external inspection device for control equipment according to the seventh aspect, the internal control information notified to the outside of the control equipment by the notification means is received by the reception means,
Since the received internal control information is displayed on the display means, a maintenance worker or the like can easily visually confirm the information and the working efficiency is improved.

According to the characteristic configuration of the external inspection device for a control device described in claim 8, the receiving means receives the internal control information notified by the notifying means in the form of an audio signal. Then, the received internal control information is output by the output means such as the display means.

According to the characteristic configuration of the external inspection device for a control device described in claim 9, the receiving means receives the internal control information notified by the notifying means in the form of an optical signal.
Then, the received internal control information is output by the output means such as the display means.

[0020]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION A control device and its external inspection apparatus according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a hot water supply apparatus as a control device. This hot water supply apparatus has a hot water supply section K as an operating section, a control section C as control means for controlling the operation of the hot water supply section K, and a control section C. It is configured to include a remote control operation unit R for instructing control information to the. Of these, the hot water supply unit K and the control unit C are provided in a main body case (not shown) installed outdoors, and the remote control operation unit R is installed in a room such as a kitchen.

The hot water supply unit K has a burner 3 in which a fuel (gas) supplied from a fuel supply passage 2 burns in a combustion chamber 1.
The burner 3 is provided with a heat exchanger 4 that heats water, a burner 3 has a fan 5 that ventilates combustion air, and a water supply passage 6 and a hot water supply passage 7 are connected to the heat exchanger 4. The water supplied from the water supply passage 6 is heated to supply hot water from the hot water supply passage 7 to a hot water tap (not shown).

In the water supply passage 6, a water flow rate sensor 8 for detecting the water flow rate, and an incoming water temperature thermistor 9 for detecting the incoming water temperature.
The hot water supply path 7 is provided with a hot water outlet temperature thermistor 10 for detecting the hot water temperature after being heated by the heat exchanger 4. Further, the fuel supply passage 2 is provided with an on-off valve 11 for intermittently supplying fuel to the burner 3, and an electromagnetic proportional fuel adjustment valve 12 capable of changing and adjusting the fuel supply amount. In the exhaust passage 13 through which the combustion gas of the burner 3 is discharged,
A CO sensor 14 that detects the concentration of CO (carbon monoxide) contained in the combustion gas is provided. An igniter 15 for igniting the burner 3 and a frame rod 1 for detecting an ignition state of the burner 3 are provided near the burner 3.
6 are provided.

The remote control operating unit R is an operation switch 17 for instructing the control unit C to start and stop the hot water supply operation,
An LED lamp 18 that indicates the operating state, a temperature setting switch 19 that sets the target hot water supply temperature, a display unit 20 that displays the target hot water supply temperature, etc., for example, the CO concentration detected by the CO sensor 14 is a set value or more. A piezoelectric buzzer 21 is provided as an example of an informing unit F that gives an alarm sound when an abnormality such as the following occurs. Further, as will be described later, the remote control operating unit R is provided with a mode changeover switch 22 for switching the control mode of the control unit C between a normal operation mode and a maintenance mode, and a process of instructing sequential processing in the maintenance mode. A command switch 23 is also provided. Each of the mode changeover switch 22 and the processing command switch 23 is provided in a state of being covered with a lid so that a hot water supply user cannot operate it, and a maintenance worker who performs repair and inspection, etc.
The lid can be opened for operation.

The control section C is configured to control the operation of the hot water supply section K based on the control information from the remote control operation section R. That is, the control unit C is configured by including a microcomputer, and in its operating state,
The combustion of the burner 3 is started along with the opening operation of the hot water tap, and the combustion amount of the burner 3 and the ventilation amount of the fan 5 are controlled so that the hot water supply temperature becomes the target hot water supply temperature set by the temperature setting switch 19. However, the combustion control means 100 for stopping the combustion of the burner 3 with the closing operation of the hot water tap, and the normal operation mode in which the normal hot water supply operation by the combustion control means 100 is executed with the switching operation of the mode changeover switch 22. And a mode switching means 101 for switching to a maintenance mode executed at the time of inspection or repair of the device, and a maintenance control means 102 for notifying internal control information to the outside as described later in the maintenance mode, respectively, in a control program format. It is equipped.

When the control section C is set to the maintenance mode, every time the processing command switch 23 is turned on,
It is configured to sequentially execute a plurality of preset maintenance processes. That is, the sensor in the hot water supply unit K, each thermistor, or the frame rod 1
The detection information (an example of the internal control information of the control section C) of these detection means for detecting the state of each section such as 6 is configured to be notified to the outside by an audio signal from the piezoelectric buzzer 21. To further explain, in the control unit C,
The data of the detection information in each of the detection means is appropriately processed into serial data that can be processed by voice (see FIG. 3 (A)), and a voice carrier signal of about 4 KHz (FIG. 3) is added to this data.
The signal shown in FIG. 3C is transmitted to the piezoelectric buzzer 21 by superimposing (see (B)).

Next, the control operation of the control section C will be described in detail based on the control flow chart shown in FIG. The operation switch 17 is turned on, and the mode switch 2
When the detection value of the water flow rate sensor 8 exceeds the set value and it is detected that the hot water tap is opened in a state where the switch 2 is switched to the normal operation mode instead of the maintenance mode (steps 1, 2, 3) Open the on-off valve 11 and the fuel adjustment valve 12, ignite the burner 3 by the igniter 15, and when ignition is confirmed by the frame rod 16, the ignition operation is ended and the combustion control operation is executed (step). 4, 5). That is, each of the incoming water temperature thermistor 9, the water flow rate sensor 8, and the outgoing hot water temperature thermistor 10 is detected so that the hot water supply temperature, that is, the detected value of the outgoing hot water thermistor 10 becomes the target hot water supply temperature set by the temperature setting switch 19. Based on the information, the fuel supply amount target value is obtained, the fuel adjustment valve 12 is controlled so that the fuel supply amount becomes the target value, and the rotation speed of the fan 5 is adjusted so that the ventilation amount corresponds to the fuel supply amount. To control.

While the combustion control is being executed, if the CO concentration detected by the CO sensor 14 exceeds the set value and it is judged that the combustion is incomplete, the burner 3
The combustion is stopped, and the piezoelectric buzzer 21 is rung for a predetermined time to notify that it is in an abnormal state (steps 6, 7, and 8). In this case, the hot water supply operation is enabled after a reset operation such as turning on and off a power switch (not shown) provided on the main body case side (step 9).

When the value detected by the water flow rate sensor 8 falls below the set value and it is detected that the hot water tap has been closed without determining incomplete combustion, the combustion of the burner 3 is stopped, The post-purge is executed for the set time and the process returns (steps 10, 11, 12). In other words, it is in a state of waiting until the hot water tap is opened again.

When the mode selector switch 22 is switched to the maintenance mode and the process command switch 23 is turned on, the maintenance process "1" is executed (steps 13 and 14). For example, after the detection information (resistance value) of the incoming water temperature thermistor 9 is appropriately processed as described above, the voice carrier signal is superimposed and combined and modulated, and the modulated signal is output to the piezoelectric buzzer 21.
Then, the piezoelectric buzzer 21 is sounded to perform external notification (step 15).

The externally informed audio signal based on the ringing of the piezoelectric buzzer 21 is used as a dedicated external inspection device G.
The information will be received at. The external inspection device G, as shown in FIG. 4, is a microphone 2 as a receiving means J for receiving a voice signal and converting it into an electric signal.
4. A demodulation circuit 2 for removing the voice carrier signal from the modulated signal output from the microphone 24 and demodulating the original data
5. A data processing circuit 27 or the like for processing the demodulated data and displaying the detection information (resistance value) or the like of the incoming water temperature thermistor 9 on the data display unit 26 as the output means O, as shown in FIG. It is configured with.

Then, each time the processing command switch 23 is operated, corresponding data (detection information of each detecting means) is sequentially notified by a sound signal of the piezoelectric buzzer 21 in a predetermined order, and external inspection is performed. The data is received by the device G and various information is displayed on the data display unit 26 (steps 16, 17, 18). Such processing is performed by the set number (N
When the maintenance operation is completed and the mode changeover switch 22 is switched to the normal operation mode, the operation returns to the hot water supply standby state (step 19).

[Other Embodiments] (1) In the above-described embodiment, the notification means F is configured to notify the internal control information to the outside by a voice signal, but instead of such a configuration, it is shown in FIG. As described above, the LED lamp 18 provided in the remote control operation unit R is made to blink based on the data information indicating the internal control information (see FIG. 3A), and the external inspection device is informed by an optical signal. Good. In this case, the receiving means J of the external inspection apparatus G is composed of a photodiode 28 which converts an optical signal into an electric signal when the optical signal is received. After the electric signal is amplified by the amplifier 29, it is processed by the data processing circuit 27 and displayed on the data display unit 26.

Further, instead of a voice signal or an optical signal, a radio wave may be used to notify the outside.

(2) In the above-described embodiment, the internal control information is notified to the outside by using the piezoelectric buzzer 21 and the LED lamp 18 provided in the remote controller operation unit R. Good. As shown in FIG.
A first remote controller R1 that is connected to the control unit C by a wire and a second remote controller R2 as an external operating unit that is installed separately from the first remote controller R1 are provided. Each of them is provided with transmitting / receiving devices 30 and 31 capable of transmitting / receiving information by infrared rays. First
The transmission / reception device 30 on the remote control device R1 side constitutes the notification means F. The second remote control device R2 has a
An operation switch 32 as command means for instructing stop, a temperature setting switch 33 for setting a target hot water supply temperature, a display unit 34 as display means for displaying the hot water supply temperature and the like are provided.

With such a configuration, for example, the first remote control device R1 is installed in the kitchen or the like, and the second remote control device R2 is installed in the living room or the like so that it can be operated from any place and the usability is improved. It is a thing.

In such a structure, in the normal normal operation mode, various control information is commanded from the second remote controller R2, and information of operation control information (hot water temperature, whether or not in operation, etc.) Is notified to the second remote controller R2 from the first remote controller R1 side, and the information is displayed on the display unit 34 of the second remote controller R2.
In the maintenance mode, the internal control information as described above may be notified to the second remote controller R2 and the information may be sequentially displayed on the display unit 34 of the second remote controller R2.

(3) In the above embodiment, the case where a dedicated external inspection device for receiving a voice signal is provided has been exemplified, but instead of such a configuration, for example, maintenance is performed by a microphone or a personal computer with a light receiving sensor. The control device may be configured to display the internal control information on the monitor device by processing the signal with the control program.

(4) In the above embodiment, the case where the display unit 20 is provided as the output means of the external inspection device is shown.
Instead of such a configuration, for example, it may be configured to be output by a printing means such as a printer, or may be output by communication to a central management device equipped with a large computer via a communication line such as a telephone line. It may be configured.

(5) In the above embodiment, the internal control information is configured to notify the detection information of various detecting means provided in the operating section. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the past abnormal situation Is stored in advance in the storage means,
Such abnormality history information may be notified, or the production lot number, version information of the control program of the microcomputer, or the like may be notified.

(6) In the above embodiment, the case of the hot water supply device was illustrated as the control device, but the present invention is not limited to the hot water supply device, and the control means for controlling the operation of the operation part and the operation control information are notified. It can be applied as long as it is a control device provided with an informing means, for example, it can be applied to a dishwasher, a stove, and other various control devices.

It should be noted that although reference numerals are given in the claims for facilitating the comparison with the drawings, the present invention is not limited to the configurations of the accompanying drawings by the entry.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a water heater

FIG. 2 is a flowchart of control operation

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of signals to be notified.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of an external inspection device

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a display state.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of an external inspection device of another embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram of another embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 32 command means 34 display means C control means F informing means J receiving means K operating section O output means R2 external operating section

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Jun Nakamura 1-52, Oka 1-chome, Minami-shi, Minato-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka

Claims (9)

[Claims] 1. An informing means (F) for informing the operation control information of the operating section (K) by the control means (C) for controlling the operation of the operating section (K) to the outside. ) Is provided, the control means (C) controls the operation of the operation unit (K), and normal control for notifying operation control information of the operation unit (K) to the outside. And a notification control state for notifying the internal control information in the control means (C), and when the notification control state is switched, the internal control information is sent to the notification means (F). A control device that is configured to control so as to notify the outside. 2. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the notification means (F) is configured to notify the operation control information and the internal control information by a voice signal. 3. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the notification means (F) is configured to notify the operation control information and the internal control information by an optical signal. 4. A command means (32) for commanding the control means (C) to execute control in the normal control state,
An external operation unit (R2) including a display unit (34) for displaying the operation control information is provided, and the control unit (C) controls the operation by the notification unit (F) in the normal control state. Information is transmitted by an optical signal to the external operation unit (R
The control device according to claim 3, which is configured to notify 2). 5. A plurality of detecting means for detecting the state of each part in the operating section (K) are provided, and the control means (C) is based on the detection information of each detecting means. ) Is controlled, and in the notification control state, the detection information of each of the detection means is used as the internal control information in the notification means (F).
The configuration according to claim 1, wherein
The control device according to 2, 3, or 4. 6. The receiving means (J) for receiving the internal control information notified by the notifying means (F) in the control device according to claim 1, and the receiving means (J) for receiving the internal control information. An external inspection device for a control device, comprising: an output unit (O) for outputting the internal control information. 7. The external inspection device for control equipment according to claim 6, wherein the output means (O) is a display means. 8. The external inspection device for a control device according to claim 6, wherein the receiving means (J) is configured to receive an audio signal. 9. The external inspection device for control equipment according to claim 6, wherein said receiving means (J) is configured to receive an optical signal.