JPH1019437A - Temperature control device of show case - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To realize an intercommunication which enables a control of a show case from a place remote from the show case, wherein depending on the presence of a signal from a signal transmitting and receiving circuit, it becomes possible to select either a remote control from a monitor control panel or independent controls by respective monitor control panels. SOLUTION: A monitor control panel 6 includes a transmitting and receiving bloc which communicates with temperature controls devices 11, 12 of show cases 1, 2 respectively and another transmitting and receiving bloc which communicates with other appliances. Depending on the presence of a signal from the transmitting and receiving bloc which communicates with temperature control devices 11, 12, a setting of conditions necessary for a temperature control of appliances in the show cases 1, 1 is switched by means of condition setting shifting switch mounted on a monitor control panel 6 to either a remote control which makes the monitor control panel input a signal or a setting which makes respective temperature control devices 11, 12 input a signal. Due to such a construction, an intercommunication which enables a control of show cases 1, 2 from a place remote from the show cases 1, 2 can be realized.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a temperature control device installed in each freezing and refrigeration showcase, and more particularly, to a temperature control device according to the state of a signal from a monitor control panel of a remotely installed central control device. The present invention relates to a temperature control device for a showcase that can be applied to any one of them.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a means for controlling the temperature of a plurality of freezing and refrigerated showcases, a temperature control device provided in each of the refrigerated and refrigerated showcases has been controlled by a centrally-installed remote control device. Have been done. That is, the set temperature and the defrost timing in each freezing / refrigeration showcase are set by the central control device, and transmitted to the temperature control device of each freezing / refrigeration showcase. The control was based on the settings.

For example, FIG. 7 shows an example of a conventional centralized control device B such as a showcase or the like, in which a control device 51 and temperature control devices 71, 7 of individual showcases 61, 62.
2 and so on.

[0004] The management device 51 is provided with an electrical box 54 provided in the machine room together with a compressor 52 and a liquid receiver 53.
And an alarm (alarm device) 55 provided in a security room or the like.
And a transmitter 56 for transmitting an alarm signal.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 8, the temperature control devices 71, 72 in the showcases 61, 62,... Are controlled by a temperature control circuit 81 and a sensor 82 for detecting the inside temperature of the showcase 61. A cooling operation and a stop of the operation are performed by turning on / off the temperature control output contact Ts. A defrost recovery circuit 83 and a sensor 84 for detecting the temperature of a cooler or a cool air outlet of a showcase are provided. Thus, the defrost recovery output contact DTs is turned on / off to stop the defrosting operation and the same operation.

As shown in FIG. 7, one extension side of the Ts contact is connected to the operation circuit S1 of the electrical box 54 of the management device 51, and the other extension side is connected to the operation circuit S2 of the electrical box 54 of the case box. The compressor 52 for driving the showcase is connected to the rear of the two operation circuits S1 and S2 via a valve SV.

One extension side of the DTs contact is also connected to a defrost circuit F1 of the electrical box 54, and the other extension side is also connected to a defrost circuit F2 of the electrical box 54. By switching the timer DTM, the heater contactor H
C is excited, and the defrost heater 85 is energized to perform defrost. Reference numeral 86 denotes a quick differential switch provided immediately before the defrost heater 85 for preventing overheating. The DTs contact (defrost return output contact) is closed when the temperature reaches a certain temperature or higher by detecting the temperature of the sensor 84 (see FIG. 8) of the cooler or the cool air outlet, and the defrost circuits F1, F of the electrical box 54.
The defrost operation is stopped by releasing the excitation of the second heater contactor HC.

The alarm 55 (see FIG. 6) of the management device 51 is connected to alarm sensors 91, 92,... For detecting the temperature inside the cabinet of each showcase. The transmitter 56 is configured to transmit an alarm output.

[0009]

In such a conventional centralized control device B such as a showcase, although temperature monitoring and alarm display are performed, temperature control, temperature setting, defrosting setting, etc. are performed in the showcase. 61, 62 side temperature control devices 71, 7
Since it was a so-called one-sided communication that can be performed only with 2..., The showcase 6 was placed in a remote place such as a security room.
1, 62 ... could not be controlled.

Therefore, in recent years, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No.
As described in Japanese Patent No. 64141-264150, a system for centrally managing a showcase or the like by mutual communication has been developed. However, these devices use intermediate devices and personal computers in addition to the main control device.
The system was complex and expensive.

An invention using a serial transmission line to send a signal for defrost control is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 5-288455, which requires a defrost control circuit on the refrigerator side. Therefore, the structure was complicated and expensive.

Further, even when centralized control is performed by mutual communication using serial transmission lines as described above, the temperature control devices 71, 7 provided in the respective showcases 61, 62,...
2, it is necessary to control the temperature control, the temperature setting, the defrosting setting, etc. in consideration of the case where each of the showcases 61 and 62 is operated independently. In order to cope with an abnormality or the like, it is necessary that each of the temperature control devices 71 and 72 has a storage unit for a temperature set value and a defrosting function.

However, as described above, the temperature controller 71,
If the 72 is provided with various functions, if the setting of the temperature control device is changed for some reason or a switch for switching between remote and independent is switched, damages such as abnormal internal temperature and defective defrosting may occur. May occur. In order to prevent this, two storage units for storing the set temperature transmitted from the monitor control panel and the set temperature received from the temperature control device are provided on the monitor control panel side of the management device (main control device). Can be compared, but there is a problem that the number of showcases that can be centrally controlled is limited due to the limit of the memory capacity of the monitor control panel and the like.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and an object of the present invention is to enable mutual communication so as to control a showcase from a place remote from the showcase, to facilitate management, and to achieve a structure. Can be manufactured easily and inexpensively, and can be applied to both remote and stand-alone devices, preventing erroneous settings on the temperature control device side during remote control.
An object of the present invention is to provide a temperature control device of a showcase that can perform temperature control and defrost without any problem even when an abnormality occurs in a management device or the like.

[0015]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a temperature control device for a showcase which is installed in each showcase and can be independently controlled, and which can be remotely controlled by a monitor control panel. A signal transmission / reception circuit for the monitor control panel, and a function of selecting and switching between remote control from the monitor control panel or independent control by each temperature control device depending on the presence or absence of a signal from the signal transmission / reception circuit. I'm making it.

The temperature control device has a first storage unit for storing a temperature set value input on the temperature control device side, and a second storage for storing a temperature set value remotely input on the monitor control panel side. The remote control unit operates based on the temperature set value stored in the second storage unit, and the sole unit control performs the operation based on the temperature set value stored in the first storage unit. The operation is based on the value.

Whether the temperature control device is set to individual control based on the setting input on the temperature control device side or the setting input by remote control based on the setting input on the monitor control panel. An indicator lamp can be provided on the temperature control device so as to be able to identify the temperature.
If a multi-color LED (light emitting diode) is used for this display lamp, even one LED element will emit different emission colors depending on which setting is controlled, and will blink when a defrost signal is received It is also possible to change to, it is not necessary to take up space.

Also, during the remote control from the monitor control panel, if an abnormality occurs in the transmission and reception of signals between the monitor control panel and the temperature control device due to an abnormality of the monitor control panel or the transmission line, etc. The control is automatically switched to the independent control, and the defrost is forcibly performed at regular time intervals.

The serial transmission line between the monitor control panel and the temperature control device is a 2-core or 3-core communication line, and the temperature control device is a crossover wiring. In addition, when the power is turned on for the first time when data is not stored in the monitor control panel or when the data is initialized, the monitor control panel reads the value set on the temperature control device side to control the operation. The labor can be largely reduced.

[0020]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. 1 is a schematic wiring diagram of a centralized control device, FIG. 2 is a schematic block diagram of a temperature control device of the present invention, FIG. 3 is a schematic block diagram of a monitor control panel, and FIG.
Is a flowchart showing the operation of the temperature control device, FIG. 5 is a time chart showing an operation example of the temperature control device, and FIG. 6 is an external view of the temperature control device.

As shown in FIG. 1, the centralized control devices A such as the showcases 1, 2,... In the present invention are also connected to the control device 5, the monitor control panel 6 of the control device 5, and the serial transmission line 7, respectively. The temperature control devices 11, 12,... Of each of the showcases 1, 2,.

The serial transmission line 7 is a 2-core or 3-core communication line, and is a crossover wiring between the temperature control devices 11 and 12 and the like. The control device 5 includes an electrical box 17 provided in the machine room together with the compressor 15 and the liquid receiver 16.
And a monitor control panel 6 provided in a security room or the like.

On the other hand, the showcases 1, 2,... Are provided with temperature controllers 11, 12,.
Are configured to turn on / off the temperature control output contact Ts by a temperature control circuit 18 and a sensor 19 for detecting the temperature inside the showcase as shown in FIG. The temperature control device 11 also includes a defrost recovery circuit 20, a sensor 21 for detecting the temperature of the cooler and the cool air outlet of the showcase 1, and an external signal (defrost signal) of an external defrost timer DTM to set the drainage time. Count and the defrost output contact D directly from the elapsed time of the external signal input from the monitor control panel.
The arithmetic circuit 22 that operates to release s
The s contact is opened and the Ts contact is turned on.

The arithmetic circuit 22 is connected to the serial transmission line 7 via a transmission / reception unit 23 and a switch 24 for switching the communication speed, and receives an external signal from a timer or the like via the input circuit 3. Further, the arithmetic circuit 22 has a first storage unit 8 for storing a temperature set value input on the temperature control device 11 side and a second storage unit for storing a temperature set value remotely input on the monitor control panel 6 side. 9 are provided. In addition, 25 is an address setting unit, 26 is input means for inputting a cooling set temperature and a defrost recovery temperature, 27 is a condition setting unit, and 4 is a power supply unit.

As shown in FIG. 1, the extension side of the Ts contact is
It is connected to a 200 V power supply such as a fan terminal via a case liquid solenoid valve SV, and the extension side of the Ds contact is connected in parallel with the defrost heater 28 to the 200 V power supply via a heater contactor HC. Note that HCa is a contact of the heater contactor HC, and DT is a disk thermo for preventing overheating of the defrost heater.

As shown in FIG. 3, the monitor control panel 6 has a central processing circuit 29, and serves as input means for inputting condition settings such as a cooling set temperature such as a defrosting time and number of times and a defrosting return temperature. A keyboard input unit 35, a temperature control device 11,
12 and a transceiver 32 for communication with other devices.

The temperature of the equipment in the showcases 1, 2,... Is controlled by the cooling set temperature and the defrosting set temperature of the monitor control panel 6 or the temperature control devices 11, 12,. The condition setting changeover switch 33 for switching between the setting input on the monitor control panel 6 and the setting input on the temperature control devices 11, 12,...
It is provided in. In addition, the condition setting unit 37 can also set conditions such as whether to use an external timer input and whether to perform duty operation. You can choose.

Specifically, the condition setting changeover switch 33 is set such that when the switch 33 is set to the “remote” mode, the setting input on the monitor control panel has priority, and when the switch 33 is set to the “local” mode. Is set so that the setting input on the temperature control device side has priority and operates. In addition, the temperature control device can display the indicator lamp L so that it can be seen from the temperature control device which of the conditions is set.
ED (Light Emitting Diode) is provided, and the indicator lamp LED is used in "remote" mode and "local" mode.
Have different emission colors. When a defrost signal is received, the signal changes to blinking.

The monitor control panel 6 is also provided with a defrost timer in the clock section 34, and a signal input to the central processing circuit 29 is transmitted to the temperature controllers 11, 12,... Through the serial transmission line 7. It has become. Also,
When using an external timer, the condition setting switch 3
3, the signal may be transmitted from the transmission / reception unit 32.

The defrosting time and number of times to be input to the monitor control panel 6 and the cooling setting / return setting temperature and the like are specifically determined by using the keyboard input unit 35 of the monitor control panel 6 or other devices such as a personal computer. This is based on data transfer from the transmission / reception unit 32.

Further, the monitor control panel 6 is operated regardless of whether the condition setting switch 33 is set by the monitor control panel 6 or set by the temperature controllers 11 and 12. When the power is turned on for the first time when no data is stored in the memory or when the data is initialized, the monitor control panel 6 reads the values set by the temperature controllers 11 and 12 and controls the operation. According to the monitor control panel 6, many (for example, 96)
Can be managed, but setting data of, for example, 96 units remotely may cause an error. Therefore, the condition setting is performed only when the monitor control panel 6 is initialized. Regardless of the mode of the changeover switch 33, the temperature control devices 11, 12,.
Then, the program setting is made so that the setting data at the time of the trial operation is actually sent to the monitor control panel 6.

Reference numeral 36 denotes a display unit, which is a condition setting unit 37, an initial data storage unit 38, and a temperature data storage unit 39.
For example, the data input to the central processing circuit 29 is displayed. 40 is a transmitter for warning, 41 is a lamp for displaying a warning, 42 is an external warning output unit for outputting a warning to the outside, 43 is a data holding power supply, 44 is a communication unit,
5 is a power supply unit.

When the monitor control panel 6 is configured as described above, the sensor 21 on the temperature control device side can be used as it is, so that there is no need to provide an alarm sensor and perform communication work as in the conventional case. On the monitor control panel 6 side,
It has a temperature monitoring function, a temperature setting function, a defrosting setting function, a forced defrosting function, an alarm transmission function, an alarm buzzer alarm function, an abnormality history investigation function, etc., and a temperature control function on the showcase 11, 12 ... side.・ Temperature setting function ・ Temperature display function ・ Defrost display function etc. In addition, the monitor control panel 6 has a remote setting function, an abnormality history / temperature monitoring function, and the like.

According to such a centralized control device, since the temperature control and the defrosting control are performed from the monitor control panel 6 using the serial transmission line 7, the electric wiring work at the site is significantly simplified, There is a great advantage that it takes time.

In addition, the centralized control device can have season setting and a function of reducing the number of times of defrosting from the store temperature as a freshness management function for energy saving. Can be eliminated, and the number of times of defrosting can be further reduced in winter. In addition, by providing a supercooling protection function, when the night cover is closed at night, the temperature inside the refrigerator is automatically slid (overrided) automatically by detecting the temperature of the thermostat. And the override operation can be performed in the range of 1 to 5 ° C.

In performing the centralized management of a plurality of showcases as described above, the temperature control device 1 of the present invention is used.
1, 12 are connected to the monitor control panel 6 via the transceiver 23.
The circuit for transmitting and receiving signals has a function of determining whether or not transmission and reception signals are normally transmitted and received, and remote control by the monitor control panel 6 and independent control by the temperature control device itself according to the transmission and reception state of transmission and reception signals. It also has the function of switching between

FIG. 4 shows an outline of the discriminating function provided in the temperature control devices 11 and 12. When the operation is started in step 101, first, in step 102, the first storage unit 8 set in advance is set. The individual control in each temperature control device is performed based on the set temperature. In step 103, it is determined whether there is communication from the monitor control panel 6 via the serial transmission line 7, that is, whether a signal such as temperature setting has been input from the monitor control panel 6. If there is no signal (NO), the process proceeds to step 102. Return and continue the independent control.

If there is a signal input such as temperature setting from the monitor control panel 6 in step 103 (YES), the process proceeds to step 104, where the temperature set value sent from the monitor control panel 6 is stored in the second memory. The control is stored in the section 9 and is switched to control based on the set value, that is, remote control. While this remote control is being performed, the presence or absence of mutual communication with the monitor control panel 6 is monitored at step 105 via the serial transmission line 7, and if the mutual communication is continued without abnormality (YES).
Returns to step 104 and continues the remote control.

On the other hand, when an error occurs in the mutual communication in step 105, for example, when a communication error such as no signal or an abnormal signal occurs, the time of the communication error is counted in step 106, and the communication error It is determined whether or not the elapsed time is a predetermined time or more, for example, 12 minutes or more.
05, 106, and 107 are repeated, and when the mutual communication is restored, the process returns from step 105 to step 104 to return to the same remote control as described above.

If the communication error has continued for a certain period of time, for example, 12 minutes or more at step 107 (YES), the process proceeds to step 108 and provisional control is performed using the set value of the first storage unit. It is determined whether or not the communication has been restored. If the communication has been restored (YES), the process returns to step 102 and returns to the independent control. That is, the process returns to step 102 to switch to the independent control based on the set temperature stored in the first storage unit 8, and the communication from the monitor control panel 6 is restored until the signal input is confirmed in step 103. Until then, continue the independent control.

If the communication via the transmission line is not restored in step 109 (NO), it is confirmed in step 110 whether or not a certain period of time, for example, 6 hours, has elapsed. If not confirmed (NO), immediately Returning to step 108, if confirmed (YES), the process proceeds to step 109, where defrost output is performed, and the defrosting operation of the cooler is performed. After the defrost output, step 10 is performed again.
Returned to 8.

As shown in FIG. 5, when communication via the serial transmission line 7 is normally performed, temperature control is performed at the set temperature of the second storage unit 9 and the monitor control panel 6 is controlled. To perform the regular defrosting operation by the defrost timer on the monitor control panel side set in
When a communication error occurs and a predetermined time (12 minutes) elapses, the temperature is controlled based on the temperature set in the first storage unit 8 and the periodic defrosting operation is performed by a timer provided on the thermostat side. I have to.

As described above, when the mutual communication is continued while the remote control is being performed intensively from the monitor control panel 6, the temperature control is performed only by the temperature set value stored in the second storage unit 9. By performing the defrosting operation only with the defrost signal from the monitor control panel 6,
Even if the set temperature of the temperature control device 11 provided in each showcase is changed, the temperature control by remote control can be reliably performed.

Further, by sending the set temperature of the first storage section 9 to the monitor control panel 6 and monitoring it, it is possible to know that the temperature setting of the temperature control device 11 has been changed, and it is possible to switch to independent control. It is possible to prevent the occurrence of abnormal temperature inside the refrigerator when the user touches.

When a communication error occurs due to an abnormality of the monitor control panel 6 or the serial transmission line 7, the temperature is automatically controlled based on the temperature set value stored in the first storage unit 8 by independent control. Since the control is performed, there is no occurrence of an abnormality in the internal temperature due to a communication error, and the defrost output is automatically performed by receiving an external signal from a timer or the like according to the elapsed time of the independent control. No frost defects occur.

The temperature control device 11 having such a function
Can be manufactured in a shape as shown in FIG. That is, a temperature setting volume 92 for independent control and a defrost recovery temperature setting volume 93 are provided on an outer surface of the main body 91 having the above-described control circuit and the like, and an identification LED 94 for indicating whether remote control, independent control or defrosting operation is being performed. And a connector 23a connected to the serial transmission line 7, sensor connection connectors 19a and 21a connected to the sensors 19 and 21, respectively,
Connector 22a connected to s contact and Ds contact, input connector 3 for inputting signals such as an external timer
a may be attached and attached to a canopy portion or the like of a showcase.

[0047]

As described above, according to the temperature control apparatus such as a showcase of the present invention, the remote control and the independent control are automatically switched according to the state of the signal to the monitor control panel of the central control device. Even if the temperature set value of the temperature control device is changed during the remote control, it does not affect the remote control, and if an abnormality occurs in the remote control, control is performed by a preset temperature by independent control. If an error occurs during remote control,
Temperature control can be performed by independent control by the temperature control device.

Also, since two temperature storage units are provided in the temperature control device and used for remote control and independent control, respectively, any control can be easily switched as required. One showcase can be used for both controls. Further, by storing the temperature set value in the temperature control device, the load on the monitor control panel can be reduced as compared with the case where the temperature set value is stored in the monitor control panel, and more showcases can be managed. .

Further, when the remote control by the monitor control panel is switched to the independent control by the temperature control device, the defrost output is performed at a fixed time interval.
It is also possible to prevent damage such as poor defrosting from occurring.

Therefore, according to the present invention, a large number of showcases can be reliably controlled remotely, and even if an abnormality occurs in a monitor control panel or a communication line, a predetermined temperature control can be performed by independent control of a temperature control device. An operation and a defrosting operation can be performed, and an arbitrary showcase can be switched to an independent control operation as needed, so that various operation situations can be handled.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic wiring diagram showing an example of a centralized management device for a showcase.

FIG. 2 is a schematic block diagram of a temperature control device of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a schematic block diagram of a monitor control panel.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an operation example of the temperature control device of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a time chart showing an operation example of the temperature control device of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an external view of a temperature control device according to the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a schematic wiring diagram of a conventional centralized management device such as a showcase.

FIG. 8 is a schematic block diagram of a conventional temperature control device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 A Centralized management device 1 Showcase 2 Showcase 3 External signal input circuit 4 Power supply unit 5 Management device 6 Monitor control panel 7 Serial transmission line 8 First storage unit 9 Second storage unit 11 Temperature control device 12 Temperature control device REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 15 compressor 16 liquid receiver 17 electrical box 18 temperature control circuit 19 sensor 20 defrost recovery circuit 21 sensor 22 arithmetic circuit 23 transmission / reception unit 24 switch 25 address setting unit 26 input means 27 condition setting unit 28 defrost heater 29 central processing circuit 31 transmission / reception Unit 32 transmission / reception unit 33 condition setting changeover switch 34 clock unit 35 keyboard input unit 36 display unit 37 condition setting unit 38 initial data recording unit 39 temperature data storage unit 40 transmitter 41 external alarm output unit 43 data holding power supply 44 communication unit 45 power supply Part 91 temperature Control device body 92 Temperature setting volume 93 Defrost return temperature setting volume 94 Identification LED Ds Defrost output contact Ts Temperature control output contact DTs Defrost return output contact DTM Defrost timer HC Heater contactor SV Case liquid solenoid valve HCa Heater contactor HC contact DT Disk thermo LED display lamp (light emitting diode)

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A temperature control device installed in each showcase and independently controllable and remotely controllable by a monitor control panel, comprising: a signal transmission / reception circuit for the monitor control panel. A temperature control device for a showcase, wherein a remote control from a monitor control panel or a single control by each temperature control device is selected and switched according to the presence or absence of a circuit signal. 2. The temperature control device according to claim 1, further comprising: a first storage unit configured to store a temperature set value input on the temperature control device side; and a second storage unit configured to store a temperature set value input remotely on the monitor control panel side. 2. The storage device according to claim 1, further comprising a storage unit.
A temperature control device for a showcase as described. 3. The temperature control device according to claim 1, further comprising a lamp for identifying whether the current control is independent control by each temperature control device or remote control from the monitor control panel. Or the temperature control device for a showcase according to 2. 4. The temperature control device according to claim 1, wherein, during remote control from the monitor control panel, when an error occurs in transmission and reception of a signal between the monitor control panel and the temperature control device, the temperature control device performs independent control by the temperature control device. The showcase temperature control device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the temperature is automatically switched. 5. The temperature control device according to claim 4, wherein when the temperature control device is switched from the remote control from the monitor control panel to the independent control by the temperature control device, the temperature control device outputs a defrost every predetermined time. Showcase temperature controller.