JPH103277A - Display device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prolong the service life of a battery and to reduce the labor and time exchanging the battery by activating the discharging section based on the number stored in a turnon number storage section and regularly discharging the battery having a memory effect. SOLUTION: This device has a battery 33 having the memory effect which is charged up by the power generated from a solar battery 1 and a switch 4 which connects the battery 33 and a light emitting body 6. By turning on the section 4, the power from the battery 33, which is connected to the switch 4, is supplied to the body 6 and the body 6 emits light beams. The turnon number storage section 7 counts and stores the number of turnons of the switch 4 which is connected to the battery 33. A discharging section 8 is activated and discharges the battery 33 when the number stored in the section 7 becomes a prescribed value. In the figure attached, a nickel cadmium battery is used as the battery 33, which has a memory effect. However, a nickel hydrogen battery is also used as the battery 33.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a display device in which a luminous body emits light using electric power generated by a solar cell. Road signs used around the road, such as centerline indicator lights, guide lights, guardrail pole lights, etc.
In addition, it is suitably used as an advertisement such as a signboard or a guide sign.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a display device such as a road sign is provided with a luminous body which emits light when it is lit or blinking, and the visibility of the display device at night is improved. LED (light emitting diode) as the light emitting body
And the like, and a solar cell that is easy to install and maintain is used as a power source for the power supply. A display device using this solar cell stores power generated by the solar cell in a storage battery (secondary battery) between morning and evening when the solar light is radiated, and emits the power stored in the battery at night. The light is supplied to the body to emit light.

As the storage battery, a nickel cadmium (NiCd) battery, a nickel hydride battery, or a lead storage battery having a memory effect is used. Nickel-cadmium batteries and nickel-metal hydride batteries have a short charging time, but do not discharge sufficiently. If they are recharged in a charged state, they are overcharged, deteriorate quickly, and need to be replaced frequently.

A lead storage battery is small and has a large electric capacity, but has a long charging time and a short life (3 to 4 years), and has poor charging efficiency at a rated voltage or less. When the lead storage battery is used alone, there is a problem that it is difficult to sufficiently charge the battery using only the power generated by the solar cell.

Therefore, a display device using a combination of a lead storage battery and a nickel cadmium battery or a nickel hydride battery has been proposed. This display device usually emits light by emitting power from a nickel-cadmium battery or a nickel-metal hydride battery to the light-emitting body, and uses the power of the lead storage battery when the power of the nickel-cadmium battery or the nickel-metal hydride battery is used up. Are formed, and a nickel cadmium battery or a nickel hydride battery is used as a main power source, and a lead storage battery is used as an auxiliary power source.

[0006]

However, a nickel-cadmium battery or a nickel-metal hydride battery is charged repeatedly until a certain low voltage state is reached, or further charged even when the charged amount is sufficiently large and full. Or (overcharge)
Then, the life is shortened due to the memory (capacity storage) effect, so that the nickel-cadmium battery or the nickel-metal hydride battery must be frequently replaced, and there is a problem that the replacement of the battery is troublesome.

[0007] The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and has as its object to provide a display device that can prolong the life of a battery and reduce the trouble of replacement.

[0008]

The display device according to the first aspect of the present invention has a switch 5 for connecting a battery 3 having a memory effect, which is charged by the power generated by the solar cell 1, and a luminous body 6. When the switch 5 is turned on from the off state, power is supplied from the battery 3 connected to the switch 5 to the light emitter 6 to cause the light emitter 6 to emit light. The number-of-on-times storage unit 7 counts and stores the number of times that the switch 5 connected to the on-state is changed from the off-state to the on-state. And a discharge unit 8 for causing the discharge.

A display device according to a second aspect of the present invention has a switch 5 for connecting a battery 3 having a memory effect, which is charged by the power generated by the solar cell 1, and a luminous body 6,
When the switch 5 is turned on from the off state, power is supplied from the battery 3 connected to the switch 5 to the light emitter 6 to cause the light emitter 6 to emit light. And a discharge unit 8 that operates when the number of times stored in the number-of-charges storage unit 7 reaches a predetermined value and discharges the battery 3 having a memory effect. It is characterized by comprising.

The display device according to a third aspect of the present invention is the display device according to the first or second aspect, wherein the battery charged with the electric power generated by the solar cell 1 has a memory effect. And a lead storage battery 2, and switches 4 and 5 are connected to each of them, and each of the switches 4 and 5 is connected to the luminous body 6. Power is supplied from the batteries 2 and 3 connected to the light emitting device 5 to the light emitting device 6 to cause the light emitting device 6 to emit light.

[0011]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below.

FIG. 3 shows, as an example of a display device, a night automatic light emitting device 10 for a road, which is buried along the center of a road intersection or along a center line. This light emitting device 10
The case 11 includes an upper case 12 having a substantially trapezoidal cross section and a box-shaped lower case 13 whose upper surface is open.

As shown in FIG. 4, a horizontally long light-emitting body 6 having a built-in LED (light-emitting diode) is embedded in each of the four slopes 12a of the upper case 12 so as to expose its surface to the outside. It is provided. Upper case 1
A concave portion 14 having an open upper surface is provided at the center of the cover 2, and a protective plate 15 made of glass or resin transparent enough to allow sunlight to pass therethrough is provided in the upper open portion of the concave portion 14.
Is fitted. The solar cell 1 is provided in the recess 14 so that the solar cell 1 is attached to the inner surface of the protection plate 15 and the solar cell 1 is protected by the protection plate 15.

As shown in FIG. 4, a lower case 13 includes a circuit unit 16 in which various circuits are incorporated, a lead storage battery 2 and a nickel cadmium (NiCd) battery 33 or a nickel hydride battery which is a battery 3 having a memory effect. Is stored. Then, each lead wire 31 of the solar cell 1 and the light emitting body 6 is connected to the circuit unit 1
6, and the upper case 12 is placed on the lower case 13 so as to be electrically connected to the batteries 2 and 3 of the battery unit 17 and to close the opening on the upper surface of the lower case 13, respectively.
Further, as shown in FIG. 5, a bolt 18 is inserted into the insertion recess 12 b formed in the upper case 12, and the upper case 12 and the lower case 13 are connected by the bolt 18.
The light emitting device 10 as shown in FIG. 3 can be formed. In order to increase the waterproofness of the joint between the upper case 12 and the lower case 13, it is preferable to perform a waterproof process using a sealant or the like.

In this light emitting device 10, as shown in FIG. 6, the upper case 12 is exposed to the ground and the lower case 13 is
It is buried in such a way as to be buried. Then, by automatically turning on or blinking the light-emitting body 6 at night, the visibility of the position of the intersection and the position of the center line at night can be improved.
Nighttime road safety can be improved.

FIGS. 1 and 2 are circuit diagrams of a circuit unit 16 used in the display device according to the first to third aspects of the present invention. FIG. 1 shows a nickel cadmium battery 33 having a memory effect, and FIG.
Is composed of a nickel cadmium battery 33 and a lead storage battery 2 which are batteries having a memory effect. Reference numeral 20 denotes a voltage level detecting unit formed by a circuit for detecting a potential difference (voltage level) generated by the solar cell 1, 4 denotes a switch connected between the nickel cadmium battery 33 and the light emitter 6, and 7 denotes a nickel cadmium battery 33. A number-of-times storage unit 23 formed by a circuit that counts and stores the number of times the connected switch 4 has changed from an off state to an on state, and 23 is turned on / off based on the number of times the switch 4 is stored in the number-of-times storage unit Is a discharge section formed by a circuit for discharging the nickel-cadmium battery 33 when the refresh timing switch 23 is turned on from the off state.

In addition, in the circuit diagram shown in FIG.
Reference numeral 21 denotes a charge switching unit formed by a circuit that switches between supplying the power generated by the solar cell to the nickel cadmium battery 33 and supplying the power to the lead storage battery 2, and 22 includes a circuit that constantly detects the voltage of the nickel cadmium battery 33. The battery voltage level detecting section 5 is composed of a switch connected between the lead storage battery 2 and the luminous body 6.

The operation of the display device having the circuit unit 16 shown in FIG. 2 will be described below. Since the circuit diagram of FIG. 1 is a basic circuit of the circuit of FIG. 2, its operation is similar to that of the circuit of FIG.

In this display device, it is determined whether or not a certain level of electric power is generated in the solar cell 1 by the voltage level detecting section 20.
In the case where a certain level of power is generated in the solar cell 1, it is determined that it is between morning and evening,
When a certain level of electric power is not generated, it is determined that it is nighttime.

When it is determined that the present time is between the morning and the evening, the electric power generated by the solar cell 1 is passed through the charge switching unit 21 to the nickel cadmium battery 33 or the lead storage battery 2.
And stored. The charge switching unit 21 supplies power to the nickel-cadmium battery 33 or the lead-acid battery 2
This switching is performed automatically based on detection of the voltage of the nickel cadmium battery 33 by the battery voltage level detection unit 22. That is, the battery voltage level detector 2
2 detects that the voltage of the nickel cadmium battery 33 is low, the battery voltage level detection unit 22 determines that the nickel cadmium battery 33 is not sufficiently charged,
The charge switching unit 21 is switched so that electric power is supplied to the nickel-cadmium battery 33. Conversely, when the battery voltage level detection unit 22 detects that the voltage of the nickel-cadmium battery 33 is high, the battery voltage level detection unit 22 When it is determined that the cadmium battery 33 is sufficiently charged and full, the charge switching unit 21 is switched so that power is supplied to the lead storage battery 2.

When the nickel-cadmium battery 33 is fully charged and full as described above, the lead-acid battery 2
The charge switching unit 21 is switched so that power is supplied to the nickel cadmium battery 3.
3 can be prevented, and the life of the nickel-cadmium battery 33 can be prevented from being shortened by the overcharge.

As described above, between morning and evening,
The power generated by the solar cell 1 is supplied to the lead storage battery 2 or the nickel cadmium battery 33 to be stored.

Next, when it is determined that the present time is nighttime, the switch 4 connected to the nickel cadmium battery 33 is first turned on from the off state by the voltage level detection unit 20, and the nickel cadmium battery 33 The light emitter 6 emits light by the supply of the power.

The amount of power used to cause the luminous body 6 to emit light at night, rather than the amount of power (charged amount) supplied to the nickel-cadmium battery 33 from morning to evening following a cloudy or rainy day. When the (discharge amount) increases, the voltage of the nickel cadmium battery 33 becomes lower than the voltage required for causing the light emitting body 6 to emit light, and the nickel cadmium battery 3
In some cases, the luminous body 6 may not be able to emit light. Therefore, in this display device, the battery voltage level detection unit 2
2 detects the voltage of the nickel-cadmium battery 33 and determines that the voltage is lower than the voltage required to cause the luminous body 6 to emit light, the battery voltage level detector 22 connects the lead-acid battery 2. The switch 5 is switched from the off state to the on state, and the power is automatically switched (switched) so that the light emitter 6 emits light by the supply of power from the lead storage battery 2.

At dawn, a certain level of electric power is generated in the solar cell 1, and this electric power is detected by the voltage level detecting section 20, and the voltage level detecting section 20 judges that it is between morning and evening. Then, the switch 4 is changed from the on state to the off state by the voltage level detection unit 20, and the charging of the nickel cadmium battery 33 as described above is automatically started. When the luminous body 6 emits light by supplying power from the lead storage battery 2, when the nickel-cadmium battery 33 is charged, the voltage of the nickel-cadmium battery 33 is detected by the battery voltage level detection unit 22 and the voltage is detected. If it is determined that the voltage is higher than the voltage required to cause the illuminator 6 to emit light, the battery voltage level detector 22 switches the switch 5 connected to the lead storage battery 2 from the on state to the off state, Is automatically switched (switched) so that the supply of power from is stopped and the light emitter 6 is turned off.

The display device repeats charging and discharging only with the nickel-cadmium battery 33 in a normal state (in a rainy or cloudy state for one or two days, and in a sunny state otherwise).
The luminous body 6 is caused to emit light by the lead storage battery 2 only in an abnormal state (when rainy or cloudy days continue).
For example, when the night time is short, such as in the summer, or when a sunny day continues, the luminous body 6 is turned on at night rather than the electric power (charge amount) supplied to the nickel-cadmium battery 33 from morning to evening. If the state in which the amount of electric power (discharge amount) used to emit light continues decreases, charging is repeatedly performed before the nickel-cadmium battery 33 becomes lower than a certain low voltage value. Therefore, the nickel cadmium battery 33 causes a memory effect and the life is 1 to 1.
It can be as short as two years.

Therefore, the display device is provided with a refresh mechanism for preventing the nickel cadmium battery 33 from causing a memory effect, which is constituted by the ON number storage section 7, the refresh timing switch 23, and the discharge section 8. I have. The number-of-on-times storage unit 7 counts and stores the number of times that the switch 4 connected to the nickel-cadmium battery 33 has changed from the off-state to the on-state.
When a predetermined number of times is reached, the refresh timing switch 23 is automatically turned on, and the discharge unit 8 is activated. By the operation of the discharge unit 8, the nickel-cadmium battery 33 has a certain low voltage value. (Voltage value that does not cause a memory effect) or less, and preferably, is refreshed by discharging so as to be empty. Then, as described above, the nickel-cadmium battery 33 is recharged with the electric power generated by the solar cell 1, and thus the nickel-cadmium battery 33 is in a reusable state. Thereafter, the number of times of ON stored in the number-of-ONs storage unit 7 becomes 0, and the switch 4
The number of ON times is counted and stored, and when the number of ON times reaches a predetermined number, the refresh timing switch 23 is automatically turned on as described above, and the nickel cadmium battery 33 is refreshed.

As described above, the display device is provided with the refresh mechanism for periodically discharging the nickel cadmium battery 33 to a voltage value not more than the voltage at which the memory effect does not occur. Thus, the life of the nickel-cadmium battery 33 can be extended several times. If rainy or cloudy days continue, the nickel-cadmium battery 33 may be used between morning and evening.
The amount of power (discharge amount) used to cause the light emitting body 6 to emit light at night is larger than the amount of power (charge amount) supplied to the nickel cadmium battery 33, and the nickel cadmium battery 33 is automatically refreshed (empty). That is, the nickel-cadmium battery 33 does not cause a memory effect.

The discharge section 7 can be set to operate simultaneously with the light emission of the luminous body 6. In this case, since the discharge is performed while the power of the nickel cadmium battery 33 is consumed by the light emitting body 6, the time for discharging and refreshing can be shortened, and the nickel cadmium battery 33 can be surely refreshed before morning comes. it can.

However, if the operation of the discharge unit 7 is set at the same time as the light emission of the light emitting body 6, the power of the nickel cadmium battery 33 is completely used at night and the light emitting body 6 is turned off at night. May be damaged.
Therefore, the discharge unit 7 may be set to be activated after several hours (for example, 8 hours) have elapsed from the light emission of the light emitting body 6. In this case, even if the luminous body 6 is turned off by completely using up the electric power of the nickel cadmium battery 33, it is close to the dawn and the traffic of cars and people is reduced, and the road safety is reduced. The degree of damage can be reduced.

Further, the operation of the discharge unit 7 can be set so as to operate at the same time when the light emitting body 6 is turned off after the light becomes bright in the morning or the like. In this case, since the light emitter 6 emits light without turning off at night, road safety is not impaired, but the nickel cadmium battery 33 cannot be charged during refreshing. Therefore, the charging time is shortened. Therefore, for example, on a rainy or cloudy day, the charging may be insufficient. Therefore, the voltage level detecting unit 20 for detecting the power generated in the solar cell 1 may be used.
Thereby, the refresh of the nickel cadmium battery 33 can be stopped and the days can be extended.

FIG. 7 is a circuit diagram of a circuit unit 16 used in the display device according to claims 2 and 3 of the present invention. The circuit unit 16 includes a nickel cadmium battery 33 instead of the ON number storage unit 7 shown in FIG.
And a charge number storage unit 9 formed of a circuit that counts and stores the number of charge times. The charge count storage unit 9 automatically turns on the refresh timing switch 23 when the charge count of the nickel cadmium battery 33 reaches a preset count (for example, a predetermined count between 30 and 50). When the refresh timing switch 23 is turned on, the discharge unit 8 is activated, and the operation of the discharge unit 8 causes the nickel-cadmium battery 33 to be lower than a certain low voltage value (a voltage value that does not cause a memory effect), preferably. Is refreshed by discharging so as to be empty.

Then, the nickel cadmium battery 33 is recharged with the electric power generated by the solar cell 1 as described above, so that the nickel cadmium battery 33 can be reused. Thereafter, the number of times of charging stored in the number-of-times-of-charging storage unit 9 becomes 0, and the number of times of charging of the nickel-cadmium battery 33 is counted and stored again. When the number of times of charging reaches the predetermined number, refreshing is automatically performed as described above. The timing switch 23 is turned on, and the nickel cadmium battery 33 is refreshed.

As described above, the display device is provided with the refresh mechanism for periodically discharging the nickel cadmium battery 33 to a voltage value not higher than the memory effect does not occur. Thus, the life of the nickel-cadmium battery 33 can be extended several times.

Although FIGS. 1, 2 and 7 show an example in which a nickel cadmium battery 33 is used as a battery having a memory effect, a nickel hydrogen battery may be used instead of the nickel cadmium battery 33. Needless to say.

[0036]

As described above, according to the present invention, an on-times storage section counts and stores the number of times a switch connected to a battery having a memory effect changes from an off state to an on state;
A discharge unit that operates when the number of times stored in the number-of-on-times storage unit reaches a predetermined value and discharges a battery having a memory effect, so that the discharge unit is operated based on the number of times stored in the number-of-on-times storage unit By doing so, the battery having the memory effect is periodically discharged, so that the life of the battery having the memory effect can be prevented from being shortened, and the battery having the memory effect needs to be replaced frequently. It is possible to reduce the time and effort of replacing the battery.

A number-of-charges storage unit for counting and storing the number of times a battery having a memory effect is charged, and a battery having a memory effect when the number of times stored in the number-of-charges storage unit reaches a predetermined value. A battery having a memory effect is periodically discharged by operating the discharge unit based on the number of times stored in the number-of-charges storage unit. Can be prevented from shortening the life of the battery having the memory effect, and it is not necessary to frequently replace the battery having the memory effect, so that the trouble of replacing the battery can be reduced.

Further, by using the above-mentioned battery having a memory effect and a lead storage battery together and switching them by a switch to discharge the battery, even if the battery having a memory effect is refreshed or charged insufficiently, A lead-acid battery having a large electric capacity is responsible for the discharge during that time, and can emit light from the luminous body without hindrance at night or in the dark.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block circuit diagram showing the operation of an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block circuit diagram showing the operation of the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the same.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the same.

FIG. 5 is a partial cross-sectional view of the same.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view showing an embedded state of the above.

FIG. 7 is a block circuit diagram showing an operation of another embodiment of the above.

[Explanation of symbols]

 REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 solar cell 2 lead-acid battery 3 battery with memory effect 4 switch 5 switch 6 illuminant 7 on-time storage unit 8 discharging unit 9 charging number storage unit

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A battery having a memory effect, which is charged by electric power generated by a solar cell, and a switch for connecting a light emitter, and the battery being connected to the switch when the switch is turned on from an off state. A display device configured to supply power to the illuminant to emit light from the illuminant, to count and store the number of times the switch connected to the battery changes from an off state to an on state; A display device comprising: a discharging unit that operates when the number of times stored in the number-of-times storage unit reaches a predetermined value to discharge a battery. 2. A battery having a memory effect, which is charged by electric power generated by a solar cell, and a switch for connecting a light emitter, and the battery being connected to the switch when the switch is turned on from an off state. In a display device in which power is supplied to the light emitter to emit light, the number of times the battery is charged is counted and stored, and the number of times stored in the number-of-charges storage unit is A display device, comprising: a discharge unit that operates when a predetermined value is reached to discharge a battery having a memory effect. 3. The display device according to claim 1, further comprising a battery having a memory effect and a lead storage battery, wherein the battery is charged with electric power generated by the solar cell, and a switch is connected to each of the batteries. A switch and a light emitter are connected, and when one switch is turned on from an off state, power is supplied from the battery connected to the switch to the light emitter to cause the light emitter to emit light. Display device.