JPS63143443A - Air conditioner - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To improve the using feeling and comfortableness of the user at the time of a spot operation of the air conditioner by providing control means for controlling an air flow fan changing the air discharge quantity in accordance with the distance up to the detection position of a user. CONSTITUTION:The rising degree or the like of hot air discharge flow due to the counter flow thereof from a main body 1 to a detection position, is computed by temperature data, and the deflection angle of a horizontal flap 6 is determined so that hot air hits against the user's body more effectively. In accordance with respective determined values, the rotational speeds of respective flaps 6 and 7 and an air flow fan 3 are changed and set. After the change of the rotational speeds, the control based on the user's body position detection data is again continued until the fact that the spot operation switch is turned OFF or not is discriminated. During this time, a new user's body position is gradually detected, and respective flaps 6 and 7 and the air flow amount are changed in accordance with the detected positions. Accordingly, for example, even when a user moves in the room, the discharge of hot air following after the movement of the user is performed.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Industrial Application Field) This invention relates to an air conditioner, and particularly to an air conditioner that can improve air conditioning comfort by automatically changing the direction and volume of blowing air. .

(Prior Art) In recent years, air conditioners have been designed to automatically change the direction of air blowing into the room, such as directing warm air toward the feet during heating operation, and directing cold air overhead during cooling operation. Furthermore, the blowing direction is automatically changed in response to transient changes in the blowing temperature or room temperature at the start of operation, etc., to improve the air conditioning comfort of the entire room (for example, No. 58-88549). In addition, some devices have a wind direction concentration operation function (hereinafter referred to as spot operation) that sets the blow direction deflection plate so that the blow direction is concentrated at a specific location in the room according to the user's request.
For example, when a user returns from an outing, narrowed hot air is applied to the user to provide immediate warmth.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) By the way, in conventional air conditioners having a spot operation function as described above, the direction in which the blown air is collected is usually set in the front area of the air conditioner body. , the person trying to obtain the spot effect is restricted to that area, and even if the person is in the front area of the main body, if the person is far from the main body, a sufficient feeling of warmth will not be given. The user's range of action was to be further narrowed in front of the main unit. On the other hand, if the air conditioner is installed in the corner of a wall, the blowing air will be blocked by, for example, furniture placed along the wall, and the spot operation function will improve the user's sense of use and comfort. It became something that could not be given enough.

This invention was made in order to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, and its purpose is to improve the usability and comfort of the user during the above-mentioned spot operation, and to improve the installation of the air conditioner main body. An object of the present invention is to provide an air conditioner with reduced restrictions on conditions.

(Means for solving the problem) Therefore, the air conditioner of this invention has the following features as shown in FIG.
An air conditioner comprising a blower fan 3 and a deflector plate 6.7 for changing the blowing direction of Suita air from the blower fan 3, and further includes a person detection device for detecting the position of a person in a room. Means 16 is provided to apply the blown air to the human body according to the detected position of the person from the person detection means 16 during the concentrated wind direction operation (controls the deflection angle of the deflection plate 6.7, and also controls the air conditioner main body). The blower fan 3 is provided with a control means 32 for controlling the blower fan 3 to change the amount of air blown according to the distance from the detection position according to the above formula.

(Function) In the air conditioner having the above configuration, the blowing direction of the air from the air conditioner main body 1 during the concentrated wind direction operation is set according to the position of the person detected in the room by the person detection means 16.
Be changed. Furthermore, the amount of air blown out will also be automatically changed, for example, if the detection position of the above formula is detected successively as it moves away from the main body 1, the amount of air will be gradually increased. be able to.

(Example) Next, regarding a specific example of the air conditioner of this invention,
This will be explained in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 2 shows a side view of the air conditioner main body 1 which is installed at a high place on a wall. An indoor heat exchanger 2 and a blower fan 3 are arranged inside the main body 1, and indoor air is sucked in through a suction grill 4 formed on the front surface of the main body 1.
Cold air or hot air at a predetermined temperature is blown out from a blow-off grille 5 formed at the lower part of the front side. A horizontal deflection plate, that is, a horizontal flap 6, and a vertical direction deflection plate, that is, a vertical flap 7, are arranged on the above-mentioned blowout grille 5 for controlling the direction of the blowing air. As shown in FIG. 3, each of these flaps 6.7 has a horizontal flap 6 connected to a first stepper motor 20, and a vertical flap 7 connected to a second stepper motor 7a on the left side of the center in the figure. 21, and the right vertical flap 7
b are respectively connected to the third step motor 22 via a link mechanism, and each step motor 20.2 is connected to the third step motor 22 via a link mechanism.
The direction of the air blown from the main body 1 can be set in any direction by changing the direction of each of the flaps 6.7 by controlling the rotation of 1.22.

As shown in FIG.
1, and a human body position detection device 16 serving as a human detection means is attached.

The human detection sensor IO is composed of a pyroelectric infrared sensor, and receives infrared rays equivalent to body temperature emitted from a human body, and when the intensity changes within a preset detection area. It is designed to respond to
Thereby, the presence of a person within the detection area can be detected.

On the other hand, the ultrasonic sensor 11 has an ultrasonic transmitter/receiver, and emits ultrasonic waves in the direction of approximately the center of the detection area of the human detection sensor 10, and the reflected waves reflected by objects in that direction return. The distance from the ultrasonic sensor 11 to the object is detected based on the time it takes for the object to arrive.

FIG. 4 shows the structure of the human body position detection device 16. As shown in the figure, the sensor box 12 containing the human detection sensor 10 and the ultrasonic sensor 11 can be controlled to rotate vertically and horizontally by two step motors 14 and 15 for scanning the detection area. It is configured as follows.

Next, the detection of the human body position when the air conditioner main body 1 equipped with the human body position detection device 16 as described above is installed at a high place on a wall as shown in FIG. 5, for example, will be explained. Each step motor 14, 15 is driven to sequentially change the detection direction of the human detection sensor 10 to move and scan the detection area on the floor of the room. When there is a person in the room as shown in FIG. 5, when the head of the human body enters the detection area of the human detection sensor 10 during the scanning process, the human detection sensor 10 senses the human body. A detection signal is generated. At this time, the horizontal angle θ1 and vertical angle θ2 of the detection direction are respectively given by the rotation control angle of each step motor 14, 15, and these directional angles θ1 and θ2 are stored as detection direction information. At this time, the ultrasonic sensor 11 detects the distance i to the head of the person.
! 1ltL is also obtained at the same time. Further, from the above θ2 and L, for example, the horizontal distance l from the air conditioner main body 1 to the position of the person can be easily determined by calculating 1=L, -cos θ2.

The above explanation is for the case where a person's head is detected, but even when the human detection sensor 10 detects bare feet, the calculation result of the distance l to the person's position is given as the same value as above,
Therefore, the position information of the person on the floor can be accurately obtained as the position information of the person's feet, regardless of the person's standing position or assets.

Next, based on the detection results of the human body position detection device 16,
Control of the blowing air during concentrated wind direction operation (hereinafter referred to as spot operation) during heating will be explained.

FIGS. 6 and 7 are control block diagrams and flowcharts. In FIG. 6, when the ON operation signal of the spot operation changeover switch 25 attached to the air conditioner main body 1 or the remote control operation switch box (not shown) is input to the wind direction/air volume control device 32, The detection operation of the human body position detection device 16 is started. When the detection signal of a human body in the room is input from the human detection sensor 10 to the position information calculation device 30, this calculation device 30
The distance information of the ultrasonic sensor 11 at that time and the detection area scanning step motor 14.1 of 0.11 for each of the above sensors.
Based on the detected angle information from the motor control device 31 controlling the air conditioner 5, the horizontal distance l from the air conditioner main body 1 to the person is calculated, and the horizontal distance l from the air conditioner body 1 to the person is manually transmitted to the wind direction/air volume control device 32 as human body position information. do. The wind direction/air volume control device 32, which is a means for controlling the direction and volume of the blowing air, further includes a blowing temperature sensor 35 that detects the temperature of the blowing air blown from the air conditioner main body 1, and a remote control switch box, for example. Each detected temperature signal from an attached indoor temperature sensor 36 that detects the indoor temperature is converted into appropriate temperature information and inputted via a temperature information calculation device 37. The wind direction/air volume control device 32 determines the flap deflection angle and the rotation speed of the blower fan 3 that provide a spot air conditioning effect from the human body position information and temperature information, and determines the flap deflection angle and the rotation speed of the blower fan 3 to provide a spot air conditioning effect, and determines these by the valve motor control device 38 and the fan motor control device 39. Output each. Then, the horizontal flap 6 and the vertical flap 7 are changed and set to the above deflection angle by the step motor 20.21° 22, and the blower fan 3 is changed and set to the above rotation speed by the fan motor control device 39. Such a control method will be further explained in detail based on the flowchart of FIG.

When heating operation is started, predetermined startup flap control and air volume control are first performed (step St).
. In this control, the air conditioner main body l is sometimes installed at a preset deflection angle so that the vertical flap 7 has a wide-angle direction in which the blowing air spreads throughout the room centered on the central area of the room. On the other hand, the rotational speeds of the horizontal flap 6 and the blowing fan 3 are controlled based on the blowing temperature as described below. First, the horizontal flap 6 is set at a horizontal position, that is, at a deflection angle of O°. As a result, the cold air blown through the indoor heat exchanger 2, which is in a low temperature state immediately after the start of operation, is blown overhead, so that people do not feel the cold air.

On the other hand, the rotation speed of the blower fan 3 is controlled to gradually increase the air volume at a rotation speed corresponding to ultra-light wind until the blowing temperature reaches 20 degrees Celsius, then a light breeze until 25 degrees Celsius, and then a weak wind until 35 degrees Celsius. When the temperature exceeds 35 degrees Celsius, the rotation speed is changed to correspond to the air volume set by the user (weak wind, medium wind, strong wind). This suppresses agitation of the indoor air due to the blowing of cold air at startup, so that the user does not feel the cold air. Next, when the blowing temperature reaches 38°C, the horizontal flap tube 6 is set to the vertical position, that is, at a deflection angle of 90°, and the air is blown directly downward, and this state is maintained for 2 minutes, and the indoor temperature reaches 17°C or higher. If so, terminate the startup control and proceed to step S2,
Horizontal hula, set the pro to the set angle (for example 70°),
The air is blown out towards the central area of the room. The control of the horizontal flap 6 is such that while the indoor temperature is low, even when hot air is blown towards a person, the cold air in the room hits the user first, and therefore does not give the user a warm feeling. Since this is not possible, the indoor temperature is raised first, and then warm air is directed toward the user.

Note that when returning to this step S2 after each flap and air volume are changed in the spot air conditioning control described later, the deflection angle of the horizontal flap is set to the above-mentioned 70°, and the vertical flap is set to the deflection angle in the wide-angle direction. , and the air volume is returned to the air volume set by the user.

After the above-mentioned initial setting, the process moves to step S3, and after confirming that the temperature state of the hot water temperature is equal to or higher than the set temperature, the process moves to step S4. In the control process described below, for example, when the indoor thermostat is turned on and the device is stopped, and then the device is restarted with the indoor thermostat ON signal, if the initial blowout temperature is low, The process returns from step S3 to step S1, and the control according to the above-described blowing temperature is performed.

In step S4, it is determined whether there is an ON operation signal from the spot operation changeover switch 25. If there is no ON signal, the process returns from step S5 to 32, and steps S2 to S5 are repeated to maintain the deflection angle and air volume of each flap 6.7 described above, and to control the ON operation signal from the spot operation changeover switch 25. Continue waiting for input. When the ON operation signal is input, the process moves from step S4 to S6, and the human body position detection operation by the human body position detection device 16 described above, that is, the scanning step motor 14.
15 to start scanning the room of the detection area of the human detection sensor 10. Next, in step S7, it is determined whether there is a human body detection signal, and as long as no person is detected, steps S3 and S are performed.
4, S6, and S7 to continue scanning while checking the blowout temperature state and the ON state of the spot operation switch.

If a human body detection signal is generated, the process moves from step S7 to step S38, and the horizontal angle θ1 and vertical angle θ2 of the detection direction are calculated from the rotation control angle of each scanning step motor 14, 15 at that time. The distance 1i1tL between the ultrasonic sensor 11 and the person is detected in step S9.
Detect. Then in step SIO, as described above, θl, θ
2, the horizontal distance β between the air conditioner main body 1 and the person is calculated. In step 511, based on the human body position information consisting of l, θ1, and θ2 and the temperature information obtained from the outlet temperature sensor 35 and the room temperature sensor 36, the flap deflection angle and air volume that can effectively provide a spot air conditioning effect are determined. is determined. In making this determination, the deflection angles of the left and right vertical flaps 7a and 7b are determined based on the horizontal angle θl and the distance l so that the blown air substantially converges on the detected human body position. On the other hand, the horizontal flap 6 and the air volume are determined based on pre-stored data based on the distance from the air conditioner main body, the temperature distribution determined by experiments regarding the blowing wind speed, blowing temperature, room temperature, blowing direction, etc. be done. At this time, if the distance l to the detection position is smaller than the preset value, the air volume setting by the user is used, and if the distance @ l is larger than that, the air volume setting by the user is used. For example, if the person is far away, the air volume is automatically increased depending on the distance. In other words, the speed of the wind from the main body 1 is increased so that even at a farther position, the same feeling of airflow due to the blown wind can be obtained as at the central position of the room. And after the air volume is determined,
After calculating the degree of rise due to convection of the hot air blowing air from the main body 1 to the detection position using temperature information, the deflection angle of the horizontal flap 6 is determined so that the hot air hits the human body more effectively.

Then, in step S12, the rotational speed of each flap 6.7 and the blower fan 3 is changed according to each determined value.
Set. After the change, the process returns to step S3, and the control based on the above human body position information is performed in step S3.
4 until it is determined that the spot operation switch 25 is OFF.During this time, new human body positions are detected one after another, and each flap 6.7 and the air volume are changed according to the detected position. For example, even when a person moves indoors, warm air is blown out to follow the person's movement.

Note that the spot operation switch 25 is turned off in step S4.
If the operation is determined, the human body position detection operation is stopped in step S5, and each flap 6.7 is stopped in step S2.
The air volume is returned to the initial setting value and normal heating operation is restarted, and the next ON operation signal of the spot operation switch 25 in step S4 is monitored.

Fig. 8(a) (bl is an indoor plan view schematically showing the blowing air during the above-mentioned spot air conditioning operation. In the case where the blowing direction is fixed in the conventional device, the figure (a)
), where the air conditioner is installed approximately in the center of one wall of the room, it is possible to provide a spot air conditioning effect within a predetermined range; If the main unit is installed in the corner of a wall, the direction of air blowing will be spot as shown by the broken line in the same figure, and the user's movements will be greatly restricted and the spot air conditioning function will be impaired. By detecting the position of the human body as in the embodiment and controlling the blowing air according to the detected position, the blowing direction shown by the solid line in FIG. The feeling and comfort can be improved. This also reduces restrictions on the installation conditions of the air conditioner main body. Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the position of the human body is sequentially detected and the wind direction is controlled according to the detected position.The system follows the movement of the person and automatically changes the air volume according to the distance to the detected position. Therefore, the effect of spot air conditioning operation can always be provided without restricting the range of movement of people indoors, and thereby the air conditioning comfort can be further improved.

As explained above, in the air conditioner of this invention,
Since the position of the human body is detected during spot air conditioning operation, and the wind direction and air volume are set according to the detected position, the usability and comfort can be improved, and restrictions on the installation conditions of the main body can be reduced.

Note that the above embodiments do not limit this invention, and various changes can be made within the scope of this invention. For example, in the above embodiment, the human detection sensor 10 and the ultrasonic sensor 11 are provided as the human detection means 16, and an indoor scanning mechanism for the detection area is added to these, but the indoor detection area may be divided appropriately. It is also possible to adopt a configuration in which a plurality of infrared sensors corresponding to each divided area are attached to detect the position of the human body. Furthermore, although the above embodiments have been described with respect to the spot air conditioning operation during the heating operation, by applying the present invention to the cooling operation as well, the comfort during the cooling operation can be improved.

(Effects of the Invention) As described above, in the air conditioner of the present invention, when the wind direction is concentrated, the position of the person in the room is detected, and the wind direction and air volume are automatically changed according to the amount T. Therefore, even when the user moves around indoors, it is possible to continue to provide a concentrated hot or cold air effect, which not only improves the usability and comfort, but also reduces the restrictions on the installation conditions of the main unit. reduced.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Figures 1 to 8 show examples of the air conditioner of the present invention. Figure 1 is a functional system diagram, Figure 2 is a side view of the air conditioner body, and Figure 3 is a horizontal flap and a vertical flap. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the configuration of the human body position detection device, FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of position detection by the human body position detection device,
FIG. 6 is a block diagram of the operation control system, FIG. 7 is a flowchart of the control method, and FIG. 8 (al (b) is a schematic indoor plan view showing the Suita style. l... Air conditioner body; 3...Blower fan, 6...
- Horizontal flap, 7... Vertical flap, 16... Human body position detection device (person detection means), 32... Wind direction/air volume control device (control means).

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A blower fan (3) and deflection plates (6) (7) for changing the direction of the air blown from the blower fan (3).
The air conditioner is further provided with a person detection means (16) for detecting the position of a person in the room, and when the wind direction concentrated operation is performed, the person detection position from the person detection means (16) is detected. The above deflection plate (6
)(7), as well as controlling the deflection angle of the air conditioner body (
An air conditioner characterized in that it has a control means (32) for controlling the blower fan (3) to change the amount of air blown according to the distance from the person's detection position to the person's detection position.