KR101707230B1 - Environment monitoring system and method using a sensor hub - Google Patents

Abstract

An environmental monitoring system that includes at least one sensor hub and communicates with an external appliance is disclosed. The control unit of the sensor hub receives a list of necessary environment information from the home appliance, and the controller supplies power only to the sensors corresponding to the environment information list. The controller transmits the output information of the sensor corresponding to the environment information list among the output information of the gas sensor, the dust sensor, the temperature sensor, the humidity sensor, and the illuminance sensor to the home appliance. In this embodiment of the present invention, only the various sensors necessary for environmental control are separated from the outside, and information related to living environment household appliances is transmitted and received using Bluetooth, Zig-bee or the like have. In addition, it is possible to monitor three-dimensional environment of the space using the sensor hub and interwork with various smart devices.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD [0001] The present invention relates to an environmental monitoring system and method using a sensor hub,

The present invention relates to an environmental monitoring system, and more particularly, to an environmental monitoring system and method using a plurality of sensor hubs.

Recently, according to the development of science and technology, a variety of household appliances have been spread and convenient for people's life.

Various household appliances such as a refrigerator, a humidifier, a heater, and an air purifier are also widely used at home.

Sensors that detect temperature, humidity, dust, gas, etc. attached to existing household appliances have limited range of measurement because they are attached to the product itself.

In addition, in the case of a conventional sensor, it is difficult to measure three-dimensionally in a space, and in the case where additional environmental data collection after product design is required, a design change is required and a large expenditure is incurred.

Korean Registered Patent No. 10-1202614 (Registered Date: Nov. 13, 2012 Name: Smart Sensor Module for Environmental Monitoring)

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide an air conditioner, And to provide an environment monitoring system and method using a sensor hub that enables exchange of information related to home appliances.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an environmental monitoring system and method capable of performing three-dimensional environmental monitoring of a space using a sensor hub and interworking with various smart devices and the like.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided an environmental monitoring system,

An environmental monitoring system comprising at least one sensor hub and communicating with an external appliance,

Each of the sensor hubs comprises:

A gas sensor for detecting harmful gases;

A dust sensor for detecting dust in the air;

A temperature sensor for sensing the ambient temperature;

A humidity sensor for detecting humidity in the air;

An illuminance sensor for sensing illuminance;

A communication module for performing a communication function with the home appliance;

A communication module for communicating with the home appliance, receiving a list of necessary environment information from the home appliance, and outputting information of the environment information list corresponding to the environment information list among the output information of the gas sensor, the dust sensor, the temperature sensor, And a controller for transmitting output information of the sensor to the home appliance.

Further comprising a power supply for supplying power,

And the controller supplies power only to the sensors corresponding to the environment information list.

Wherein the household appliance comprises:

A communication unit for communicating with the communication module;

A state display unit for displaying an operation state of the home appliance;

A controller for requesting the humidity information to the control unit, receiving the humidity information, and controlling the air amount so as to circulate the air when the collected humidity information differs by more than a predetermined reference value;

And a driving unit for adjusting the air volume according to the control of the controller.

And the controller displays the state of the airflow through the status display unit.

The controller determines that the gas information is collected in the sensor unit of the kitchen but the gas information is not collected in the living room and the sensor hub of the room, the controller determines that the food is being cooked and does not drive the driving unit.

According to an aspect of the present invention,

1. An environmental monitoring method for an environmental monitoring system comprising at least one sensor hub and communicating with an external appliance,

The control unit of the sensor hub receiving a necessary environmental information list from the home appliance;

Supplying power only to the sensor corresponding to the environment information list;

The control unit may transmit the output information of the sensor corresponding to the environment information list among the output information of the gas sensor, the dust sensor, the temperature sensor, the humidity sensor, and the illuminance sensor to the household appliance.

The method comprises:

The controller of the household appliance requests humidity information to a plurality of sensor hubs;

Receiving humidity information from a plurality of sensor hubs and determining whether the humidity information collected between the sensor hubs differs by more than a predetermined reference value;

And controlling the controller to increase the airflow and circulate the air when the humidity information collected between the sensor hubs differs by more than a predetermined reference value.

The method comprises:

If the gas information is collected in the sensor hub of the kitchen, but the gas information is not collected in the living room and the sensor hub of the room, the controller judges that the food is being cooked and does not circulate the air.

In the embodiment of the present invention, only the various sensor parts required for environmental control are separately separated from the outside, and information related to living environment appliances is exchanged using Bluetooth or Zig-bee communication. And an environmental monitoring system and method using the sensor hub.

Also, it is possible to provide an environmental monitoring system and method that can perform three-dimensional environmental monitoring of a space using a sensor hub and interworking with various smart devices.

1 is a conceptual diagram of an environmental monitoring system according to an embodiment of the present invention.
2 is a configuration diagram of one sensor hub in an environmental monitoring system according to an embodiment of the present invention.
3 is a configuration diagram of one household appliance in an environmental monitoring system according to an embodiment of the present invention.
4 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of a sensor hub in an environmental monitoring system according to an embodiment of the present invention.
5 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of a home appliance in an environmental monitoring system according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of the air conditioner in the environmental monitoring system according to the embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings so that those skilled in the art can easily carry out the present invention. The present invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. In order to clearly illustrate the present invention, parts not related to the description are omitted, and similar parts are denoted by like reference characters throughout the specification.

Throughout the specification, when an element is referred to as "comprising ", it means that it can include other elements as well, without excluding other elements unless specifically stated otherwise. Also, the terms " part, "" module," and " module ", etc. in the specification mean a unit for processing at least one function or operation and may be implemented by hardware or software or a combination of hardware and software have.

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram of an environmental monitoring system according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of one sensor hub in an environmental monitoring system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

1 or 2, an environmental monitoring system according to an embodiment of the present invention includes:

An environmental monitoring system (100) comprising at least one sensor hub (110, 120, 130) and communicating with external appliances (300, 400, 500)

Each of the sensor hubs (110, 120, 130)

A gas sensor 114 for sensing noxious gases; A dust sensor 115 for detecting dust in the air; A temperature sensor 116 for sensing the ambient temperature; A humidity sensor 117 for detecting humidity in the air; An illuminance sensor 118 for sensing illuminance; A communication module 113 that performs a communication function with the home appliance and uses Zigbee communication or Bluetooth communication; The communication module 113 communicates with the home appliances 300, 400, and 500 and receives a list of required environment information from the home appliances 300, 400, and 500. The gas sensor 114, (300, 400, 500) of the output information of the sensor corresponding to the environmental information list from the output information of the temperature sensor 115, the temperature sensor 116, the humidity sensor 117 and the illuminance sensor 118 And a control unit (MCU) 112.

The sensor hubs 110, 120 and 130 further include a power supply unit 111 for supplying power,

The controller 112 supplies power only to the sensors corresponding to the environment information list.

Here, the power supply unit 111 uses a commercial power supply or a battery, and supplies power only to necessary sensors, thereby saving power.

3 is a configuration diagram of one household appliance in an environmental monitoring system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 3, the household appliance 300 includes:

A communication unit 330 communicating with the communication module 113 and using ZigBee or Bluetooth; A state display unit 340 for displaying the operation state of the home appliance and implemented by an LED or the like; The control unit 112 of the sensor hub 110, 120, or 130 requests the humidity information, receives the humidity information, and when the humidity information collected between the sensor hubs differs by more than a predetermined reference value, A controller (320) for controlling the circulation; And a driving unit 350 for controlling the amount of air according to the control of the controller 320.

The controller 320 displays the state of the airflow through the status display unit 340. [

If the gas information is not collected in the sensor hub 110 and the sensor hub 120 and 130 of the living room and the room, the controller 320 determines that the food is being cooked and drives the driving unit 350 .

If necessary, the operation unit 310 may be provided to perform power operation or other setting operation.

Although the air purifier is exemplified in FIG. 3, the control of other home appliances may be performed for the home appliances.

For example, control can be performed in the water purifier to set an optimal cold water temperature that allows the user to feel the coolness by integrating the temperatures of the kitchen, the living room, and the room.

In addition, a method of collecting humidity information of a kitchen, a living room, and a room and controlling the humidification to be evenly spread using the air circulation function of the air purifier after adjusting the humidification amount may be applied to a humidifier and an air purifier.

Hereinafter, the operation of the environmental monitoring system according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described in more detail.

4 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of a sensor hub in an environmental monitoring system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

4, when power is applied to a sensor hub 110 installed in a room, a living room, or a kitchen, a controller 112 of the sensor hub 110 is connected to the home appliance 300 through a communication module 1213 It is determined whether a necessary environmental information list has been received (S410).

 Hereinafter, one sensor hub and an air purifier are exemplified, and other sensor hubs and other home appliances operate similarly. The communication between the control unit 112 and the Kant roller 320 is performed via the communication module 113 and the communication unit 330 and can be briefly described for convenience of explanation.

 If a necessary environmental information list is received from the home appliance 300, the controller 112 turns off unnecessary sensors and supplies power only to the sensors corresponding to the environmental information list (S420).

The control unit 112 outputs output information of the sensor corresponding to the environment information list among the output information of the gas sensor 114, the dust sensor 115, the temperature sensor 116, the humidity sensor 117 and the illuminance sensor 118 And then determines whether the collected information has changed compared to the previous information (S440). An internal memory may be provided for storing previous information as needed.

If the collected information is different from the previous information, the controller 9112 transmits the output information of the sensor corresponding to the collected environment information list to the home appliance 300 at step S450.

In the above process, the step S440 may be omitted if necessary, and the sensor information collected by the home appliance 300 may be transmitted even if the collected sensor information does not change.

Hereinafter, the operation of the home appliance will be described.

5 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of a home appliance in an environmental monitoring system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 5, the controller 320 of the home appliance 300 determines whether a list of information to be collected by the plurality of sensor hubs 110, 120, and 130 is defined (S510).

If a list of information to be collected by the plurality of sensor hubs 110, 120, and 130 is not defined, the controller 320 transmits a necessary list of environment data to the plurality of sensor hubs 110, 120, and 130 (S520).

Thereafter, the controller 320 checks the received environment data (S530) and determines whether the updated environment data exists (S540).

If there is updated environment data, the controller 320 changes the control by reflecting the updated environment data (S550). At this time, the changed control is various and can be controlled in various households such as air volume control, humidity control, air conditioning and heating control.

Specifically, the control of the air purifier will be described as follows.

6 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of the air conditioner in the environmental monitoring system according to the embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 6, the controller 320 of the home appliance 300 requests humidity information from a plurality of sensor hubs and determines whether there is collected humidity data (S610).

If there is the collected humidity data, it is determined whether there are a plurality of sensor hubs in which the humidity data is collected (S620).

If there are a plurality of sensor hubs, the controller 320 determines whether the humidity information collected between the sensor hubs has a predetermined reference value, for example, 10% or more (S630).

The controller 320 turns on the air circulation display of the state display unit 340 when the humidity information collected between the sensor hubs differs by 10% or more (S650). The controller 320 determines whether the air cleaner 300 It is determined whether the drug is in the drug state (S660).

If the current air cleaner 300 is in a weak air condition, the controller 320 changes the air volume to middle and drives the driving unit 350 (S680).

If it is determined in step S620 that there is no plurality of sensor hubs or if the humidity information collected between the sensor hubs in step S630 does not differ by more than 10% The air circulation operation display is turned off (S640), and the air flow rate of the air cleaner is maintained in the current state (S670).

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S660 that the current air purifier 300 is not in the weak state, the air flow rate of the air purifier is maintained in the current state (S670).

Such control of the air cleaner can be variously modified as needed.

In the embodiment of the present invention, only the various sensor parts required for environmental control are separately separated from the outside, and information related to the living environment appliance can be exchanged by using communication such as Bluetooth or Zig-bee .

In addition, it is possible to monitor three-dimensional environment of the space using the sensor hub and interwork with various smart devices.

In the embodiment of the present invention, it is possible to save power of the sensor hub by supplying power only to necessary sensors.

The embodiments of the present invention described above are not only implemented by the apparatus and method but may be implemented through a program for realizing the function corresponding to the configuration of the embodiment of the present invention or a recording medium on which the program is recorded, The embodiments can be easily implemented by those skilled in the art from the description of the embodiments described above.

While the present invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to exemplary embodiments thereof, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed exemplary embodiments, It belongs to the scope of right.

Claims (8)

An environmental monitoring system comprising at least one sensor hub and communicating with an external appliance,
Each of the sensor hubs comprises:
A gas sensor for detecting harmful gases;
A temperature sensor for sensing the ambient temperature;
A humidity sensor for detecting humidity in the air;
A communication module for performing a communication function with the home appliance;
A communication module for communicating with the home appliances, receiving a list of necessary environment information from the home appliances, and outputting output information of sensors corresponding to the environment information list, among the output information of the gas sensor, the temperature sensor and the humidity sensor, And a control unit for transmitting to the home appliance,
Wherein the household appliance comprises:
A communication unit for communicating with the communication module;
A state display unit for displaying an operation state of the home appliance;
A controller for requesting the humidity information to the control unit, receiving the humidity information, and controlling the air amount so as to circulate the air when the collected humidity information differs by more than a predetermined reference value;
And a driving unit for adjusting the air volume according to the control of the controller,
The controller causes the status of the airflow to be displayed through the status display unit,
Wherein the controller determines that the gas information is collected in the sensor unit of the kitchen but is not collected in the living room and the sensor hub of the room and does not drive the driving unit,
Further comprising a power supply for supplying power,
Wherein the control unit supplies power only to the sensors corresponding to the environment information list,
When the household appliance is an air purifier,
The controller of the household appliance requests humidity information to a plurality of sensor hubs and determines whether there is collected humidity data;
If the collected humidity data is present, determining whether the sensor hub has collected a plurality of humidity data;
If the number of the sensor hubs is plural, the controller determines whether the collected humidity information between the sensor hubs is different by 10% or more;
If the humidity information collected between the sensor hubs differs by 10% or more, turning on the air circulation display of the status display unit, and the controller judges whether the air cleaner currently in operation is in the weak air condition;
If the current air cleaner is in a weak air condition, the controller changes the air volume to middle to drive the driving unit;
If the number of the sensor hubs is not a plurality or the humidity information collected between the sensor hubs is not more than 10%, the controller turns off the air circulation operation indicator of the status display unit, To the environmental monitoring system. delete delete delete delete 1. An environmental monitoring method for an environmental monitoring system comprising at least one sensor hub and communicating with an external appliance,
The control unit of the sensor hub receiving a necessary environmental information list from the home appliance;
Supplying power only to the sensor corresponding to the environment information list;
Wherein the control unit is configured to transmit the output information of the sensor corresponding to the environment information list to the home appliance among the output information of the gas sensor, the temperature sensor, and the humidity sensor,
The controller of the household appliance requests humidity information to a plurality of sensor hubs;
Receiving humidity information from a plurality of sensor hubs and determining whether the humidity information collected between the sensor hubs differs by more than a predetermined reference value;
Further comprising the step of controlling the controller to increase the amount of air to circulate the air when the humidity information collected between the sensor hubs differs by more than a predetermined reference value,
Further comprising the step of: if the gas information is collected at the sensor hub of the kitchen but not at the sensor hub of the living room and the room, the controller does not circulate the air by judging that the food is being cooked,
When the household appliance is an air purifier,
The controller of the household appliance requests humidity information to a plurality of sensor hubs and determines whether there is collected humidity data;
If the collected humidity data is present, determining whether the sensor hub has collected a plurality of humidity data;
If the number of the sensor hubs is plural, the controller determines whether the collected humidity information between the sensor hubs is different by 10% or more;
If the humidity information collected between the sensor hubs differs by 10% or more, turning on the air circulation display of the status display unit, and the controller judges whether the air cleaner currently in operation is in the weak air condition;
If the current air cleaner is in a weak air condition, the controller changes the air volume to middle to drive the driving unit;
If the number of the sensor hubs is not a plurality or the humidity information collected between the sensor hubs is not more than 10%, the controller turns off the air circulation operation indicator of the status display unit, To < RTI ID = 0.0 >
Environmental monitoring methods. delete delete

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