KR20100012661A - Air conditioner and controlling method for the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: An air-conditioner which transfers messages with data and a control method thereof are provided to improve message management efficiency by adjusting the size of the message transmitted using a data tag which includes data information. CONSTITUTION: An air-conditioner comprises a plurality of units and a remote controller(RC). A remote controller monitors and controls a plurality of units. If message containing data is transmitted to one of a plurality of units, the remote controller transmits the message after adjusting the size of the message according to the size of the data.

Description

Air conditioner and controlling method {Air conditioner and controlling method for the same}

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an air conditioner and a control method thereof. In particular, when a message including data is transmitted, an air conditioner and a control for varying the size of a message to be transmitted using a data tag including a characteristic of the data It is about a method.

An air conditioner is a facility installed to purify indoor air to create a more comfortable indoor environment. The air conditioner discharges cold air into the room to regulate the room temperature. The air conditioner includes an indoor unit which is configured as a heat exchanger and installed indoors, and an outdoor unit which is configured as a compressor and a heat exchanger and supplies refrigerant to the indoor unit.

The air conditioner is equipped with a remote controller for efficient control of the indoor unit and the outdoor unit, and the remote controller enables the user to monitor and control a plurality of outdoor units and indoor units at a specific place without having to move to the place where each indoor unit and outdoor unit are installed. .

In order to control units such as indoor units and outdoor units, such an air conditioner transmits a message including a control command corresponding thereto from a remote controller to a unit, and in order to monitor operation information of a unit, a message including operation information data is received from the unit. It must be received by the remote controller.

In this case, in transmitting a message including data between the unit and the unit, the unit and the remote controller of the air conditioner, the message is transmitted according to a predetermined standard. In this case, since unnecessary data is transmitted together or a message having a certain size needs to be transmitted even if there is no data to be transmitted, bandwidth is wasted and time for transmission is wasted.

An object of the present invention is to transmit a message containing data, by using a data tag containing the information of the data, by varying the size of the message, thereby preventing the waste of bandwidth, thereby reducing the transmission time accordingly It is to provide an air conditioner and a control method for improving the efficiency according to the transmission.

The air conditioner according to the present invention includes a plurality of units and a remote controller for monitoring and controlling the plurality of units, wherein the remote controller transmits a message including data to any one of the plurality of units, And a data tag including address information of a unit to receive data, the data, and information about the data, and varying and transmitting the size of the message corresponding to the size of the data, wherein the plurality of units In the case of transmitting data to any one of the remote controller and the plurality of units, the data includes address information of a unit to receive data, the data, and a data tag including information about the data. The size of the message is variable and transmitted according to the size of data.

In addition, the control method of the air conditioner according to the present invention comprises the steps of setting the type of data to be transmitted, the data tag including the attribute and size information of the data in the message and the destination address to receive the message, Transmitting or executing the message having a size variable according to the data tag.

In the air conditioner and the control method according to the present invention configured as described above, in transmitting a message including data, the size of the message to be transmitted is not fixed without using a data tag including information of the data. By changing the size accordingly, it is possible to prevent the unnecessary transmission of the message, thereby preventing the waste of bandwidth, and to reduce the waste of the transmission time, more efficient message transmission, and the message using the data tag Because the structure of the system can be organized, it is easy to distinguish the messages, and the efficiency of the message management can be improved accordingly.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1, an air conditioner according to the present invention includes a plurality of units, a first remote controller RC connected to the plurality of units to monitor and control the operation thereof. In addition, the air conditioner includes local controllers R3 and R4, which are connected to the plurality of units, respectively, to input a predetermined control command, and output an operation state for the plurality of units.

Here, the unit included in the air conditioner may include an indoor unit (I) and an outdoor unit (O), and may further include a unit such as an air cleaning unit, a ventilation unit, a humidification unit, a dehumidification unit, and a heater. 1 Can be integrated control with remote controller (RC). Hereinafter, the indoor unit (I) and the outdoor unit (O) will be described as an example, but may also be applied to the case where the above units are connected. At this time, the number of the outdoor unit and the indoor unit is not limited to the drawing.

The first remote controller RC is connected to the first and second outdoor units O1 and O2 and is connected to a plurality of indoor units I, I1 to I6 connected to the outdoor unit O, and controls and monitors its operation. do. Each indoor unit receives a control command from the first remote controller RC by communicating with an outdoor unit or directly connected to the remote controller RC and transmits an operation state thereof to the first remote controller RC.

The first outdoor unit O1 is connected to the first to third indoor units I1 to I3, and the second outdoor unit O2 is connected to the fourth to sixth indoor units I4 to I6.

Here, the outdoor unit (O) includes a compressor for receiving and compressing a refrigerant, an outdoor heat exchanger for exchanging refrigerant and outdoor air, an accumulator for extracting gas refrigerant from the supplied refrigerant, and supplying the refrigerant to the compressor, and a flow path of the refrigerant for heating operation. Four-way valve to select. In addition, a high pressure pressure sensor for measuring the pressure of the refrigerant discharged from the compressor and a low pressure pressure sensor for measuring the pressure of the refrigerant supplied to the compressor. In addition, a plurality of sensors, valves and oil recovery device, etc. are further included, but the description of the other components will be omitted below.

The indoor unit (I) includes an indoor heat exchanger, an indoor fan, an expansion valve for expanding the refrigerant supplied from the outdoor unit (O), and a plurality of sensors.

At least one indoor unit (I) may be provided in one room, and the one or more outdoor units (O) are driven by a request of at least one of the plurality of indoor units (I), and correspond to the driven indoor unit (I). As the heating capacity is variable, the number of operations of the outdoor unit O and the number of operations of the compressor installed in the outdoor unit O are variable. Here, the number of outdoor units may vary depending on the cooling and heating capacity according to the number of indoor units and the capacity of the compressor provided.

The outdoor unit O and the indoor unit I are connected through a refrigerant pipe to perform cooling or heating operation according to the flow of the refrigerant according to the flow of the refrigerant between the outdoor unit O and the indoor unit I, and predetermined communication Send and receive messages or data according to the method.

The first remote controller RC is connected to the indoor unit I and the outdoor unit O, and monitors the operations of the indoor unit I and the outdoor unit O by transmitting and receiving a message including data according to a predetermined communication method. By generating a control command corresponding to the input user command and transmitting the control command to the indoor unit and the outdoor unit, the indoor unit and the outdoor unit are controlled to perform a predetermined operation.

In this case, a plurality of first remote controllers RC may be connected to the indoor unit I and the outdoor unit O, and the plurality of first remote controllers RC may be connected to each other according to a predetermined communication method to include data. Send and receive messages and share control information for indoor and outdoor units.

The first remote controller RC controls the plurality of indoor units I in units of individual indoor units or divides at least one indoor unit into a predetermined group or zone and controls the operations in group units and zone units. In this case, the first remote controller RC is controlled in units of individual indoor units, groups, or zones, and controlled to operate according to a predetermined schedule so that the indoor units included in the group or zone are operated with the same settings according to the same schedule. do. At this time, the first remote controller (RC) may be divided into groups or zones according to the connection relationship between the indoor unit (I) and the outdoor unit (O) or the installation position of the indoor unit, regardless of the installation position or the outdoor unit connection relationship, at least one Groups may be formed such that indoor units operate according to the same schedule.

The local controllers R3 and R4 are connected to the indoor unit I to display an operating state of the connected indoor unit I and transmit a control command corresponding to the input data to the indoor unit I. In this case, the local controller may be connected to the indoor unit by wire or wirelessly, and one-way or two-way communication may be performed according to a communication method.

As described above, the plurality of units including the outdoor unit and the indoor unit and the first remote controller RC are respectively assigned an outdoor unit number, an indoor unit number, and a remote controller number, and these numbers do not overlap between the outdoor unit, the indoor period, and the remote control period. Not set. In addition, the number assigned to each unit and the first remote controller (RC) as described above is used when setting the address, the address is set by a combination of the numbers of the connected unit or the remote controller. The address set in this way is used throughout the air conditioner regardless of the communication between the units, the communication between the first remote controller RC and the unit, and the communication between the remote controllers. Accordingly, the units of the first remote controller RC, the indoor unit I, the outdoor unit O, and the like included in the air conditioner have an address for identifying the connection structure.

Here, the address includes all three digits of information, the first digit includes a remote controller number, and the second digit includes an outdoor unit, in particular, a master outdoor unit. The last third digit includes the indoor unit number or the slave outdoor unit number. At this time, each remote controller number, outdoor unit number, indoor unit number includes a number for the interconnected equipment.

The first digit to which the remote controller number is set and the second digit to which the mast outdoor unit number is assigned are configured by 1BYTE, respectively, and the third digit to which the slave outdoor unit or indoor unit is assigned is configured by 3BYTE size. In this case, the third digit can be distinguished through the slave unit and the indoor unit because different numbers are allocated.

Accordingly, the first digit is set to any one of 0 to 254, and the second digit is set to any one of 0 to 254. The third digit is set to any one of 0 to 65534, but 0 to 99 for the slave outdoor unit and 101 to 65534 for the indoor unit. At this time, each remote controller number, outdoor unit number, indoor unit number is set so as not to overlap within a specified range, which may be manually input or a number calculated through a unique number of each device may be used. It may also be given in the order of connection. However, if the number is inputted at the time of registering the number, a warning is output and the other number is set to prevent duplication.

Here, when 255 is set in the first digit 101, it is used as a representative number for all remote controllers, and when 255, the maximum number settable in the second digit 102, is set, it refers to all master outdoor units. It becomes the representative number. In the case of the third digit 103, 100 is used as a representative number for all slave outdoor units and 65535 for all indoor units. Here, each digit of each address is preferably set to a hexadecimal number, but for convenience, it is specified that it is described as a decimal number.

When the address is set in the unit and the remote controller included in the air conditioner as described above, each device of the actual air conditioner is assigned an address as follows.

The first remote controller RC has its own remote controller number set in the first digit, and then the second and third digits are set to 0 to set the address '21 .0.0 'including the number 21 of the remote controller. At this time, when another remote controller is further connected, an address is set using the number of the added remote controller. For example, an address such as '31 .0.0 'or '43 .0.0' is set. At this time, the remote controller number is not duplicated, and the address is not duplicated.

When transmitting a message including predetermined data from the outdoor unit or the indoor unit to all the remote controllers, the maximum number that can be set in the first position, 255, is set to '255.0.0' as the destination address. The first remote controller RC receives this and executes a predetermined operation or outputs data according to the data included in the message.

Since the first and second outdoor units O1 and O2 connected to the first remote controller RC are connected to the first remote controller RC, the remote controller number '21' is set in the first place, and the second Each seat has its own outdoor unit number. The third digit is set to zero.

Accordingly, the address of the first outdoor unit O1 is '21 .10.0 'and the second outdoor unit O2 is '21 .20.0'. At this time, each outdoor unit number is not sequentially set, and may be freely set within a range not overlapping among 0 to 254. Representative numbers for outdoor units that refer to all outdoor units are set to 255 as the second digit. At this time, the first digit of the outdoor unit representative number is set to the number of the connected remote controller, and the third digit is set to zero.

For example, when transmitting a message from the first remote controller RC to '21 .255.0 ', all outdoor units connected to the first remote controller RC having a remote controller number of 21, that is, the first and second outdoor units ( The message is sent to O1, O2). On the other hand, when the message is transmitted to '31 .255.0 ', it is transmitted to all outdoor units connected to the predetermined remote controller having the remote controller number 31.

The first to third indoor units I1 to I3 connected to the first outdoor unit O1 are set to '21 .10.111 ', '21 .10.112', and 2'1.10.113 ', respectively, and the second outdoor unit O2. The fourth to sixth indoor units (I4 to I6) connected to the first remote controller (RC) and the second outdoor unit (O2) according to the number, '21 .20.114 ', '21 .20.115', '21 .20.116 'Is set to the address.

Here, the address of the indoor unit (I) includes the connected outdoor unit number and the number of the remote controller, the indoor unit number is set so as not to overlap in 101 to 65534. However, it can be overlapped with an indoor unit connected to another outdoor unit.

When the slave outdoor unit is connected to the first outdoor unit O1, for example, an address of '21 .10.010 'may be set. The slave outdoor unit includes the numbers of the connected remote controller and the outdoor unit in the address, and the slave outdoor unit number is set in the third digit. The number of the slave outdoor unit is set within the range of 0 to 99, and if the slave outdoor unit number is set to 100, all the slave outdoor units are worn out.

In this case, when the first remote controller RC and a unit such as an outdoor unit or an indoor unit transmit a message using the above address, the size of the message may be different according to the characteristics of data included in the message. Causes a variable message to be sent.

2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a remote controller according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 2, the first remote controller RC includes a data unit 140, an input unit 120, an output unit 130, a communication module 160, and a control unit 110 controlling overall operations.

The input unit 120 may include at least one switch, a button, or may be configured as a touch key capable of a touch operation, and applies data input through a button operation or a touch input to the controller 110. In this case, the first remote controller RC may not include a separate input unit in some cases. In this case, a user command may be input or an operation state may be output by an external connection or another remote controller through the communication unit 160. It may be.

The output unit 130 outputs a control screen of the first remote controller RC and outputs data included in a message transmitted and received through the communication unit 160. The output unit 130 outputs an operation state of the outdoor unit O and the indoor unit I to the screen, and displays a control menu for controlling the outdoor unit and the indoor unit. In addition to the display screen, the output unit 130 may further include a lamp for outputting an operation state of the first remote controller RC through lighting, blinking, and color of light, a predetermined sound effect, a warning sound, and a voice guidance. It may include.

When the control unit 140 stores control data for controlling the unit such as the outdoor unit and the indoor unit, the data unit 140 includes operation state data of units such as the outdoor unit and the indoor unit transmitted and received through the communication unit 160, numbers set in the remote controller, and addresses. It also stores the address data of all units and remote controllers of the air conditioner in order to communicate with other units or remote controllers. In this case, the address data may be received from the outside through communication with a unit or another remote controller, and may be stored when an address is initially set in the remote controller and each unit.

The communication module 160 includes at least one communication module and receives a message including operation state data from the outdoor unit O and the indoor unit I in the first communication method according to a control command of the controller 110. In addition, a message including a control command received from the input unit 120 or the second remote controller RC2 is transmitted to each unit. In addition, the communication module 160 may be connected to another remote controller or an external device or the Internet according to the second communication method.

Here, the first remote controller RC may use the first communication method and the second communication method of the communication module 160 differently, but the first communication method and the second communication method may be the same. In this case, when the first communication method and the second communication method are different, the first remote controller RC may further include a converter that converts data or a protocol for message transmission.

The controller 110 generates and transmits a control command to operate the plurality of units according to the setting, and allows the operation state data received from the unit to be displayed through the output unit 160. Here, the control unit 110 not only controls the plurality of units in units of individual units, but also sets a group including at least one unit or a zone including at least one group, and sets the units in units of individual indoor units or groups. Control the operation and set the schedule.

The controller 110 analyzes an address composed of a combination of a remote controller number, an outdoor unit number, and an indoor unit number as described above, so that data is transmitted to a specified specific unit or all units. The controller 110 extracts the address information of the data received through the communication module 160 to confirm the destination information and the destination information, and analyzes the information of the destination in the case of the data received by the first remote controller RC. .

At this time, the control unit 110 transmits a control command to the address assigned to the unit when controlling a specific unit, and the representative address when transmitting a control command to all the connected outdoor unit, or all connected indoor units of the plurality of units. Use to deliver. Here, the address set to the remote controller and each unit is composed of a combination of the remote controller number, outdoor unit number, indoor unit number as described in FIG.

The controller 110 displays the control menu for address setting or registration on the output unit 160 to enable address input. At this time, the controller 110 stores the address input through the input unit 150 as the address data of the data unit 130 and sets it as a remote controller address. Meanwhile, when the address information is input through the input unit 150 or the communication module 160, the controller 110 stores the data in the data unit 130 and then communicates with a unit such as an outdoor unit or an indoor unit, or communicates with another remote controller. Use if

In addition, when transmitting the message using the address as described above, the control unit 110 changes the size of the message according to the characteristics of the data included in the message and the destination address. At this time, the control unit 110 generates a data tag according to the characteristics of the data and includes it in the message to be transmitted.

3 is a diagram showing the structure of a message transmitted from the air conditioner of the present invention.

When the first remote controller RC and the plurality of units transmit operation state data or control command data, the first remote controller RC and the plurality of units include data in a message configured as shown in FIG. 3.

The message includes an address information (F10) field, a data tag (F20) field, and a data (F30) field.

The address information F10 includes information on a destination address for receiving a message in transmitting a message. The data tag F20 includes characteristics of a message to be transmitted and characteristics of the included data F30, and includes information about a variable size of the message. The data F30 is actual data to be transmitted, and may include operation information data of a unit and control command data of a remote controller.

The address information F10 includes an address length F11 field and an address F12 field. In the address F12, the actual address of the destination to which the message is sent is set. In the address length F11, the length of the address F12 is displayed. For example, when transmitting a message from a predetermined unit to the first remote controller RC, the address is set to '21 .0.0 '.

The data tag F20 includes the characteristics of the message and the characteristics of the data F30. The data tag F20 includes an application ID (F21) field, a message type (F22) field, a sequence number (F23) field, and a data length (F23) field. Include. The application ID F21 of the data tag F20 is used as an identifier for a message to be transmitted. The application ID F21 has one of 1 to 255, and the value of the application ID is determined according to the attribute of the message.

When the message relates to the local setting, the local management mode, the application ID F21 is set to 1, and set to 2 when the remote setting or the remote management mode is used. In this case, the local setting or the local management mode, in which 1 is assigned as an application ID, is performed in one node, that is, in one unit or one remote controller, the control unit 110 for processing data and a communication module for transmitting and receiving data. It is a case where a message for managing the environment setting and operation status is transmitted between the 160. For example, it can be used for addressing and reporting and network condition diagnosis request.

On the other hand, the remote configuration or remote management mode is used to manage the configuration and operation status for other units or other remote controllers. For example, when the remote controller transmits a message for changing a cooling / heating setting to an outdoor unit or an indoor unit, and reports a compressor state of the outdoor unit, it may be used to request an address assignment.

Also, the message is set to 3 for statistics, 4 for diagnostic routines, 5 for file transfers, and 254 for debugging. In addition, 0, 6 to 253 can be used to designate a specific identifier, 255 is used for message expansion.

In the case of the message regarding the diagnostic routine to which 4 is assigned as the application ID, the message may be used between the remote controllers or between the remote controllers and the units, the units, and the units. In addition, file transfer may be used when transferring files between remote controllers or between a remote controller and a unit, a unit, and a unit. When 254 is assigned as an application ID, debugging information may be used when debugging at the developer level. Can be used to transmit.

Herein, if the application ID is set to 1, the communication module 160 performs the operation corresponding to the data since the message is received from the controller 110 according to the data tag of the received message. In addition, when the application ID is 2 to 5, the authorized message from the controller 110 is transmitted to the destination of the designated address. At this time, the communication module 160 transmits the message including the network header to the message authorized from the controller 110.

The message type (F22) has a different meaning depending on the application ID. If the application ID of the message is set to 1 or 2, i.e., in local configuration or local management mode, or in remote configuration or remote management mode, the value is 1, send request, 2 receive request, 3 reply 4 indicates a report. In addition, 5 indicates a network layer request, 6 indicates a network layer response, 7 indicates a system restart, 8 indicates a message loss, 9 indicates a self request, and 10 indicates a self response. In addition, 11 is used to initialize the network address, 12 is copied to the network address, 13 is copied to the user address 14 is failed communication media, 15 is used for network address copy request. 0.1 to 255 can be used arbitrarily.

On the other hand, if the application ID is 4, message type 1 is used in the central request, message type 2 is used in the central response, if the application ID is 5, message type 1 is the information file, message type 2 is the file transfer, message type 3 is File lookup, message type 4 are used for file creation, and message type 5 is used for response files.

In addition, when the application ID is 254, message type 1 is used for session open request, message type 2 is session open response, message type 3 is session close request, message type 4 is session close response, and message type 5 is used for debugging data. .

Of the data tags F20, the sequence number F23 is a message sequence and is set to operate differently according to the application ID, and is set to reset to 09 after reaching from 255 to 255. The data length represents the length of the data field F30, and the data length is set to zero if the message type is for the backbone.

4 is a diagram illustrating an example of message transmission in a remote controller of the present invention.

In the case where a message is transmitted to a local setting between the control unit 110 and the communication module 160 in the first remote controller RC, in addition to the remote controller RC, the outdoor interface or the indoor unit internal interface may transmit the same message and the message. Specifies that local configuration can be made.

Referring to FIG. 4, the control unit 110 of the first remote controller RC is a first control unit 111 for the purpose of distinguishing the control unit and the communication module of the second indoor unit I2 which will be described later. The communication module of the controller RC is a first communication module 161.

When the first control unit 111 transmits a message for setting a local address to the first communication module 111 (210), the application ID F21 of the data tag F20 is set to 1, and the local environment setting is made. The message type F22 is a 1 setting request and transmits a message to the first communication module 111. At this time, since the message is transmitted using the internal interface in the device, the address length F11 is 4 while the address F12 is 0 in the address information F10. Here, setting the address length to 4 is to prevent the first communication module 161 from determining that the message is an error.

When the message is received from the first control unit 111, the first communication module 161 reads the address length F11 of the address information F10 to first determine whether the message is an error. At this time, when the address length is less than 4, the first communication module 161 determines that the message is not a message or a message error and discards it. In addition, in the data tag F20, the setting value of the application ID F21 is checked, and in the case of local setting, the value of the address F12 of the address information F10 is ignored.

When the received message is local, the first communication module 161 performs a predetermined operation according to the setting included in the data field F30 by referring to the message type F23 and the sequence number F24.

The first communication module 161 transmits the result of the operation to the first control unit 111 (220), and also because the internal transmission using the internal interface, the address length is 4 but the address is set to 0. The application ID of the data tag is 1 and the local setting is set. The message type is 3 response, and the message is transmitted to the first control unit 111.

When the message is transmitted from the first communication module 161 to the first control unit 111, the application ID is set to 1 and the local setting as described above, and the message type is set according to the type of the transmitted message. It is transmitted to the first control unit 111.

5 is a diagram illustrating an example of message transmission and reception between a remote controller and a unit of the present invention.

In the case of transmitting a message configured as shown in FIG. 3 in the air conditioner, a unit and a unit such as a remote controller, a remote controller, an outdoor unit, or an indoor unit may be generated between the remote controller and the unit. This will be described as an example. In this case, in order to distinguish the control unit and the communication module of the first remote controller (RC) and the second indoor unit, the control unit of the first remote controller (RC) is the first control unit 111, the control unit of the second indoor unit (I2) The control unit 112, the communication module of the tenth remote controller (RC) is the first communication module 161, the communication module of the second indoor unit (I2) is the second communication module (162).

Referring to FIG. 5, when transmitting a message from the first remote controller RC to the second indoor unit I2 (310, 320), the first controller 111 generates a tag for data to be transmitted and data, The message including the information on the destination is authorized to the first communication module 161 (310).

At this time, the first control unit 111 transmits the address of the second indoor unit I2 to receive the message to the first communication module 161 using '21 .10.112 'as a destination address, and the application ID is set to the second remote. , 3 statistics, 4 diagnostics, or 5 file transfers, and the message type is set according to the application ID.

For example, when transmitting a file, the application ID may be set to 5 and the message type may be set to 2 transmitting files. In this case, a file to be transmitted is included as data in the data 30 field.

The first communication module 161 analyzes the message received from the first control unit 111 to first determine whether there is an error, and determines whether the local setting is made through the application ID. In this case, since the application ID is set to 5, the first communication module 161 transmits the message to the second indoor unit I2 of the destination address (320). Here, the first communication module 161 is a network header including the address '21 .0.0 'of the first remote controller (RC) to be transmitted before transmitting the message, and the information necessary to be transmitted to the second indoor unit (I2) It further includes a message to be transmitted. Accordingly, in the message transmitted from the first remote controller RC to the second indoor unit I2, an address '21 .10.112 'of the second indoor unit I2 is set as a destination address and '21 .0.0' as a source address. .

Meanwhile, the second indoor unit I2 receives the message transmitted by the second communication module 162 from the first communication module 161 (320).

If the address length of the received message is less than or equal to 4, the second communication module 162 determines that it is an error and discards the message. If the address length is 4 or 6, the second communication module 162 matches the address of the second room (I2). After checking, check the sender's address. In this case, the second communication module 162 first determines whether the application ID is a local setting or a remote setting, and determines that the message is received from the second control unit 112 in the case of the local setting, and received from the outside in the case of the remote setting. The message is determined to be transmitted to the second control unit 112.

Here, since the received message is received from the first remote controller (RC) and the application ID is remotely set, it is applied to the second controller 9112. The destination address information is deleted, and only the address '21 .0.0 'is transmitted. Transmit to the second control unit 112.

The second control unit 112 analyzes the received message, determines the transmission destination, and determines the type of message according to the application ID, the message type, and the like. The second control unit 112 allows a predetermined operation to be performed according to the data included in the message.

Thereafter, when the second control unit 112 generates a response message as a transmission destination of the message and transmits the response message to the second communication module 162, the second communication module 162 checks the remotely set message and sends the second message to the transmission destination address. The network header including the indoor unit I2 address is added to the message and transmitted to the first remote controller RC (370).

When the first remote controller RC receives the message from the first communication module 161, the first remote controller RC checks the address length and the application ID, and transmits the message to the first controller 111. At this time, the destination address is deleted and the message including only the source address is applied to the first control unit 111. Accordingly, the first control unit 111 analyzes the message received from the second indoor unit I2 and checks the response.

Looking at the operation according to an embodiment of the present invention configured as described above are as follows.

4 and 5 described above, the first remote controller, the outdoor unit, and the indoor unit each have a communication unit for transmitting and receiving data with a control unit for controlling the operation of the device, and transmit and receive mutual messages. At this time, the communication module provided in the first remote controller, the outdoor unit, and the indoor unit determines the type of the message received from the controller or the outside and performs a predetermined operation according to the message or transmits the message to the destination.

6 is a flowchart illustrating a message determination method in a communication module in a remote controller or unit of the present invention. The communication module of the first remote controller will be described as an example.

Referring to FIG. 6, when a message is received (S410), the communication module first determines whether an address length is less than 4 by analyzing address information including the message (S420). At this time, when the value of the address length included in the message is less than 4, it is determined that there is an error in the message and discards the message (S520).

If it is determined that the message does not have an error, the communication module 160 checks an application ID among data tags and determines whether the message is a message according to a local setting (S450). When the application ID is 1, the communication module 160 determines that the message is received from the controller 110 as a message according to a local setting, and when 2 to 5, the communication module 160 determines a message received from the outside as a message according to a remote setting. do.

If the message is a message according to a local configuration, the message type, sequence number, and data of the data tag are analyzed (S460), and a predetermined operation is performed according to the data included in the message (S470). The communication module 160 generates a response message for the execution result, sets the application ID to 1, which is a local setting, and transmits it to the controller 110 (S480). In this case, in the case of a message according to the local configuration, the address is set to 4 and the address is set to 0 to transmit the message.

Meanwhile, when the application ID is not 1, the communication module 160 checks the destination address and, when the destination address is the address of the first remote controller, determines that the message is received from the outside and transmits the message to the outside if it is not. Judging by.

The communication module 160 deletes the destination address in the case of the received message and transfers the message including only the destination address information to the controller 110 (S500). In the case of the transmitted message, the communication module 160 transmits the first remote controller to the destination address. Further including the network header containing the address of the transmits the message to the destination address (S510).

7 is a flowchart illustrating a message determination method of a controller in a remote controller or unit of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 7, as described above, when a message is received from the communication module 160, the control unit 110 first determines whether the address length is less than 4 (S530). If the address length is less than 4, the message is discarded and a message retransmission is requested to the communication module 160 in some cases.

The controller 110 checks the application ID of the data tag and first determines whether the message corresponds to a local setting. As described above, when the application ID is 1, it is determined that the message is a message according to a local configuration, and when the value of the application ID is other, the message is received from the outside.

If the message is received from the outside, the control unit 110 confirms the transmission destination through the address included in the address field of the address information (S560). In this case, since the address of the first remote controller, which is the destination address, is already deleted from the communication module 110 and the address field of the address information includes the destination address, the control unit 110 confirms the transmission destination of the message. For example, if the address is '21 .10.112 ', it is determined that the message is received from the second indoor unit.

The controller 110 analyzes the application ID, the message type, and the sequence number of the data tag, reads the data included in the data field accordingly, and performs a predetermined operation (S580). The controller 110 generates a response message according to the result of the execution, and applies a message including a destination address to the communication module (S590). In this case, when the received message is a response message, a separate response message is not transmitted, and in some cases, a response regarding an acknowledgment may be transmitted.

On the other hand, if the received message is a message according to the local configuration, the control unit 110 determines that the message received from the communication module through the internal interface, and analyzes the data tag to execute the data (S610, S620). Generate a response message for the execution result (S630), and transmits the message to the communication module in the local configuration (S640).

As described above, the air conditioner and the control method according to the present invention have been described with reference to the illustrated drawings, but the present invention is not limited by the embodiments and drawings disclosed herein, and the application is within the scope of the technical idea. Can be.

1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention,

2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a remote controller according to an embodiment of the present invention;

3 is a diagram illustrating a structure of a message transmitted from an air conditioner of the present invention;

4 is a diagram showing an example of data transmission in the remote controller of the present invention;

5 is a diagram illustrating an example of data transmission and reception between a remote controller and a unit of the present invention;

6 is a flowchart illustrating a data determination method in a communication terminal in a remote controller or unit of the present invention;

7 is a flowchart illustrating a data determination method of a controller in a remote controller or unit of the present invention.

<Explanation of symbols on main parts of the drawings>

I: Indoor unit O: Outdoor unit

RC: Remote Controller

110: control unit 120: input unit

130: output unit 140: data unit

160: communication module

Claims (13)

A plurality of units; And A remote controller for monitoring and controlling the plurality of units, When the remote controller transmits a message including data to any one of the plurality of units, the remote controller may include address information of the unit to receive the data, the data, and a data tag including information about the data. And varying and transmitting the size of the message corresponding to the size of the data. When the plurality of units transmits data to any one of the remote controller and the plurality of units, a data tag including address information of the unit to receive the data, the data, and information about the data And an air conditioner configured to transmit a variable size of the message corresponding to the size of the data. The method of claim 1, And the remote controller and the plurality of units include a data length field in which the length information of the data is included in the data tag, and varies the size of the message in response to the data length information. The method of claim 2, And the remote controller and the plurality of units further include the application ID field, a message type field, and a sequence number field in the data tag to transmit the message. The method of claim 2, When receiving the message, the remote controller and the plurality of units analyze the address information of the received message to confirm the destination of the message, and if the address length value included in the address information is less than a reference value, determine that the message is an error. An air conditioner that discards messages. The method of claim 4, wherein The remote controller and the plurality of units, based on the application ID included in the data tag, if the message is a message according to the local configuration, determines the characteristics of the data, and after checking whether the data error, An air conditioner for controlling a corresponding operation to be performed. The method of claim 1, And the remote controller and the plurality of units transmit the message using an address consisting of a combination of a remote controller number and a unit number when the message is transmitted. The method of claim 1, The remote controller and the plurality of units, Communication module for transmitting and receiving the message; And And a controller which analyzes the message and executes the data included in the message, wherein the communication module omits a destination address for the message when receiving the message from the outside, and outputs a message including an address of the sender. Air conditioner applied to the control unit. The method of claim 7, wherein When the control unit generates a message to be transmitted to the outside, the control unit applies a destination address to the communication module, The communication module is an air conditioner for transmitting the message including a network header containing the address of the source. The method of claim 3, wherein The control unit, when generating a message for controlling the communication module, sets the application ID locally, and transmits to the communication module with the address as 0. Setting a data tag including information on a type of data to be transmitted and attribute and size information of the data in the message; And Setting a destination address to receive the message, and transmitting or executing the message having a variable size according to the data tag. The method of claim 10, According to the attribute of the data tag, the local message is authorized and executed according to the internal interface without transmitting to the outside, And controlling the air conditioner to transmit the message to the destination address in a remote setting. The method of claim 10, Receiving a message; And And determining whether the received message is in error according to the message length of the received message. The method of claim 12, Analyzing a data tag of the received message to determine whether to set up a local or remote setting and deleting a destination address when the message is set according to a remote setting; And If the message according to the local setting further comprising the step of executing an operation corresponding to the data contained in the message.

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