KR20100026347A - Air conditioner and operating method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: An air conditioner and an update method thereof are provided to easily connect a terminal including update data with a unit, and to connect the terminal with multiple control unit of the unit. CONSTITUTION: An air conditioner comprises multiple control units(120,130,140), an interface(110), and multiple connection lines(L1,L2,L3). The control units comprise a driving software or control data, and control operation. The interface is connected to a terminal(200) for updating the software or the control data, and switches connection of the terminal and the control units. The connection lines are respectively connected to the control units, and connect the interface with at least one control unit. The software or the control data are updated by a connection switch formed in the interface.

Description

Air conditioner and data updating method

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an air conditioner and a data updating method thereof, and more particularly, to an air conditioner and a data updating method for setting a nickname to a unit and controlling the unit using audio or video.

The air conditioner is installed to provide a more comfortable indoor environment for humans by discharging cold air into the room to adjust the indoor temperature and purifying the indoor air to create a comfortable indoor environment. In general, an 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 separated and controlled by an indoor unit composed of a heat exchanger and an outdoor unit composed of a compressor and a heat exchanger, and is operated by controlling power supplied to the compressor or the heat exchanger. In addition, the air conditioner may be connected to at least one indoor unit to the outdoor unit, the refrigerant is supplied to the indoor unit according to the requested operating state, the operation is operated in the cooling or heating mode.

The air conditioner is equipped with software and control data, respectively, for driving the configuration provided. For example, in the case of an outdoor unit, the control unit for driving and controlling the compressor is provided with compressor control software and control data, and the software and control data for controlling the heat exchanger and the indoor fan are also provided, respectively.

Software or control data installed in such an air conditioner needs to be updated for bug correction and performance improvement, or to add new functions. However, in order to update the software and control data of the air conditioner once installed, it must be connected to each unit individually, and each control unit must be updated individually by connecting a line to a plurality of control units within one unit. Since it is necessary to repeat the connection and disconnection of the connection line, it is cumbersome and difficult to update the software or control data.

An object of the present invention, when updating the software or control data of the unit included in the air conditioner, it is possible to update the software or control data for a plurality of control units in a single connection through a switch operation, connection of the unit and the terminal The present invention provides an air conditioner and a method of updating the data, which are easy and the software or control data can be easily updated.

In the air conditioner according to the present invention, a plurality of controllers for controlling a predetermined operation including driving software or control data, a terminal for updating the software or control data mounted on the controller are connected, and the terminal is connected to the controller. And a plurality of connection lines connecting the interface unit and the at least one control unit, wherein the interface unit is connected to the control unit and the terminal in response to an operation of a connection switch provided. Allow data update to be performed.

In addition, the data update method of the air conditioner according to the present invention, in response to any one operation of a plurality of switches connected to the terminal including the update data, a plurality of control units and a connection line, the plurality of control units The step of connecting any one of the control unit and the terminal, the update data is transmitted from the terminal to the control unit, the step of updating the software or control data mounted on the control unit.

The air conditioner and the data update method according to the present invention configured as described above are easily connected to a terminal including update data and a unit, and connected to a plurality of control units provided in the unit through a switch operation after one connection. It is easy to update data, and it is not necessary to wire individually for each control unit, so convenience is greatly improved, and it is easy to update software and control data, so that it is easy to improve the performance of the air conditioner and correct errors. Has the effect of improving performance.

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

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

In the air conditioner of the present invention, the main body 2 can be applied to any case such as a stand-type air conditioner, a wall-mounted air conditioner, or a ceiling-type air conditioner. A system air conditioner connected to an example will be described.

Referring to FIG. 1, an air conditioner according to the present invention includes a plurality of units and a remote controller RC connected to the plurality of units to monitor and control the operation thereof. In addition, the air conditioner includes a local controller (R) connected to each of the plurality of units to input data to the plurality of units, 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, a heater, and such a unit may be remote Connected with the controller RC can be integrated control. 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 air conditioner is connected to a remote controller RC and a plurality of outdoor units connected to the remote controller to control the operation of the outdoor unit and monitor the operation state. In addition, each outdoor unit is connected to at least one indoor unit, and each indoor unit is connected to the remote control unit through the outdoor unit or directly to the remote control (RC) to receive a control command from the remote control and transmit the operation state accordingly to the remote controller do.

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. It includes a 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 data with each other according to the method.

The remote controller RC is connected to the indoor unit I and the outdoor unit O, and transmits and receives data according to a predetermined communication method, thereby monitoring the operation of the indoor unit I and the outdoor unit O and responding to an input user command. By generating a control command and transmitting it to the indoor unit and the outdoor unit, the indoor unit and the outdoor unit are controlled to perform a predetermined operation. Here, the remote controller RC has a converter or a gateway for converting data of different protocols.

In this case, a plurality of remote controllers RC may be connected to the indoor unit I and the outdoor unit O, and the plurality of remote controllers RC may be connected to each other according to a predetermined communication method to transmit and receive data, and to control the indoor and outdoor units. Share data according to.

The remote controller RC controls the plurality of indoor units I in units of individual indoor units or divides at least one indoor unit into predetermined groups or zones and controls the operations in group units and zone units. At this time, the remote controller (RC) is controlled in units of individual indoor units, groups, or zones, but 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.

The local controller is connected to the indoor unit I, displays the operating state of the connected indoor unit I, and transmits 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 remote controller RC are each equipped with software for performing a predetermined operation for each control unit, and control data for driving are stored. At this time, each control unit includes a data unit capable of storing data therein, and software necessary for executing a predetermined process is stored so that necessary data is called and stored during execution of the software, or data generated during the process is stored. A blowing buffer or flash memory may be used.

Units such as indoor units and outdoor units and the original controller update the software or control data through connection with the terminal 200 including update software, and perform only update of data without performing a separate operation during software update. It is desirable to.

2 is a block diagram showing a connection structure of an air conditioner and a terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 2, the unit includes a first control unit 120, a second control unit 130, and a third control unit 140 that perform different control operations, respectively, and are connected to the terminal 200. 110, a connection line 150 connecting the interface unit 110 and each control unit, that is, the first to third control units 110 to 130.

The unit 100 further includes a data unit (not shown), a communication unit (not shown), a driver (not shown), an input unit (not shown), an output unit (not shown), and the data unit (not shown). A storage means for storing data is provided separately from the data unit included in the communication unit, and the communication unit communicates with another unit or a remote controller such as an outdoor unit according to a wired or wireless communication method. The input unit is provided with at least one data input means through a pressing operation or touch, and the output unit is provided with at least one display means, a sound output means for outputting a predetermined sound, and a lamp to output an operating state of the unit. The drive unit houses a motor or the like.

The outdoor unit may further include driving means such as a compressor, a heat exchanger, an outdoor fan, an oil recovery unit, an accumulator, a subcooling device, and an indoor unit may include an expansion valve, a heat exchanger, an indoor fan, and the like. Means are controlled by the control unit.

Here, description of the configuration that obscures the gist of the present invention will be omitted.

The plurality of control units included in the unit 100 are control units for controlling predetermined driving means, and each includes driving software and control data for controlling the driving means. At this time, the number of control units included in the unit is different depending on the type of the unit and the number is determined according to the number of driving means provided.

In addition, any one of the plurality of control units is operated as the main control unit, and the remaining control unit is operated as the sub control unit, and the main control unit transmits a predetermined command to each sub control unit in general while controlling overall operation of the unit, and in each sub control unit. Allow the predetermined drive means to be controlled directly. Here, the main control unit and the sub control unit for the first to the third control unit is not distinguished, any one of which may be operated as the main control unit. In the case of the main control unit, input and output of data through the communication unit, the input unit, the output unit and the interface unit provided.

The connection line 150 connects each of the plurality of control units and the interface unit 110 so that data received from the terminal through the interface unit is transmitted to each control unit, and data of each control unit is transmitted to the terminal at the request of the terminal. Is the data bus.

At this time, the number of the connection line 150 is determined according to the number of the control unit, is fixed in the unit and connected to the control unit.

Hereinafter, the unit will be described as an indoor unit and an outdoor unit as an example, but is not limited thereto. The unit may be applied to other units such as a ventilation unit, an air cleaning unit, a humidification unit, and the like included in the air conditioner.

When the terminal 200 is connected to the connection terminal 111 of the interface unit 110 and is mounted, the terminal is in a state capable of data communication with the unit 100. In this case, as the connection switch of the interface unit 110 is operated, one of the plurality of controllers and the terminal are connected to the operated connection switch. Accordingly, the terminal transmits the update data to update the software or control data to any one of the connected control units, and the connected control unit updates the software or control data while the other operation is stopped.

In this case, the terminal 200 receives information of the connected control unit, checks version information of the software or control data, and updates the software or control data using the update data when the version is older than the version of the update data. If the version of the connected control unit is the same as or more recent than the version of the update data, the update of the control unit is terminated.

When the update for one control unit is completed, a guide sound and a guide message for the update completion are output so that the update for the other control unit is performed. When another control unit is connected by the operation of the connection switch, the terminal receives the information of the connected control unit and repeats the above operation to update the software or control data of the connected control unit.

In this case, when the terminal is connected, the connection terminal 110 may detect this and apply a signal according to the connection of the terminal 200 to the main controller.

The controller 110 starts or stops the operation of the main body 2 in response to the data applied from the operation unit 121, and changes the operation mode, operation setting, air volume, and wind speed so that the main body 2 performs the designated operation. To control. The controller 130 applies a control command to the driving unit 150 to operate the indoor fan and the indoor heat exchanger according to the setting.

Each control unit performs a predetermined process by using new software or control data when the update is completed. Here, the controller separately backs up and stores the software or control data before the update, and when an error occurs during the process using the new software or the control data, the controller outputs a predetermined warning message and restores the backup-stored data before the update. .

3 is a diagram showing the detailed configuration of the interface unit of the air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The interface unit 110 of the unit will be described in more detail with reference to FIG. 3.

The interface unit 110 includes a connection switch 111 connected to the plurality of controllers 120 to 140 and a connection terminal 112, and the connection switch 111 is connected to any one of the plurality of controllers. Switch S1 to S3.

At this time, the connection switch is connected to each control unit through the connection line 150, the first switch (S1) of the plurality of switches (S1 to S3) is connected to the first control unit 120 through the first connection line (L1) The second switch S2 is connected to the second control unit 130 through the second connection line L2, and the third switch S3 is connected to the third control unit 140 through the third connection line L3. .

The first to third switches S1 to S3 included in the connection switch 111 may be operated by a user, and when any one of the plurality of switches is operated, the corresponding switch is turned on. The connection terminal 112 and a predetermined control unit are connected. For example, when the first switch S1 is pressed, the connection terminal 112 and the first control unit 120 are connected through the first connection line L1, and the terminal 200 connected to the connection terminal 112. ) Updates the software or control data of the first control unit 120.

In this case, the first control unit 120 includes a first data unit 121 that stores driving software and control data necessary for operation control, and when connected to the terminal 200 through the interface unit 110, the first data. Software or control data stored in the unit 121 is updated by the terminal.

In this case, the terminal 200 connected to the first control unit 120 transmits a message according to the data update to the first control unit 120 to update the data, and correspondingly, the first control unit 120 transmits the current software. Alternatively, the terminal 200 provides version information about the control data.

When data update is performed by the terminal 200, the first control unit 120 transmits a message according to the data update to a unit connected through the other control unit and the communication unit, releases communication, and changes the data currently being updated. Do not.

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

4 is a flowchart illustrating a data update method of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

When the terminal 200 is connected to the connection terminal 112 for updating software or control data, the interface unit 110 detects the connection of the terminal 200 and applies it to the plurality of controllers (S310). At this time, the interface unit 110 preferably transmits a message for short-term access to the main controller of the plurality of controllers.

When any one of the connection switch of the interface unit 110 and the first to third switches S1 to S3 is operated, data transmission is possible from the connection terminal 112 to the predetermined controller through the switch and the connection line.

That is, when the first switch S1 is operated (ON) (S320), the first control unit 120 and the terminal 200 are connected through the first connection line L1 (S330), and the second When the switch S2 is operated (ON) (S340), the second control unit 130 and the terminal 200 are connected through the second connection line L2 (S350), and the third switch S3. When the operation state is turned on (S360), the third control unit 140 and the terminal 200 are connected through the third connection line L3 (S370).

When the terminal is connected to a predetermined control unit, the terminal 200 authorizes a message according to software or control data update to the connected control unit, and updates the software or control data according to the version information received through the response message ( 380).

If the update is not completed, it is detected whether the connection switch 111 is operated and the software or control data for the control unit corresponding to the switch set to the ON state is updated.

When the update is completed, all the switches of the connection switch 111 are turned off, and the connection of the connection terminal by the terminal 220 is released.

At this time, even if the switch remains ON after the update is completed or the connection of the terminal is not released, the controller connected to the terminal does not update any more because data has been updated, and re-executes the operation before the data update. do.

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

1 is a perspective view showing the configuration of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention;

2 is a block diagram showing a connection structure of an air conditioner and a terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention;

3 is a view showing a detailed configuration of the interface unit of the air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention;

4 is a flowchart illustrating a data update method of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

<Explanation of symbols on main parts of the drawings>

100: unit 200: terminal

110: interface unit 111: connection switch

112: connection terminal 120, 130, 140: control unit

121, 131, and 141: data portion 150: connection line

I: Indoor unit O: Outdoor unit

R: Local Controller RC: Remote Controller

S1, S2, S3: Switch

Claims (10)

A plurality of controllers for controlling a predetermined operation including driving software or control data; An interface unit connected to a terminal for updating the software or control data mounted in the control unit and switching a connection between the terminal and the control unit; A plurality of connection lines connecting the interface unit and the at least one control unit; In response to the operation of the connection switch provided with the interface unit, the control unit and the terminal is connected to the air conditioner to perform the update of the software or control data. The method of claim 1, The plurality of connection lines are respectively connected to the plurality of control units, An air conditioner is formed on the board on which the control unit is mounted. The method of claim 1, The interface unit is a connection terminal to which the terminal is connected, And one end connected to the connection terminal and the other end connected to the connection line, the air conditioner including a connection switch for switching the connection between the terminal and the control unit. The method of claim 3, wherein When the terminal is connected to the connection terminal, the interface unit applies a signal according to the connection of the terminal to the controller, And any one of a plurality of switches included in the connection switch is in an on state, and the control unit connected to the switch is connected to the terminal through the switch. The method of claim 3, wherein Any one of the plurality of controllers is connected to the terminal as any one of a plurality of switches included in the connection switch is operated, the on state, Air conditioner for transmitting the version information of the loaded software or control data to the terminal at the request of the terminal, and performs an update mode. The method of claim 5, wherein When the terminal is connected to the control unit according to the switch operation, and transmits a message according to the data update, If the version information is received in response to the corresponding, when the version of the controller is lower than the version of the data to be updated compared to the version of the data to be updated, the air conditioner for performing the update by transmitting the update data to the controller. . The method of claim 5, wherein When the control unit receives update data from the terminal, the control unit stops communication with another unit or the other control unit, performs data update, An air conditioner that resumes communication upon renewal completion. The method of claim 5, wherein The control unit further includes a data unit storing driving software and control data for operation control and storing data generated during operation control using the software. Accessing a terminal including update data; Connecting one of the plurality of controllers to the terminal in response to any one of a plurality of switches connected to the plurality of controllers through a connection line; The update data is transmitted from the terminal to the control unit, and updating the software or control data mounted on the control unit. The method of claim 9, When the update of the control unit is completed, when another switch of the plurality of switches is operated, The air conditioner further comprises the step of connecting the other control unit connected to the other switch and the terminal and the terminal, the software or control data for the other control unit.

Images