JP2002300965A - Electric pot and failure diagnostic method therefor - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an electric pot capable of reducing the burdens of time, labor and costs required for diagnosing a failure, and a failure diagnostic method using it. SOLUTION: The electric pot is provided with a nonvolatile memory 56, a controller 42 storing the history of at least one of the abnormal operation and maintenance operation of the electric pot in the nonvolatile memory 56 and a communication interface 57 for outputting the stored data of the nonvolatile memory 56 to the outside. At failure analysis, by reading the stored data of the nonvolatile memory 56 and applying them to a failure analysis program executed on a web server or on a web browser, the probable cause of the failure or the like is displayed by the web browser.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an electric pot and a method for diagnosing the electric pot. In detail, an electric pot that can reduce the burden and cost of trouble diagnosis,
The present invention relates to a failure diagnosis method using the same.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Electric pots, which use an electric heater to heat hot water for beverages, cooking and the like and keep the temperature warm, are widely used in ordinary households. In recent years, an electric pot equipped with a control unit using a microprocessor, a temperature sensor, and the like, and provided with an operation panel including a push button switch and a liquid crystal display is generally used. For example, based on the detection signal of the temperature sensor, the control unit heats the electric heater until the hot water temperature set on the operation panel is reached, and then executes automatic control for switching to the heater for keeping heat.

[0003] In addition, those which incorporate an electric pump and electrically supply hot water have become mainstream. The user can supply hot water from the electric pot to a predetermined container simply by pressing the hot water supply instruction button on the operation panel. In this case, the hot water is normally discharged from the discharge port (hot water pouring port) only while the hot water supply instruction button is being pressed, and the discharge of the hot water is stopped when the finger is released from the hot water supply instruction button. The control unit using the microprocessor also executes the process of controlling the electric pump according to the operation of the operation panel.

With the above-mentioned high functionality and high added value, the causes of failure of the electric pot have been diversified. In addition to simple failures such as disconnection of an electric heater, there are also failures whose cause is difficult to identify, such as a failure of an electric pump or a failure of an electronic circuit including a microprocessor.

[0005] On the other hand, the unit price of an electric pot is lower than that of other home electric appliances, and there are circumstances in which repair costs cannot be sufficiently applied. For example, in the conventional after-sales service, a person in charge asks the customer for a failure status over the telephone, sends a failed product, analyzes the cause of the failure, and informs the customer of a repair cost estimate. At this point, there are many cases where the customer gives up repair and chooses replacement.
In this case, the time required for the failure analysis and the transportation cost of the failed product are wasted.

In addition, when the electric pot is used for a long time, components such as calcium carbonate and magnesium carbonate contained in water precipitate on the inner wall of the tank, which enter the electric pump and cause malfunction of the electric pump. There is. Therefore, it is recommended that a predetermined amount of water and citric acid be put in a tank and a citric acid cleaning for boiling for a predetermined time be periodically performed. Such citric acid is sold by electric kettle manufacturers as maintenance consumables. Further, there are many electric pots provided with a citric acid washing mode (washing boiling mode) by a specific push button operation.

However, the periodic maintenance such as the citric acid cleaning described above is not correctly performed by the user, and thus often causes a failure of the electric pump or the like. Also, although the user manual states that liquids other than water (eg, coffee, etc.) cannot be boiled, such use may cause the electric kettle to fail. The fact that there are few users who honestly declare such misuse or non-performance of maintenance when requesting repair is one of the reasons why it takes time to identify the cause of a failure and repair it.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and provides an electric pot capable of reducing the trouble and cost of trouble diagnosis, and a trouble diagnosis method using the same. The purpose is to do.

[0009]

The configuration of the electric pot according to the present invention includes a non-volatile memory for holding stored data even when the electric pot is not energized, and a non-volatile memory for storing at least one of the abnormal operation and the maintenance operation of the electric pot. And a means for outputting the data stored in the nonvolatile memory to the outside.
According to such a configuration, when a failure or malfunction occurs, data stored in the non-volatile memory can be read, and the cause of the failure can be specified or estimated from the content thereof.

In one embodiment, the electric pot has a temperature sensor for detecting the temperature of the water heater tank, and the control device determines whether the temperature of the temperature sensor reaches a predetermined high temperature abnormal value during the water heater operation. When it is determined that there is a heating abnormality, the energizing circuit of the water heater is cut off, and the number of occurrences of the empty heating abnormality is integrated in the nonvolatile memory. Repeated empty baking deteriorates the fluororesin applied to the tank inner wall and makes it easy to peel off, or the tank bottom warps at high temperatures, creating a gap at the junction between the temperature sensor and the tank, lowering the temperature detection accuracy Troubles easily occur. By recording and reading out the number of occurrences of the empty-heating abnormality, it is possible to estimate the cause of such a failure or failure.

[0011] In another embodiment, the electric pot has a cleaning and boiling mode as a maintenance operation mode, and the control device accumulates the number of times of water heating or the usage time of the electric pot in the nonvolatile memory and executes the cleaning and boiling mode. Resets the number of water heaters accumulated in the nonvolatile memory or the accumulated value of the use time. According to such a configuration, since the number of times of water heating or the integrated value of the use time since the start of use or the execution of the previous cleaning and boiling mode is stored in the non-volatile memory, by reading this, the degree of contamination inside the water heater is read. (The degree of adhesion of mineral components, etc.) can be relatively known, and it becomes easy to specify or estimate the cause of the failure when a failure or failure occurs in the electric pump.

In still another embodiment, the electric pot includes an electric pump and a discharge pipe for discharging water in the tank to the outside, and a flow rate inserted in the middle of the front discharge pipe for measuring a discharge amount of water. A control device, the control device stores the flow rate data corresponding to the flow rate per unit time obtained from the flow rate sensor after a predetermined time after operating the electric pump in the nonvolatile memory, and the flow rate data for the latest predetermined number of times. Are sequentially deleted from the old flow rate data while leaving According to such a configuration, it is possible to know whether or not the operation of the electric pump up to the failure is stable (flow rate data is stable), which is useful for estimating the cause of the failure.

[0013] In still another embodiment, the electric pot is provided with a humidity sensor near a printed circuit board on which the control device is mounted, and the control device samples the detected humidity of the humidity sensor at predetermined time intervals. The number of times equal to or greater than a predetermined value is integrated in the nonvolatile memory. If water enters between the outer case of the electric pot and the tank for some reason, electronic components such as a control device (microprocessor) may get wet and malfunction. If it dries, it may return to normal operation, but it may lead to destruction, and if this happens repeatedly, the electronic component may be irreversibly damaged, leading to failure. Therefore, by storing the number of times that the humidity near the printed circuit board on which the control device is mounted becomes equal to or higher than a predetermined value, it can be used for estimating the cause of the failure.

[0014] In still another embodiment, the electric pot includes a temperature sensor for detecting a temperature of the water heater tank,
The control device determines that the boiling point is abnormal when the boiling temperature when the temperature detected by the temperature sensor changes from rising to saturation is different from the boiling point of water, and accumulates the number of times of occurrence of the boiling point abnormality in the nonvolatile memory. . It is known that when nonvolatile impurities are dissolved in water, the boiling point thereof becomes higher than that of pure water. Further, a liquid other than water, for example, alcohol has a lower boiling point than water. Therefore, if the number of occurrences of the boiling point abnormality whose boiling temperature is different from the boiling point of water is recorded, it is possible to estimate the number of times of boiling something other than water such as coffee or tea. This facilitates estimation of the cause at the time of failure.

A method for diagnosing a failure in an electric pot according to the present invention reads data stored in a nonvolatile memory provided in the electric pot having the above-described configuration, and estimates a cause of the failure in the electric pot based on the stored data. It is characterized by the following. Preferably, the failure diagnosis of the electric pot based on the data stored in the nonvolatile memory is performed by a program executed on a web server connected to the Internet or a program executed on a web browser of a terminal device accessing the web server. . This makes it easy for the user of the electric pot to estimate the cause of the failure by himself. It is also possible to predict the repair cost based on the estimated cause of failure and use it as a basis for determining whether a repair request should be made or a replacement should be made.

[0016]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of an electric pot according to an embodiment of the present invention. The electric pot 1 includes a double stainless steel tank 12 sandwiching a vacuum layer inside a substantially cylindrical pot body 11. By having the same structure as that of a so-called thermos, it is configured such that a predetermined hot water temperature can be maintained for a certain time without energizing the electric heater.

An electric heater 13 for water heating and heat retention is mounted in a recess formed in the bottom of the tank 12. An opening 14 for hot water supply (discharge) is provided at the bottom of the tank 12, and this opening 14 communicates with the input side of the electric pump 15 through an input line 15a. A pipe 15b on the output side of the electric pump 15 is connected to the base end of a discharge pipe 16 that extends substantially vertically from the bottom of the electric pot 1 to the top. The tip side of the discharge pipe 16 is provided with a flow sensor 17.
And, it reaches the discharge port 19 through the leak prevention valve mechanism 18 at the time of falling. The discharge tube 16 is made of a transparent glass tube, and the water surface inside the discharge tube 16 can be viewed through a transparent window provided on the front surface 11 a of the pot body 11. Thereby, the water surface in the tank 12, that is, the remaining hot water amount can be known.

The upper portion of the tank 12 is opened as a water inlet, and a lid 22 provided with a rubber packing 21 for closing the opening is provided above the pot body 11 of the electric pot 1. The lid 22 is detachably pivotally supported by the pot body 11 by a rear hinge lock mechanism 23 and is configured to be openable and closable by a front lock mechanism 24. The illustrated electric pot 1 is capable of manual hot water supply by an air pump together with electric hot water supply by the electric pump 15. For this purpose, an air pump including a push-down operation unit 25, a bellows member 26, valve mechanisms 27 and 28, and the like is provided at the center of the lid 22.

An operation panel 29 is provided on the front upper surface of the pot body 11. As shown in FIG. 2, the operation panel 29 has a display unit 31 and a plurality of push buttons 32 to 36.
Is provided. In addition, display windows 37 to 39 for a plurality of LEDs (light emitting diodes) are provided. As will be described in detail later, the user of the electric pot 1
The display on the display unit 31 at 9 indicates the temperature of the hot water in the tank 12, the time until boiling, and the like. Further, it is possible to use the push buttons 32 to 36 to instruct a hot water supply, set a hot water supply amount, and the like.

The operation panel 29 is provided inside the operation panel 29.
LCDs and push buttons 32 to 3 corresponding to the display unit 31
6 or a tact switch corresponding to 6 and a microprocessor for control (corresponding to a control device)
Is mounted on the printed circuit board (hereinafter, referred to as a microcomputer board). A printed circuit board (hereinafter, referred to as a power supply board) 40 on which a power supply circuit, a drive circuit, and the like are mounted is attached to the bottom of the electric pot 1.

FIG. 3 shows a microcomputer board of the operation panel 29,
FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a main part of an electric circuit including a power supply board 40 and other electric components. The electric circuit includes a microprocessor (MPU) 42, an A / D converter 43, a waveform shaping circuit 44, a drive circuit 45, a buzzer 46, and a reset circuit 4.
7, oscillation circuit 48, power supply circuit 49, push buttons 32 to 36
Switches 51 and switch input circuits 5 corresponding to
2, a liquid crystal display 53, a plurality of LEDs 54, a display drive circuit 55, a nonvolatile memory 56, a communication interface 57, and the like.

A temperature sensor 20 for detecting the temperature of water (hot water) stored in the tank 12 is mounted on the outer wall of the tank 12, and the detection signal is converted into a digital value by an A / D converter 43. Is input to the microprocessor 42. Further, as described later in detail, a pulse signal output from the flow sensor 17 is input to the microprocessor 42 as a rectangular wave signal via the waveform shaping circuit 44.

The drive circuit 45 includes a microprocessor 42
The electric pump 15 and the electric heater 13 are driven by the output signal from. The drive circuit 45 is configured using a switching element such as a power FET or a relay, and the discharge capacity of the electric pump 15 can be continuously variably controlled by PWM (pulse width modulation) or duty ratio control.

The buzzer 46 is a piezoelectric buzzer and is driven directly by the microprocessor 42 or via a drive circuit (not shown). The buzzer 46 sounds when it emits a notification sound such as completion of the water heater or an operation sound of the push button.
In addition, a reset circuit 47 of the microprocessor 42,
Oscillation circuit 48 for clock generation, microprocessor 4
2 and a power supply circuit 4 for supplying a constant DC voltage to peripheral circuits
9 are mounted.

Next, the structure of the flow sensor 17 will be described. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the structure of the flow sensor 17.
(A) is a top view and (b) is a cross-sectional view. Flow sensor 1
Reference numeral 7 denotes a printed circuit board (LE) on which an upper case 61, a lower case 62, a rotating member 63, and a light emitting element (LED) 66 are mounted.
A printed board (PD board) 65 on which a light receiving element (PD) 67 is mounted, a cover member 68, and the like.

The upper case 61 is made of a transparent resin.
It has a cylindrical portion for accommodating the rotating member 63 and a flange 61a protruding from the cylindrical portion. In this flange 61a,
Protrusions (not shown) for fixing the LED board 64 and the PD board 65 are provided. A bearing portion 61b is formed at the center (axial center) on the upper end side of the cylindrical portion. The bearing portion 61b is connected to the cylindrical portion by three ribs 61c provided at intervals of 120 degrees.

The lower case 62 is a cylindrical member having a stepped cross section that fits on the inner peripheral surface of the lower end of the upper case 61 and fits on the outer peripheral surface of the discharge pipe 16. A bearing part 62a is formed in the part ()). Similar to the bearing 61b of the upper case 61, the bearing 62a is connected to the inner wall of the lower case 62 by three ribs 62b. The upper case 61 and the lower case 62 are integrated to form a main body case having bearing portions 61b and 62a of a shaft member 69 that rotatably supports the rotating member 63. The upper case 61 is made of a transparent resin because it is necessary to transmit light emitted from the LED 66.
May be transparent or opaque.

FIGS. 5A and 5B are diagrams showing the structure of the rotating member 63, wherein FIG. 5A is a diagram viewed from the axial direction, and FIG. 5B is a side view. The rotating member 63 is made of an opaque resin, and includes a cylindrical portion 63a having a through hole HL formed along the axis, and spiral blades 63b and 63c formed around the cylindrical portion 63a. The two rotating blades 63b and 63c form a so-called double spiral shape.

As shown in FIG. 5B, the rotating member 6
A shaft member 69 is inserted into a through hole HL formed in the third cylindrical portion 63a, and both ends of the shaft member 69 are supported by bearing portions 61b and 62a of the upper case 61 and the lower case 62. Thereby, the rotating member 63 is rotatable around the axis AX. A metal washer 70 is interposed between the bearing 61b of the upper case 61 and the tip end of the rotating member 63 (upper end of the cylindrical portion 63a).

As can be seen from FIGS. 4 and 5, the LEDs (light emitting diodes) 66 mounted on the LED
PD (photodiode) 67 mounted on D board 65
Are arranged so as to face each other, and a straight line (optical path) LT connecting the two is perpendicular to the axis AX of the rotating member 63 and at a position shifted from the axis AX. Therefore, when the rotating blades 63b and 63c of the rotating member 63 are at the positions shown in FIG. 5B, the light emitted from the LED 66 as the light emitting element passes through the transparent upper case 61 and the rotating blade 6 of the rotating member 63.
PD67 which is a light receiving element after passing through the gap between 3b and 63c
(Light receiving state).

When the rotating member 63 rotates 90 degrees from the position shown in FIG. 5B, the optical path LT changes to the rotating blade 63b or 63b.
c, the light emitted from the LED 66 is PD
It does not reach 67 (non-light receiving state). In FIG. 4B, reference numeral 66a denotes an LED lead line connected to the LED 66 via the wiring pattern of the LED board 64, and similarly, 67a denotes a PD lead line connected to the PD 67.
The LED 66 (light emitting element) and the PD 67 (light receiving element) constitute an optical sensor for detecting the rotation speed of the rotating member 63 by the above operation.

The flow sensor 17 having the above structure
Is inserted in the middle of the discharge pipe 16 as shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 4B, the periphery of a portion where the tip of the upper case of the flow rate sensor 17 and the discharge pipe 16 are joined is sealed with a rubber packing 71. Further, the fitting portion between the lower case 62 and the discharge pipe 16 may be similarly sealed with a rubber packing (not shown) or may be sealed with an adhesive. The flow sensor 17 of the present invention is small and lightweight, and need only be attached so as to be inserted in the middle of the discharge pipe 16 without being fixed to the main body of the electric pot 1.
Also, the insertion position in the discharge pipe 16 is desirably above the full water level.

In FIG. 1, when the electric pump 15 is driven and water (hot water) in the tank 12 flows from the bottom to the top in the discharge pipe 16, when the water passes through the flow rate sensor 17, the helical rotating blades 63b, 63c (that is, the rotating member 63) is rotated. This rotation speed is substantially proportional to the speed of the water flow, that is, the flow rate per unit time. In addition, the rotating blade 63
When b and 63c rotate, as described above, the light receiving state of FIG. 5B and the non-light receiving state when rotated 90 degrees thereafter are alternately repeated. As a result, as shown by the broken line in FIG. 6, the PD 67 outputs a pulse signal 72 in which the light receiving level (for example, low level) and the non-light receiving level (for example, high level) are alternately repeated. The cycle (frequency) of the pulse signal 72 is proportional to the rotation speed of the rotating member 63.

As shown in FIG. 6, since the pulse signal (broken line) 72 output from the PD 67 is distorted (bent), it is shaped into a rectangular wave as shown by a solid line 73 by the waveform shaping circuit 44. To the microprocessor 42. The microprocessor 42 counts the number of pulses of the pulse signal 72 per unit time measured by an internal timer. The number of pulses is determined by the flow sensor 1
7 corresponds to the flow rate of water per unit time.

The threshold value Vref used for waveform shaping is set to a value close to 5 V (for example, 4 V) when the light receiving level is 0 V and the non-light receiving level is 5 V.
When the electric pot 1 is used for a long time, when the wall surface of the upper case 61 becomes dirty and the light transmittance decreases, the low level side of the pulse signal 72 gradually increases, while the high level side when no light is received. Because it hardly changes.

The inner diameter of the cylindrical portion of the flow rate sensor 17 is equal to the inner diameter of the discharge pipe 16, but the cross-sectional area of the flow path is equal to the cross-sectional area of the bearings 61 b and 62 a and the rotating member 63. It becomes smaller than the cross-sectional area. As a result, the speed of the water flowing in the flow sensor 17 is increased, and even when the discharge amount is small, the rotating member 63 of the flow sensor 17 can be efficiently rotated to accurately measure the flow rate. The cross-sectional area of the pipe from the flow sensor 17 to the discharge port 19 is maintained so as to be larger than the cross-sectional area of the flow path of the cylindrical portion of the flow sensor 17. This prevents the water that has passed through the flow sensor 17 from giving a resistance to lower the detection accuracy of the flow sensor 17.

Next, a typical operation and operation of the electric pot 1 of the present embodiment will be described together with a quantitative automatic hot water supply. First, in FIG. 1, the lock mechanism 24 of the lid 22 is released, the lid 22 is opened rearward, and a required amount of water is poured into the tank 12. When the lid 22 is closed, the lock mechanism 24 is securely locked, and the plug of the electric cable connected to the electric pot 1 is inserted into an outlet (outlet), the microcomputer substrate is energized. The microprocessor 42 is reset and starts operating according to the program stored in the built-in ROM. That is, the control of energization of the electric heater 13 is started, and a predetermined display is displayed on the display unit 31 of the operation panel 29 shown in FIG. 2, so that the pressing of the push buttons 32 to 36 is recognized.

On the operation panel 29 shown in FIG.
The three-digit, seven-segment display unit of 1 displays a numerical value such as a time until boiling, a warming temperature, and a set hot water supply amount. Character display is 3 digits 7 to indicate which numerical value is displayed
It is arranged around the segment display section, and the corresponding character lights up.

The three triangular marks arranged below the three-digit seven-segment display part correspond to “98”, “90” and “Mahoubin” printed on the lower part of the display part 31. They correspond to each other, and alternatively indicate the heat retention selection state. When the heat retention selection button 35 is pressed, the lit triangle marks move in order, and “98”, “90”, or “Mahobin” is selected. When “98” or “90” is selected, the temperature of the hot water in the tank 12 becomes approximately 98 ° C. or 90 ° C.
The energization control of the electric heater 13 is performed such that
When “Mahobin” is selected, the electric heater 13 is not energized, and the temperature is kept only by the function as a thermos by the double tank 12 sandwiching the vacuum layer.

The push button 36 is a button for reboil, descaling and good night. When the timer is set for “Good night”, the heat retention by the power supply control of the heater ends after a predetermined time has elapsed. Push button 36
On the right side, an LED display window 38 that lights up during heat insulation and an LED display window 39 that lights up during boiling are provided.

The hot water supply button 32 depressed at the time of hot water supply is
In order to ensure safety, it is valid only for 20 seconds after the lock release button 33 is pressed. When the lock release button 33 is pressed, the hot water supply lamp (LED display window) 37 is turned on, and turned off after 20 seconds. When the hot water supply button 32 is pressed while the hot water supply lamp 37 is on, the electric pump 15 is driven and hot water is discharged from the discharge port 19. The electric pump 15 is driven only while the hot water supply button 32 is pressed,
When the finger is released from the hot water supply button 32, the electric pump 15 stops and the hot water supply ends. In addition, the electric pot 1 of this embodiment
By pushing down the push-down operation section 25 at the center of the lid 22, manual hot water supply by an air pump is also possible as described above. A lock lever (not shown) is also provided for the push-down operation unit 25 to ensure safety, and the push-down operation unit 25 can be pushed down after the lock state of the lock lever is released.

As shown in FIG. 2, an operation panel 29 is provided with a hot water supply amount setting operation section 34 for setting the amount of hot water supply for the automatic fixed amount hot water supply using the flow rate sensor 17. The hot water supply setting operation section 34 includes a fixed amount button 34a and a reduced amount button 34b.
And an increase button 34c. When using the function of automatic quantitative hot water supply, after pressing the quantitative button 34a,
By increasing / decreasing the set hot water supply amount displayed on the display unit 31 by using the decrease button 34b and the increase button 34c,
Set the desired hot water supply.

Thereafter, similarly to the normal hot water supply, the lock release button 33 is depressed, and then the hot water supply button 32 is depressed. If the hot water supply button 32 is kept depressed, the electric pump 15 automatically stops when the discharge amount of hot water reaches the set hot water supply amount, and the hot water supply ends. That is, the microprocessor 4
2 measures the flow rate per unit time from the output signal of the flow rate sensor 17 as described above, and calculates the discharge amount by integrating the measured flow rates. Then, when the discharge amount reaches the set hot water supply amount, the microprocessor 42 stops the electric pump 15.

In order to ensure the safety, if the finger is released from the hot water supply button 32 during the automatic fixed-quantity hot water supply, the microprocessor 42 will operate even before the discharge amount reaches the set hot water supply amount. Immediately, the electric pump 15 is stopped to end the hot water supply. That is, it is a necessary condition for the operation of the automatic fixed-quantity hot water supply that the hot water supply button 32 is kept pressed.

Next, washing boiling called citric acid washing will be described. If the electric pot 1 has been used for a long period of time, components such as calcium carbonate and magnesium carbonate contained in water will precipitate on the inner wall of the tank 12, and the inside of the tank will gradually become dirty. Further, when the deposits are peeled off and enter the inside of the electric pump 15, the electric pump 15 is clogged, which causes a malfunction.

Therefore, when the inner wall of the tank 12 becomes very dirty or at regular intervals, it is recommended to the user to perform citric acid cleaning by an instruction manual or the like. In the citric acid cleaning, citric acid sold as a consumable item for maintenance by an electric pot manufacturer is put into the tank 12 together with water, and is boiled for a predetermined time. In the electric pot 1 of the present embodiment, the citric acid cleaning mode is executed by simultaneously pressing the reboil / descaling / good night button 36 and the heat retention selection button 35. In the citric acid cleaning mode, the heater power supply is stopped after the boiling state is continued for a predetermined time.

Returning to the block diagram of FIG. 3, the operation of the nonvolatile memory 56 and the communication interface 57 will be described using some examples. The non-volatile memory 56
EEPR in which written data is not erased even when the power is off
OM (electrically erasable and programmable ROM)
Semiconductor memory. SRAM (static RAM)
May be replaced with the nonvolatile memory 56 by backing up the battery. This non-volatile memory 56
It is used to store information useful for analyzing the cause of failure.

In the first example, by storing information on whether or not the citric acid cleaning mode is periodically performed, it is possible to estimate the cause of the failure of the electric pump 15. That is, if it is found that the citric acid washing mode is not used and the device is used for a long period of time, calcium carbonate, magnesium carbonate, etc. are supplied to the electric pump 15 as described above.
It is presumed that it is blocked.

Further, by storing the history of the number of pulses per unit time of the pulse signal output from the flow rate sensor 17, it can be determined whether or not the operation of the electric pump 15 is stable. For example, the electric pump 15
If it is found that the capacity gradually decreases before the failure, the accumulation of calcium carbonate, magnesium carbonate, etc. in the electric pump 15 is estimated.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an example of a process in which the microprocessor (control device) 42 writes information for judging whether or not the citric acid cleaning mode is periodically performed in the nonvolatile memory 56. . The microprocessor 42 determines in step # 101 whether or not water heating is in progress, and if not, proceeds to step # 10.
2. Start the one hour timer. Then, every time one hour has elapsed (Yes in step # 103), the count value stored in the nonvolatile memory 56 is incremented (1).
Is added) (step # 104).

On the other hand, if it is determined in step # 101 that water is being heated, it is further determined whether or not the citric acid cleaning mode is set (step # 105). The counted value is reset (step # 106). By such processing, the count value stored in the non-volatile memory 56 indicates the elapsed time (use time) from the start of use or the execution of the citric acid cleaning mode in units of one hour.

As another method, instead of accumulating the use time, the number of times of water heating may be accumulated in the non-volatile memory 56. Also in this case, if the integrated value of the number of times of water heater execution is reset with the execution of the citric acid cleaning mode, the number of water heater executions from the start of use or the execution of the citric acid cleaning mode is stored in the nonvolatile memory 56. become.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing an example of a process in which the microprocessor 42 writes information for determining whether or not the operation of the electric pump 15 is stable in the nonvolatile memory 56. The microprocessor 42 turns on the electric pump 15 (Ye in step # 201).
s) In step # 202, it is determined whether or not the boiling has just finished. If not immediately after the end of boiling, the number of pulses per unit time of the flow sensor 17 is measured in step # 203, and the number of pulses is stored in the nonvolatile memory 56 (step # 2).
04).

At this time, the nonvolatile memory 56 has 10
A storage area for the measured number of pulses for the number of times is secured, and data is sequentially deleted from old data. That is, the latest data of the past 10 times is stored in the nonvolatile memory 56.

In step # 202, it is determined whether or not the boiling has just ended. If it is immediately after the boiling has ended, the processing after step # 203 is not executed. Immediately after the end of boiling, a phenomenon called cavitation occurs, and the discharge by the electric pump 15 is not performed smoothly. That is, although omitted in the flowchart of FIG. 8, a timer is started at the end of boiling (the completion of boiling water), and the processing after step # 203 is not executed until a predetermined time has elapsed. In addition, the temperature sensor 2
A step of determining whether or not the temperature of the hot water in the tank 12 detected by 0 is 98 degrees or more is added. If the temperature is not 98 degrees or more, cavitation does not occur even before the predetermined time has elapsed. May be executed.

FIG. 9 shows the usage time (or the number of water heaters) stored in the non-volatile memory 56 by the above processing.
6 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a program for estimating a cause of failure of the electric pump 15 based on a measured value of the number of pulses of the flow sensor 17 and ten times. In step # 301, the measured values of the number of pulses per unit time of the flow sensor 17 for ten times are analyzed. As a result, when no unstable state is seen in the operation history of the electric pump 15 (step # 30)
(No. 2), that is, when all of the past 10 measured values or the past 9 measured values excluding the latest measured value are within the normal range, the foreign matter enters the electric pump 15 in step # 305. Presumed to be a sudden failure due to intrusion.

If the operation history of the electric pump 15 is unstable in step # 302, that is,
Phenomenon where the measured values gradually deviate from the normal range,
Alternatively, when a phenomenon that the value falls out of the normal range at random is observed, the following step # 303 and step # 3
At 04, it is checked whether or not the elapsed time (use time) from the start of use or the execution of the citric acid cleaning mode or the number of water heaters A is greater than a threshold value C. If it is larger than the threshold value C, it is estimated that the clogging of the electric pump 15 due to precipitation of minerals (calcium oxide, magnesium oxide, etc.) is the cause of the failure (step # 306). If the difference is not larger than the threshold value C, it is estimated that the electric pump 15 has a structural or electrical failure (step # 307).

This failure analysis program is executed, for example, on a web page (home page) established by the manufacturer of the electric pump 15. In this case, the manufacturer of the electric pump 15 stores the content (display data) of the web page in a predetermined directory of a web server connected to the Internet, and stores the content such as Perl or the like for executing the above program. A CGI script described in a language is embedded.

First, the user connects the personal computer and the electric pot 1 via the communication interface 57 of the electric pot 1, and reads the data stored in the nonvolatile memory 56 into the personal computer. RS232C, USB, IEEE as communication interface 57
A known interface such as 1394 can be used. A wireless interface called Bluetooth may be used.

Instead of using the communication interface 57 as means for outputting data stored in the nonvolatile memory 56 to the outside, a removable storage medium such as a flash memory card may be used as the nonvolatile memory 56. In this case, the removable storage medium is placed in the electric pot 1
, And attached to a reading device of a personal computer, thereby reading the data stored in the removable storage medium (non-volatile memory 56) into the personal computer.

Next, the user accesses the above-mentioned web page from the personal computer via the Internet, and transfers the data for failure analysis read from the non-volatile memory 56 to the web server on the web browser.
The web server receiving this data performs a failure analysis according to the above program, and returns the result to the user's personal computer (a web browser running on the user). Thus, the user can see the failure analysis result of the electric pot on the screen of the web browser running on the personal computer.

In the above failure analysis program, a rough estimate of the repair cost may be presented together with the estimation of the cause of the failure. The rough estimate of the repair cost will be a reference when the user decides whether to request a repair or to buy a new one.

Note that the failure analysis program does not necessarily need to be executed on the web server, but may be downloaded to the user's personal computer and executed. Instead of a personal computer, a portable terminal having an Internet connection function or the like may be used.

In the second example, the number of times of occurrence of the empty heating abnormality is stored in the nonvolatile memory 56. When water is heated in a state where there is no water in the tank 12, that is, when empty heating is performed, the temperature of the tank 12 rapidly rises, and when it becomes 380 ° C. or more,
The decomposition of the fluororesin applied to the inner surface of the tank 12 starts. Therefore, when the detected temperature of the temperature sensor reaches a high temperature abnormal value of, for example, 360 ° C., the microprocessor 42 is programmed to perform a safety operation for forcibly interrupting the energization of the electric heater 13.

However, when such empty firing is repeatedly performed, not only the inner surface of the tank 12 is discolored but also the tank 1
In some cases, a gap may be formed in the contact surface between the temperature sensor 2 and the temperature sensor 20, and the temperature detection accuracy may be deteriorated. Therefore, when a failure related to the temperature sensor occurs, reading out and checking the integrated value of the number of times of empty heating stored in the nonvolatile memory 56 is useful for estimating the cause of the failure. Alternatively, it can be used as proof that misfire has been repeatedly performed.

FIG. 10 shows a process of accumulating the number of occurrences of the empty heating abnormality in the non-volatile memory 56, and estimating the cause of the failure relating to the temperature sensor using the integrated value of the number of occurrences of the empty heating abnormality read out from the nonvolatile memory 56. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a program to be executed.

In the operation of the electric pot 1 shown in FIG. 10A, the operation is in the water heater mode (Ye in step # 401).
s) If the water temperature T detected in step # 402 exceeds the high temperature abnormal value (360 ° C.) (Ye in step # 403)
s), the microprocessor 42 determines that the fuel is idle, and stops energizing the electric heater 13 (step # 40).
4). Then, the number of times of occurrence of the empty heating abnormality stored in the non-volatile memory 56 is incremented (added by 1) (step # 405).

In the failure analysis program shown in FIG. 10B, it is checked whether or not the integrated value n of the number of occurrences of the unburned abnormality read from the nonvolatile memory 56 as described above is larger than the threshold value N. (Step # 451 and Step # 452), if larger, it is determined to be misused (Step # 453). Then, in step # 454, the failure cause estimation, the repair cost estimation, and the like are displayed.

In the third example, a humidity sensor (not shown) is provided near the microcomputer board on which the microprocessor 42 is mounted, and the humidity detected by the humidity sensor is sampled at predetermined time intervals. Is accumulated in the non-volatile memory 56. If water enters between the outer case of the electric pot 1 and the tank 12, the microcomputer substrate gets wet, and there is a high possibility that malfunction of electronic components including the microprocessor 42 will occur. Normally, the device returns to normal operation when it dries, but if this happens repeatedly, the electronic component may be irreversibly damaged, leading to failure. Therefore,
By accumulating in the nonvolatile memory 56 the number of times the detected humidity of the humidity sensor provided in the vicinity of the microcomputer substrate has reached a predetermined value (for example, 90% RH) or more, it can be used for estimating the cause of the failure.

FIG. 11 shows a process of accumulating the number of times that the humidity detected by the humidity sensor becomes a predetermined value or more in the nonvolatile memory 56 and estimating the cause of the microcomputer board failure based on the data read from the nonvolatile memory 56. It is a flowchart which shows the example of a program.

In the operation of the electric pot 1 shown in FIG. 11A, the microprocessor 42 checks the detection value (detected humidity) of the humidity sensor in step # 501, and
When exceeding% RH (Yes in step # 502)
Increments the humidity abnormality count stored in the nonvolatile memory 56 (step # 503). Then, the timer is started in step # 504, and if 24 hours have elapsed (Yes in step # 505), step # 501 is performed again.
Return to and check the detection value of the humidity sensor. In this way, the number of times that the detection value of the humidity sensor sampled every 24 hours exceeds 90% RH is accumulated in the nonvolatile memory 56 as the number of humidity abnormalities.

In the failure analysis program shown in FIG. 11B, it is checked whether or not the integrated value m of the number of times of humidity abnormality read from the nonvolatile memory 56 is larger than the threshold value M as described above (step #). 551 and step # 55
2) If it is larger, it is determined that the microcomputer board has failed (step # 553). Then, in step # 554, the cause of the failure, the estimate of the repair cost, and the like are displayed. It should be noted that a malfunction related to the microcomputer control, for example, the electric pump 15 was driven, but the pulse signal was not output from the flow rate sensor 17,
Alternatively, the electric heater 13 is energized, but the temperature sensor 20
It is assumed that a phenomenon that the detected value of does not change has occurred. If the integrated value m of the number of times of humidity abnormality is equal to or smaller than the threshold value M in step # 552,
At 555, a message is displayed indicating that drying is likely to be fixed.

In the fourth example, in the water heater mode,
The number of occurrences of boiling point abnormalities (high) whose boiling temperature, which is known from the saturation of the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 20 and differs from 100 ° C. in the case of ordinary water, is accumulated in the nonvolatile memory 56. Such a boiling point abnormality (boiling point rising phenomenon) occurs when a liquid (eg, coffee or tea) other than water is boiled. Therefore, when a failure of the electric pot 1 occurs, reading and checking the integrated value of the number of times of occurrence of the boiling point abnormality stored in the nonvolatile memory 56 is useful for estimating the cause of the failure. Alternatively, it can be used as evidence that liquids other than water, which are misused, have repeatedly been boiled.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing an example of a process for integrating the number of times of occurrence of the boiling point abnormality in the nonvolatile memory 56. When the electric pot 1 is in the water heater mode (Yes in step # 601), the microprocessor 42 determines the boiling point when the change in the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 20 is substantially saturated in step # 602. When the determined boiling point is higher than a predetermined temperature (100 ° C. + α) (step # 603)
Yes), it is determined that the boiling point is abnormal (step # 60).
4) The number of times of occurrence of a boiling point abnormality stored in the non-volatile memory 56 is incremented (step # 605). In this way, the number of times of occurrence of the boiling point abnormality is integrated in the nonvolatile memory 56.

As a modification, by analyzing in detail the change in the detected temperature until the microprocessor 42 reaches the boiling point of water, the fact that the liquid (alcoholic beverage) containing alcohol having a boiling point lower than that of water is boiled can be determined. It is also possible to detect. Boiling a liquid other than water, whether coffee or liquor, is an erroneous use of the electric pot 1. It is rare that such misuse immediately leads to the failure of the electric pot 1. However, if the number of misuses is stored in the nonvolatile memory 56 as evidence, the cause of the failure when the electric pot 1 fails can be analyzed. Would help.

As described above, the embodiments of the present invention have been described together with the modifications. However, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments and the modifications, but can be implemented in various forms. The data stored in the non-volatile memory 56 and read out at the time of failure analysis is not limited to those exemplified in the above embodiment, but may be any data relating to the history of the abnormal operation of the electric pot, the maintenance operation, and the like. Further, the program for estimating the cause of failure based on the data is not limited to the one exemplified in the above embodiment, and can be created and used as appropriate.

[0078]

As described above, according to the present invention, the history data of at least one of the abnormal operation and the maintenance operation of the electric pot is stored in the nonvolatile memory,
By reading and using the history data at the time of failure analysis, it is possible to reduce the burden and expense of trouble diagnosis.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of an electric pot according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of an operation panel.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a main part of the electric circuit.

4A and 4B are diagrams illustrating a structure of a flow sensor, wherein FIG. 4A is a top view and FIG. 4B is a cross-sectional view.

5A and 5B are diagrams showing a structure of a rotating member, wherein FIG. 5A is a diagram viewed from an axial direction, and FIG. 5B is a side view.

FIG. 6 is a waveform diagram of a pulse signal output from a light receiving element and a signal after shaping.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a process of writing information for determining whether or not a citric acid cleaning mode is periodically performed to a nonvolatile memory.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a process of writing information for determining whether or not the operation of the electric pump is stable in a nonvolatile memory.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing an example of a program for estimating the cause of failure of the electric pump based on the usage time or the number of times of water heating stored in the nonvolatile memory and the history of the detection value of the flow sensor.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a process of integrating the number of times of occurrence of an empty heating abnormality in a non-volatile memory and a program for estimating a cause of a failure related to a temperature sensor using data read from the non-volatile memory.

FIG. 11 shows an example of a process for accumulating the number of times the detected humidity of the humidity sensor becomes equal to or more than a predetermined value in the nonvolatile memory, and a program for estimating a cause of failure of the microcomputer board based on data read from the nonvolatile memory. It is a flowchart.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a process of integrating the number of occurrences of a boiling point abnormality in a nonvolatile memory.

[Explanation of symbols]

Reference Signs List 1 electric pot 12 tank 13 electric heater 15 electric pump 17 flow sensor 20 temperature sensor 42 microprocessor (control device) 56 non-volatile memory 57 communication interface (means for outputting stored data to outside)

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page F term (reference) 4B055 AA35 BA80 CA12 CA15 CC05 CD02 CD16 CD61 DA02 DB02 GA04 GA11 GB03 GB20 GB21 GD02 GD04 GD06

Claims (8)

[Claims] A non-volatile memory that retains stored data even when the electric pot is not energized; a control device that stores at least one history of an abnormal operation and a maintenance operation of the electric pot in the non-volatile memory; Means for outputting data stored in the memory to the outside. A temperature sensor for detecting a temperature of a water heater tank, wherein the control device includes:
When the temperature detected by the temperature sensor reaches a predetermined high-temperature abnormal value, it is determined that an empty-heating abnormality has occurred, and the energizing circuit of the water heater is cut off, and the number of occurrences of the empty-heating abnormality is integrated in the nonvolatile memory. The electric pot according to claim 1, wherein the electric pot is used. 3. A cleaning and boiling mode is provided as a maintenance operation mode, and the control device accumulates the number of times of water heating or use time of the electric pot in the non-volatile memory and executes the non-volatile mode when the cleaning and boiling mode is executed. 2. The electric kettle according to claim 1, wherein the accumulated value of the number of boiling water or the use time accumulated in the memory is reset. 4. An electric pump and a discharge pipe for discharging water in the tank to the outside, and a flow sensor inserted in the discharge pipe for measuring a discharge amount of the water, The control device stores the flow rate data corresponding to the flow rate per unit time obtained from the flow rate sensor in the nonvolatile memory after a predetermined time after operating the electric pump, and stores the latest predetermined number of times of the flow rate data in the nonvolatile memory. 2. The electric pot according to claim 1, wherein the remaining flow rate data is sequentially deleted from the oldest flow rate data. 5. A humidity sensor is provided near a printed circuit board on which the control device is mounted, wherein the control device samples a detected humidity of the humidity sensor at predetermined time intervals,
The electric pot according to claim 1, wherein the number of times the detected humidity is equal to or more than a predetermined value is integrated in the nonvolatile memory. 6. A temperature sensor for detecting a temperature of a water heater tank, wherein the control device comprises:
When the boiling temperature when the temperature detected by the temperature sensor changes from rising to saturation is different from the boiling point of water, it is determined that the boiling point is abnormal, and the number of times of occurrence of the boiling point abnormality is integrated in the nonvolatile memory. The electric pot according to claim 1. 7. The electric pot according to claim 1, wherein data stored in a non-volatile memory provided in the electric pot is read, and a cause of failure of the electric pot is estimated based on the stored data. Diagnosis method for electric pots. 8. A failure of an electric pot based on data stored in the nonvolatile memory by a program executed on a web server connected to the Internet or a program executed on a web browser of a terminal device accessing the web server. The method for diagnosing a failure of an electric pot according to claim 7, wherein the diagnosis is performed.