JP2009013703A - Snow melting method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a snow melting method which is implemented with little energy waste. <P>SOLUTION: According to the snow melting method, a snow melting starting time of the day concerned is calculated based on sunrise time data, in S2. If the time has reached the snow melting starting time in a step S3, the program proceeds to S4 wherein snow melting operation is started. On the other hand, if the time does not reach the snow melting starting time, the program returns to S3. Then at a S5, a solar radiation intensity is detected by an optical sensor, and if it is determined that the time has reached a sunset time, the program proceeds to S6 wherein the sunrise time is stored in a sunrise time database, followed by terminating the snow melting operation in S7. On the other hand, if the time does not reach the sunset time at S5, the program returns to S4 wherein the snow melting operation is continued. When the snow melting operation for the day is completed at S7, the program proceeds to S2 where the steps of the snow melting operation are repeatedly carried out. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a snow melting method for melting snow that has fallen on a roof of a house or the like or snow that has accumulated on a road.

  In recent years, in snowy regions where there is a lot of snow in winter, various types of snow melting devices are used to melt snow that has fallen on the roofs of houses and snow that has accumulated on roads. As a method for melting snow, there is a method for generating heat by circulating hot water or by passing an electric current through an electric heater or a solar battery panel.

  In any of the above-mentioned methods, by heating the roof using energy such as electricity, kerosene, and gas, the snow that has fallen on the roof is melted and slipped, or the snow that has accumulated on the road is melted. Yes.

  In the conventional snow melting method, a person manually turns on / off the snow melting device, drives the snow melting device for 24 hours, or drives the snow melting device when there is snow on the roof using a sensor.

  However, melting snow at night when the outside air temperature decreases requires more energy and is inefficient. In addition, when snow melts at night, the melted snow water may freeze again in the time zone when the temperature drops at dawn, which may adversely affect the housing structure.

  Furthermore, since there is a risk of snow falling during the commuting / commuting time zone, there is a demand for the snow melting device installer to end the snow melting already during that time zone.

  In addition, in the case where snow is melted by causing a current to flow through the solar cell panel, the daytime power generation time can be secured longer if the snow melting is completed as early as possible in the early morning.

  An object of the present invention is to solve the above-described problems and to provide a snow melting method with less energy waste using an inexpensive method without adding a large-scale device.

  The technical feature of the snow melting method according to the present invention for achieving the above object is to calculate the snow melting start time of the snow melting device based on the sunrise time or sunset time calculated by the sunrise time calculating means or the sunset time calculating means. Then, a snow melting operation for melting snow accumulated by the snow melting device is started from the snow melting start time.

  According to the snow melting method of the present invention, snow melting is not performed at night when the outside air temperature is low, and snow melting can be started from the time zone before and after sunrise, thereby suppressing energy waste.

  The present invention will be described based on the illustrated embodiment.

  FIG. 1 shows a block circuit configuration diagram of a snow melting device, for example, on a roof in this embodiment. A snow melting device 1 that melts snow with hot water, a heater, or the like is connected to a control unit 2 that performs calculations to control the snow melting method and functions as a sunrise time calculating means and a sunset time calculating means. Further, the control unit 2 stores an optical sensor 3 for measuring solar radiation intensity, a clock circuit 4, a sunrise time database for accumulating past sunrise time data, and a sunset time database for accumulating past sunset time data. A circuit 5 is connected.

  FIG. 2 is a graph showing the solar radiation intensity measured using the optical sensor 3 as sunrise detection means and sunset detection means. By measuring the solar radiation intensity, the control unit 2 can calculate the sunrise time and sunset time, and can distinguish between daytime and nighttime.

  FIG. 3 is a flowchart of a snow melting method by the control unit 2. First, the snow melting operation flow is started in step S1, and the sunrise time of the day is calculated by the control unit 2 based on the past sunrise time data stored in the storage circuit 5 in step S2, and around a predetermined time from the sunrise time. The snow melting start time is calculated. In this embodiment, for example, one hour before the sunrise time is set as the snow melting start time.

  In step S3, the snow melting start time is compared with the clock circuit 4. When the snow melting start time is reached, the process proceeds to step S4 to start the snow melting operation, and when the snow melting start time has not been reached, the process returns to step S3.

  In step S4 during snow melting, snow melting is performed by circulating hot water through the snow melting device 1 or operating an electric heater. Then, the process proceeds to step S5 in the middle of the snow melting operation, the sunset time is determined using the output of the optical sensor 3, the snow melting operation time is determined when the sunset time comes, the snow melting operation is terminated, and the process proceeds to step S6. After storing the sunrise time of the day determined by the optical sensor 3 in the storage circuit 5, the process proceeds to step S7, and the snow melting flow of the day ends. If the sunset time has not been reached in step S5, the process returns to step S4 and the snow melting operation is continued.

  In step S7, when the day's snow melting operation is completed, the process proceeds to step S2, and the next day's snow melting start time is calculated based on the sunrise time data of the storage circuit 5 in which the sunrise time up to the previous day is accumulated. Repeat the snow melting operation flow of step 3.

  The sunrise time data is data on the sunrise time based on the actual measurement by the optical sensor 3 accumulated in the storage circuit 5. By using the average value of the sunrise time data for the most recent week, the approximate sunrise time can be estimated even if the exact sunrise time cannot be calculated due to the bad weather the previous day. Thereby, it can respond also to the sunrise time which changes every day.

  In this embodiment, in order to start the snow melting operation one hour before the sunrise time, the snow melting start time is calculated based on the data in the storage circuit 5, but the snow melting start time can be set as appropriate. For example, the snow melting operation may be started with sunrise, or after a certain time after sunrise has elapsed, the snow melting operation may be started.

  In the snow melting method shown in the flowchart of FIG. 3, the snow melting operation is continued in step S4 during the day, but if the snow already accumulated slides down, the snow melting energy in the subsequent step S4 is wasted.

  FIG. 4 shows a flowchart of a modification of the snow melting method in such a case, and the same step numbers as those in the flowchart of FIG. 3 perform the same operation. In the flowchart of FIG. 4, step S4 'for determining whether there is snow on the roof is provided between step S3 and step S4. In this step S4 ′, it is determined whether or not there is snow on the roof using a snow sensor or the like (not shown). If there is snow on the roof, the process proceeds to step S4. If there is no snow, the snow melting operation in step S4 is performed. Without proceeding to step S5.

  Further, since the snow melting device is used only during a snowfall period, it is not necessary to perform a snow melting operation when there is no snow accumulation, and it is only necessary to switch on the operation of starting the snow melting device manually when the snowing time comes. In addition, by providing a step of determining the snow melting time according to the month, day, night length, etc. in the flowcharts of FIGS.

  Example 2 uses a solar cell panel as the snow melting device 1, and FIG. 5 is a graph showing the output voltage during the daytime and nighttime from the solar cell panel when there is no snow on the solar cell panel. By setting the sunrise detection threshold and sunset detection threshold for the output voltage of the solar panel, the sunrise time and sunset time can be calculated. The solar panel itself is used as the sunrise detection means and sunset detection means. In the present Example 2 using a solar cell panel, the optical sensor 3 used in Example 1 can be omitted.

  By setting the sunrise time and sunset time calculated by this method as the average of the past few days, for example, even if the solar panel is covered with snow and the output voltage cannot be obtained, the approximate sunrise time and day The dead time can be calculated. Further, since the solar cell panel generates heat when a current is forced to flow, it can also be used as the snow melting device 1.

  FIG. 6 shows a flowchart of snow melting and solar power generation using a solar cell panel. First, when starting at step S11, the sunrise time and sunset time are calculated based on the past sunrise / sunset time data of the sunrise / sunset time database stored in the storage circuit 5 at step S12, and the snow melting start time is calculated. And the snowmelt stop time is calculated. In the second embodiment, the snow melting start time is set to one hour before the sunrise time as in the first embodiment. The snowmelt stop time is the sunset time.

  In step S13, it is determined whether or not the snow melting start time has come compared with the timepiece circuit 4. If the snow melting start time is reached, the process proceeds to step S14. Do the driving.

  Subsequently, in step S15, the output voltage of the solar cell panel is measured, and the sunrise detection threshold value is determined. If the output voltage is equal to or higher than the sunrise detection threshold value, it is determined that there is no snow on the solar cell panel, and snow melting operation is performed. Is stopped and the process proceeds to step S16 to perform solar power generation. After performing solar power generation in step S16, the process proceeds to step S17 to determine sunset based on the sunset detection threshold.

  When the output voltage becomes the sunset detection threshold in step S17, the process proceeds to step S18, where the sunrise time determined by the sunrise detection threshold and the sunset time determined by the sunset detection threshold are stored in the storage circuit 5, and the process proceeds to step S20. finish.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S17 that the sunset has not yet occurred, the process returns to step S15. By returning to this step S15, even if the weather worsens and snow is deposited on the solar cell panel after starting the solar power generation in step S16, in step S15, by determining the output of the solar cell panel again, It is also possible to return to step S14 via step S20 and perform snow melting operation.

  That is, in step S15, if the output voltage is equal to or lower than the sunrise detection threshold even during the daytime, it is determined that the solar cell panel is covered with snow, the process proceeds to step S20, and the snow melting stop time calculated in step S12 is reached. If the snow melting stop time has not yet been reached, the process returns to step S14, and a current is passed through the solar cell panel to perform the snow melting operation. In step S20, when the snow melting stop time is reached, the process proceeds to step S18.

  In step S18, when snow is piled up on the solar cell panel and the sunrise time or sunset time cannot be calculated, the storage circuit 5 does not store the sunrise time and sunset time of the day.

  By determining whether or not it is a snow melting stop time in step S20, it is possible to prevent the snow melting operation in step S14 from continuing when the snow melting does not end during the snow melting operation in step S14. Yes. In the second embodiment, the snow melting stop time is set as the sunset time. However, it can be set as appropriate similarly to the snow melting start time, for example, 1 hour before sunset.

  In the flow chart of snow melting and solar power generation shown in FIG. 6, in steps S12 to S15, the snow melting operation is performed even when there is no snowfall, and energy is wasted.

  FIG. 7 shows a flowchart of a modified example in such a case. The description of the same steps as those in the flowchart of FIG. 6 is omitted. First, when the operation is started in step S11, the process proceeds to step S11 ′, where it is determined whether or not it is time to require snow-melting operation, and when it is time to require snow-melting operation, as in the flowchart of FIG. It progresses to step S12 and the same process is performed.

  In addition, as a method of determining whether or not this snow melting operation is necessary, it can be determined from the date of the month, the outside temperature, the length of the night, the past weather data of the land to be operated, and the like. In step S11 ', when the snow melting operation is not required, the process proceeds to step S11' 'to perform solar power generation. Subsequently, in step S11 ′ ″, sunset is determined based on the sunset detection threshold value, and if it is determined that sunset, the process proceeds to step S19 to end the operation for one day. If it is determined in step S11 ′ ″ that the sunset has not yet been reached, the process returns to step S11 ″ to continue solar power generation.

  In Examples 1 and 2, the optical sensor 3 and the output voltage of the solar battery panel are used as the sunrise detection means and the sunset detection means, but the calculation method using the table, the calculation method based on the latitude and longitude, and the date Can also be calculated.

  In the first and second embodiments, the snow melting is stopped by determining the sunset time using the output voltage of the optical sensor 3 and the solar battery panel as the sunset detection means, but the sunset time is not determined. Alternatively, the melting may be stopped when a certain time has elapsed after the start of melting, or when a preset time is reached.

  In the first and second embodiments, the snowmelt start time is calculated by calculating the sunrise time based on the past sunrise time, but the next day's sunrise time is calculated based on the past sunset time. be able to.

  In the first and second embodiments, the sunrise time is calculated by the sunrise time calculating means, the snow melting start time is calculated, and the snow melting operation is performed. In the third embodiment, the night time is calculated after the sunset is detected. By calculating the night time by means, the snow melting operation prohibition time is set, and after the snow melting operation prohibition time has elapsed, the snow melting operation is started near the sunrise time.

  FIG. 8 shows a flowchart of this embodiment. First, the snow melting operation flow is started in step S31, and the sunset time is calculated by the sunset time calculating means in step S32. Subsequently, in step S33, the snow melting operation prohibition time is obtained by the night time calculation means based on the sunset time. The snow-melting operation prohibition time in this embodiment is shortened by, for example, 1 hour from the night time.

  In step S34, it is determined whether or not the snow melting operation prohibition time has elapsed. If the snow melting operation prohibition time has elapsed, the process proceeds to step S35, and the snow melting operation is started. If the snow melting operation prohibition time has not elapsed, the process returns to step S34 and is repeated until the snow melting operation prohibition time has elapsed.

  In step S36, the sunset time is detected by the sunset time detecting means, and when sunset is reached, the process proceeds to step S37, and if it is determined that it is not yet sunset, the process returns to step S35. Perform snow melting operation. When the snow melting operation on the 1st is completed, the process proceeds to step S33, the snow melting operation prohibition time is calculated based on the sunset time detected in step S36, and the snow melting flow is repeated on the next day.

  In the first and second embodiments, the snow melting start time is calculated by the sunrise time calculating means or the sunset time calculating means, and the snow melting is started when the snow melting start time is reached. Can calculate the snow melting operation prohibition time based on the sunset time calculated by the sunset time calculating means, and can start snow melting when the snow melting operation prohibition time has elapsed. In this case, the clock circuit 4 is not necessary, and it is only necessary to have a timer for measuring the elapsed time from the sunset time.

  Moreover, although only the snow melting operation has been described in the third embodiment, as described in the second embodiment, solar power generation can be performed when the snow melting operation is not necessary.

  In addition, although Examples 1-3 mainly demonstrated the snow melting apparatus of the roof, it is applicable also to the snow melting apparatus of a road.

It is a block circuit block diagram of a snow melting apparatus. It is a graph figure of solar radiation intensity. It is a flowchart figure of the snow melting method of Example 1. It is a flowchart figure of the snow melting method which is a modification of Example 1. It is a graph of the output voltage of a solar cell panel. It is a flowchart figure of the snow melting and power generation method of Example 2. It is a flowchart figure of the snow melting and electric power generation method which is a modification of Example 2. It is a flowchart figure of the snow melting method of Example 3.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Snow melting apparatus 2 Control part 3 Optical sensor 4 Clock circuit 5 Memory circuit

Claims (10)

  Snow melting operation for calculating the snow melting start time of the snow melting device based on the sunrise time or sunset time calculated by the sunrise time calculating means or the sunset time calculating means, and melting the snow accumulated by the snow melting device from the snow melting start time Snow melting method characterized by starting.   2. The snow melting method according to claim 1, wherein the snow melting start time is moved back and forth by a predetermined time with respect to the sunrise time calculated by the sunrise time calculating means.   2. The snow melting method according to claim 1, wherein the snow melting start time starts a snow melting operation after a predetermined time has elapsed from the sunset time calculated by the sunset time calculating means.   The sunrise time calculating means or the sunset time calculating means is based on the data of the sunrise time database storing the sunrise time measured in the past or the sunset time database storing the sunset time measured in the past. The snow melting method according to claim 1, wherein the snow melting method is calculated.   The snow melting stop time for stopping the snow melting is calculated based on the sunset time calculated by the sunrise time calculating means or the sunset time calculating means. The snow melting method as described.   6. The snow melting method according to claim 5, wherein the snow melting stop time is a time when a predetermined time set in advance has elapsed with respect to the snow melting start time.   The snow melting method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the snow melting device performs the snow melting operation by using hot water, an electric heater, or heat generated by a solar battery panel.   The snow melting device is composed of a solar cell panel, current is passed through the solar cell panel, the snow melting operation is performed by heating the solar cell panel, and when there is no snow on the solar cell panel, the solar cell panel is used. The snow melting method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein solar power generation by sunlight is performed.   The sunrise time calculating means and the sunset time calculating means are a method of calculating based on the output of the optical sensor, a method of calculating using a table, a method of calculating from latitude / longitude and month / day, past sunrise time and sunset The snow melting method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein any one of a method of calculating from time and a method of calculating from an output voltage of a solar battery panel is used.   A snow melting device using the snow melting method according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

Images