JP3026748B2 - Maintenance equipment for control equipment - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a communication unit for controlling an operation of an operation unit, comprising: a non-volatile storage unit for storing control information of the operation unit; And a maintenance device for a control device configured to include:

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A control device having the above-described configuration stores various control information of an operating unit in a non-volatile storage means, for example, when power supply to the control unit is stopped due to a power failure or the like. However, the control information can be held so that appropriate control can be performed using the information even after a power failure or the like occurs. By the way, in the case where it is necessary to replace the control unit during maintenance work, if the storage unit is also replaced with the control unit, the control information stored in the storage unit will be lost, so the replaced new control When the operating unit is controlled by the unit, there is a disadvantage that appropriate control cannot be performed based on the control information.

Therefore, conventionally, the storage means is detachably mounted by using a dedicated support means such as a socket. When the control section is replaced, the storage means is detached and mounted on a new control section. Even if the storage means is supported or the storage means is supported using a dedicated base (wiring board or the like) separately from other control parts, and the control unit is replaced, And the like, so that the information of the storage means can be used while leaving the information.

[0004]

However, the above prior art requires special support means for detachably supporting the storage means and special members such as a special base.
As a result, the number of components increases, and the configuration of the control device becomes complicated.

In the maintenance work, the maintenance worker forgets the work of removing and replacing the storage means when replacing the control unit, or
There is a risk that a work error may occur, such as replacing the base on which the storage means is mounted, and there is room for improvement in such aspects.

The present invention has been made in view of such a point, and an object of the present invention is to make the configuration of the control device not complicated and to minimize the above-mentioned work mistakes at the time of maintenance. Another object of the present invention is to provide a maintenance device for a control device that enables effective use of information stored in a storage unit even after a control unit is replaced.

According to the characteristic configuration of the first aspect, the control unit communicates the control information stored in the storage means to the external device based on the transmission command instructed by the exchange start command , And, based on a return command instructed by the replacement end command, control information communicated from the external device is configured to be written and stored in the storage means,
Based on the storage command issued by the exchange start command ,
The control information from the control unit stores and holds, and the exchange end
The stored control information can be communicated to the control unit based on a transmission command issued by the end command.

Therefore, for example, when replacing the control unit during maintenance work, prior to the replacement work,
The control unit communicates the control information stored in the storage means to the external device based on the transmission command issued by the exchange start command, and the external device transmits the control information based on the storage command issued by the exchange start command. The control information from the control unit is stored and held. Then, when replacement of the control unit is completed, exchange
The control information stored in the external device is communicated to the control unit based on the transmission command instructed by the replacement end command . In addition, the replaced new control unit writes and stores the control information communicated from the external device in the replaced new storage unit based on the return command issued by the replacement end command. Will be.

Therefore, the control information stored in the old storage means before the replacement can be stored and held in the new storage means after the replacement, and thereafter, the proper control information can be obtained based on the stored control information. Will be controlled.

Moreover, there is no need to make the storage means detachable or to support it on another base.
The storage means may be provided in the control unit in the same configuration as the other members, and a special support member is not required, and the configuration of the control unit is not complicated.

Further, the operation in which the control information is communicated to and held by the external device is performed before the replacement operation of the control unit. Therefore, the operation of removing the storage means should be performed at the time of the exchange operation. In comparison with such a case, the maintenance worker is less likely to forget to execute the above-described operation.

[0012] According to the characteristic configuration of the second aspect, the external device is constituted by an operation command unit that commands operation information for operating the operation unit to the control unit by a manual operation. Since the operation command unit is configured to be able to hold the control information, when performing the control of the operation unit, the operation information for operating the operation unit by the manual operation of the operation command unit is transmitted to the control unit. The control unit controls the operation unit based on the operation information. Then, at the time of maintenance such as replacement of the control unit, the control information stored in the storage means is held in the operation command unit.

In other words, the existing operation command unit, which is conventionally provided for instructing the operation information of the operation unit and is provided so as to be communicable with the control unit, is effectively used to hold the control information, so that a dedicated Since there is no need to provide an external device, the configuration is not complicated, and there is no disadvantage such as an increase in equipment cost.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the external device is constituted by a personal computer capable of holding control information. By holding the control information, there is no need to provide a dedicated external device for holding the control information, and the configuration does not become complicated and the equipment cost does not increase.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the operating portion includes a heat exchanger for heating water, a burner for heating the heat exchanger, and a ventilation means for passing combustion air through the burner. The control unit is configured to control the combustion operation of the burner and the ventilation operation of the ventilation unit, and at least one of the combustion operation state of the burner and the ventilation operation state of the ventilation unit. Is stored in the storage means as control information.

Therefore, the control information stored in the storage means is important control information for executing burner combustion control, such as an air-fuel ratio.
By being effectively used even after the replacement of the control unit, it is possible to maintain the combustion state of the burner in an appropriate state suitable for actual past operating conditions.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an unburned component concentration detecting means for detecting a concentration of unburned component contained in the combustion gas of the burner. Is stored in the storage means as control information.

Therefore, since the control information is effectively used even after the replacement of the control unit, the detection ability of the unburned component concentration detecting means is deteriorated due to a temporal change accompanying the use before the replacement. Even in such a case, the operation state is effectively held as control information, so that the detection operation of the unburned component concentration can be continued in a state suitable for the detection capability. In addition, it is possible to avoid as much as possible the disadvantage that the detection error of the unburned component concentration becomes large, for example, the burner cannot be quickly detected as being in an incomplete combustion state.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an abnormality detecting means for detecting occurrence of an abnormal operation of the operating section, and the control section uses information detected by the abnormality detecting means as control information, It is configured to be stored in the storage means.

That is, since the detection information of the abnormal operation that occurred in the past due to the long-term use is stored and held in the storage means as the control information, this control information is effectively used even after the replacement of the control unit. By using this information, in the subsequent maintenance work, based on this information,
Appropriate and quick maintenance work can be performed.

[0021]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Hereinafter, a maintenance device for a control device according to the present invention will be described as applied to a water heater.

As shown in FIG. 1, the water heater is a hot water supply unit K as an example of an operating unit for heating supplied water and supplying hot water to a hot water supply unit (not shown), and controls the operation of the hot water supply unit K. The control unit H, a remote control operation unit R as an operation command unit for commanding operation information for operating the hot water supply unit K to the control unit H
And the like. Hot water supply unit K and control unit H
Are provided in a main body case mainly installed outside the room, and the remote control operation unit R is installed in a room such as a kitchen, for example.

The hot water supply unit K includes a heat exchanger 2 for heating water and a gas combustion type burner 3 for heating the heat exchanger 2 in a combustion chamber 1. A fan 4 is provided in the combustion chamber 1 as ventilation means for passing the combustion air of the burner 3. The fan 4 is driven by a motor, and is provided with a rotation speed sensor 5 for detecting the rotation speed of the fan. The heat exchanger 2 is connected to a water supply path 6 to which water is supplied and a water supply path 7 to supply heated water to a tapping section. The water supply path 6 has a water flow rate sensor for detecting the flow rate. 8 and an incoming water temperature thermistor 9 for detecting the incoming water temperature, and a hot water outlet path 7 is provided with a hot water temperature thermistor 10 for detecting the temperature of the hot water after heating.

The fuel supply passage 11 for the burner 3 has two on-off valves 12 and 13 that are capable of on-off fuel supply.
An electromagnetically operated fuel control valve 1 that changes the fuel supply and is adjustable
In the vicinity of the burner 3, an igniter 15 for igniting the burner 3 and a frame rod 16 for checking the ignition state are provided.

An exhaust passage 17 for discharging the combustion gas from the burner 3 to the outside is provided with an unburned fuel for detecting the concentration of carbon monoxide (CO) as an example of an unburned component contained in the combustion gas. A contact combustion type CO sensor 18 as a component concentration detecting means is provided.

The remote control operation section R includes an operation section SB for performing an artificial operation and a display section HB for displaying various information. An operation switch 19 for instructing start / stop of the hot water supply operation by the hot water supply section K; The operation unit SB includes a temperature setting switch 20 for setting a target hot water supply temperature, a plurality of maintenance switches 21 and 22 for instructing maintenance processing as described below, and the display unit HB displays the target hot water supply temperature and the actual temperature. Temperature display unit 23 for displaying the hot water temperature of the
The apparatus is provided with a combustion lamp 24 for displaying a combustion state, an abnormality display lamp 25 for displaying an abnormal state, and the like.

As shown in FIG. 2, the control unit H includes a main body microcomputer (hereinafter abbreviated as main body microcomputer) 26 for executing a control operation, and the above-mentioned thermistors 9 and 1.
0, water flow rate sensor 8, frame rod 16, CO sensor 18, rotation speed sensor 5, etc.
6 or on the basis of the output of the microcomputer 26 on the main body side, each of the on-off valves 12, 13, the fuel control valve 14, the fan 4,
An input / output circuit 27 for driving the igniter 15 and the like; and a non-volatile memory 28 for storing operation information as described later.
Communication for converting information output from the main body side microcomputer 26 into communication information and communicating with the remote control operation unit R in order to communicate information between the remote control operation unit R and the remote control operation unit R. And a communication unit 30 functioning as means TU. The non-volatile memory 28 is configured by a storage element (EEPROM) that can be electrically written and erased.

As shown in FIG. 2, information is transmitted between the remote control microcomputer 31 (hereinafter abbreviated as the remote control microcomputer) and the control unit H via the two-core cable 29. The communication unit 32 is configured to convert output information from the remote control microcomputer 31 into communication information for communication. The remote controller-side microcomputer 31 is provided with a central processing unit C for executing the arithmetic processing.
Read-only memory RO for storing PU, control programs, etc.
M, a memory RAM for temporarily storing control data, and
It is provided with an input / output unit I / O for inputting and outputting information to and from the display unit HB and the operation unit SB. Therefore,
The remote controller R functions as the external device G. The power to the remote controller R is supplied from the controller H through the two-core cable 29. However, even if a non-energized state such as a temporary power failure occurs, the power in the memory RAM is not changed. A backup power supply (battery) BT for retaining information is provided.

During the hot water supply operation, the control section H includes a combustion control means 100 for executing combustion control for maintaining the temperature of the hot water supplied to the hot water supply section at the target hot water supply temperature;
Incomplete combustion determining means 101 for determining whether or not burner 3 is incompletely burning based on detection information of sensor 18.
And an aging means 102 for measuring the burning time of the burner 3 and the usage time of the CO sensor 18, an abnormality detecting means 103 for detecting the occurrence of an abnormal operation of the hot water supply unit K, and the like, and a built-in ROM ( A read-only memory (not shown) is provided in the form of a control program. The combustion control means 100 obtains the required combustion amount of the burner 3 based on the incoming water temperature information, the water flow amount information, the target hot water supply temperature set by the temperature setting switch 20, and the like, and determines the fuel supply amount corresponding to this combustion amount. In addition to the automatic adjustment of the fuel control valve 14, a target ventilation amount (fan target rotation speed) for setting an appropriate air-fuel ratio with respect to the combustion amount is set in advance. The rotation speed of the fan 4 is automatically adjusted. Specifically, the duty ratio of the drive motor of the fan 4 is changed and adjusted so that the detection value of the rotation speed sensor 5 becomes the target rotation speed.

The amount of air flow by the fan 4 may change even at the same rotation speed due to clogging of the exhaust path with dust, adhesion of dust to the fan 4, and the like. If there is an abnormality in the ventilation volume, it is detected by the abnormality detection means 103, and the abnormality is notified. That is, in the initial state of installation of the device, the duty ratio in a state where the fan rotation speed is adjusted to the set value is stored in the nonvolatile memory 28 as a reference value (an example of a ventilation operation state), and every time the set time is used. If the difference exceeds a set amount and the difference exceeds a set amount, the abnormality indicating lamp 25 is turned on because the ventilation state is abnormal.

The incomplete combustion determining means 101 is configured to determine incomplete combustion when the state where the CO concentration detected by the CO sensor 18 exceeds the set concentration continues for a set time or more. When the combustion is determined, the combustion of the burner 3 is stopped. Since the CO sensor 18 is exposed to the combustion gas of the burner 3, the detection sensitivity may be deteriorated due to harmful substances such as sulfur components in the combustion gas as the usage time becomes longer. At 102, the cumulative usage time of the CO sensor 18 is measured, and each time the hot water supply operation is stopped,
8 is stored.

The non-volatile memory 28 stores the burner's combustion operation state as an integrated value of the burn time of the burner 3, the number of combustion operations (the number of fire extinguishing operations), or the above-described abnormal ventilation state or abnormal operation. The number of times an abnormal operation such as complete combustion has occurred is stored and held.

As described above, various types of control information important for executing the hot water supply operation are written and stored in the nonvolatile memory 28. Therefore, the control unit H is replaced in the maintenance work and the nonvolatile memory 28 is replaced. If the information stored in 28 runs out, there is a possibility that a proper hot water supply operation cannot be performed. Therefore, the control unit H communicates the control information stored in the non-volatile memory 28 to the remote control operation unit R based on the transmission command, and communicates from the remote control operation unit R based on the return command. The remote control operation unit R is configured to write and store the control information to be written in the nonvolatile memory 28, and to store and hold the control information from the control unit H based on the storage command, and based on the transmission command. The stored control information can be communicated to the control unit H.

That is, when replacing the control unit H,
Operating the maintenance switch 21 for the exchange start command of the remote control operation unit R (when the exchange start command is issued
) , A transmission command is issued to the control unit H, and a storage command is issued to the remote control operation unit R. It should be noted that the old information stored in the memory RAM is deleted according to the storage command. Then, the control information stored in the nonvolatile memory 28 is communicated to the remote control operation unit R via the communication units 30 and 32 and the two-core cable 29, and the remote control operation unit R RA
The information is written and stored in M. After that, when the control unit H is replaced with a new one, the replacement control unit H is operated by operating the replacement end command maintenance switch 22 of the remote control operation unit R (the replacement end command is issued) . , And a transmission command is issued to the remote controller R. Thus, remote control unit R transmits the control information that is serial <br/>憶the memory RAM in the remote control-side microcomputer 31 to the control unit H. Control unit H
Writes the control information communicated from the remote control operation unit R in the nonvolatile memory 28 and stores it. While the control unit H is being replaced, the power supply from the control unit H is stopped, but the information stored in the memory RAM is retained without being erased by the backup power source BT. . Each of the maintenance switches 2
The components 1 and 22 are configured to be covered by a cover so that a normal user cannot operate the device, and the maintenance worker is configured to open the cover and operate the device.

With this configuration, the non-volatile memory 28 can be detached by mounting the non-volatile memory 28 in the same manner as other parts, such as a special socket for detachably supporting the base or another printed wiring board. There is no need for a special configuration such as a configuration provided in the device, and the configuration does not become complicated.

[Another Embodiment] (1) In the above embodiment, the control unit H is operated based on the operation of the maintenance switch provided on the remote control operation unit R side.
, And a storage command or a transmission command to the remote control operation unit R, but such a maintenance switch may be provided in the control unit H. Further, instead of the configuration in which the maintenance switch is provided, for example, a configuration may be employed in which a plurality of switches in the operation unit are simultaneously operated to instruct the control unit H and the remote control operation unit R as described above.

(2) In the above embodiment, the remote controller R is used as the external device G for holding the control information. However, instead of such a configuration, the following configuration may be adopted. As shown in FIG. 3, the control unit H is provided with a communication unit for performing communication with the remote control operation unit R.
At the time of maintenance work, not only information in the non-volatile memory 28 but also control information between the hot water supply unit K and an external inspection device 40 for inspecting the operation status of each unit of the hot water supply unit K (actual detection value of detection means such as each thermistor). An external output terminal 41 functioning as a communication unit TU capable of communicating with the external inspection device 40 is provided. As shown in FIG. A relay processing unit 43 for converting the personal computer 42 into a signal based on the standard communication standard (RS-232C) is provided.
Reference numeral 3 denotes a relay microcomputer 44 for signal processing and a receiver circuit 45 for signal conversion.

The external output terminal 41 includes a power supply terminal ( _Vcc , GND), a reference clock pulse _SCLK , a signal output terminal _SOUT, and a signal input terminal S.
_As shown in FIG. 5, the main body microcomputer 26 outputs a signal at the ON switching timing of the reference clock pulse and inputs a signal at the OFF switching timing, as shown in FIG.

In this embodiment, based on the operation of a predetermined key on the personal computer 42, a command for sending and a command for returning to the control unit H are issued, control information is held in a memory inside the personal computer 42, and , So that the control information is communicated to the control unit H,
The personal computer 42 is provided with the control program. Therefore, in the case of this embodiment, the external device G is constituted by the personal computer 42.

As the external device G, a dedicated information processing device may be used in addition to an operation command unit such as a remote control operation unit and a personal computer.

(3) In the above embodiment, the control information includes various control information such as a reference value of a duty ratio of the motor of the fan 4 to the motor, an accumulated use time of the CO sensor 18, and detection information of the abnormality detecting means. However, the present invention is not limited to such a configuration, and may be implemented by changing the combination such as storing any one type or any two types of control information. In addition to the above contents, other information such as, for example, information on the accumulated use amount of fuel may be stored.

(4) In the above embodiment, a water heater is exemplified as a control device. However, the present invention is not limited to a water heater, but is used for various control devices such as a remote-controlled air conditioner and other electric devices. be able to.

In the claims, reference numerals are provided to facilitate comparison with the drawings, but the present invention is not limited to the configuration shown in the attached drawings.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a water heater.

FIG. 2 is a circuit block diagram.

FIG. 3 is a circuit block diagram of another embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a configuration diagram of an external device according to another embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a signal transmission timing chart of another embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 2 heat exchanger 3 burner 4 ventilation means 18 unburned component concentration detection means 28 storage means 42 personal computer 103 abnormality detection means G external device H control unit K operation unit R operation command unit TU communication means

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Satoru Awane 1-52-1, Oka, Minami-shi, Minato-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka (56) References JP-A-8-327061 (JP, A) 2-4127 (JP, A) JP 4-9970 (JP, B2) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) F23N 5/00 F23N 5/26 101 F24H 1/10 301

Claims (6)

(57) [Claims] 1. A control unit (H) for controlling the operation of an operation unit (K) includes: a non-volatile storage unit (28) for storing control information of the operation unit (K); a maintenance device control apparatus is configured and a communicable communication means (TU) information between the control unit (H) is, based on the transmission command being commanded by exchange start command The control information stored in the storage means (28) is communicated to the external device (G), and the external device (G) is communicated based on a return command instructed by an exchange end command. The control information communicated from the controller is written and stored in the storage means (28), and the external device (G) is instructed by the exchange start command.
The control information from the control unit (H) is stored and held based on the storage command, and the command is issued by the exchange end command.
A maintenance device for a control device configured to be able to communicate the stored control information to the control unit (H) based on a transmitted transmission command. 2. An operation command section (R) for commanding operation information for operating the operation section (K) to the control section (H) by a manual operation, wherein the external device (G) is operated by an artificial operation. The maintenance device for control equipment according to claim 1, wherein the operation command unit (R) is configured to be able to hold the control information. 3. A personal computer (4) in which the external device (G) can hold the control information.
The maintenance device for a control device according to claim 1, wherein the maintenance device is configured as in (2). 4. The operating part (K) includes a heat exchanger (2) for heating water, a burner (3) for heating the heat exchanger (2), and combustion air for the burner (3). The control unit (H) is configured to perform a combustion operation of the burner (3) and the ventilation unit (4).
And at least one of a combustion operation state of the burner (3) and a ventilation operation state of the ventilation means (4) as the control information. The maintenance device for a control device according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the maintenance device is configured to be stored in (28). 5. An unburned component concentration detecting means (1) for detecting the unburned component concentration contained in the combustion gas of the burner (3).
8), and the control unit (H) includes the unburned component concentration detection unit (1).
1, 2 and 3, wherein the operation state of 8) is stored as the control information in the storage means (28).
Or a maintenance device for a control device according to 4. 6. An abnormality detecting means (103) for detecting occurrence of an abnormal operation of the operating section (K), wherein the control section (H) transmits detection information in the abnormality detecting means (103). , The control information is configured to be stored in the storage means (28).
The maintenance device for a control device according to 3, 4, or 5.