JP5237845B2 - Air conditioning controller - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an air conditioning control device that controls an air conditioner at bedtime.

  Conventionally, air conditioning with a sleeping air conditioner uses a timer to turn on / off the operation of the air conditioner, or adjusts the set temperature at the time of air conditioning according to the operation control during sleeping, that is, the operation time of the air conditioner It was a thing. In the above case, for example, during sleep in the summer, if the air conditioner is operated until the wake-up time, it may wake up in the cold at dawn or the body becomes heavy when waking up. In many cases, the air conditioner is stopped after a certain time by a timer. However, since the room temperature rises immediately after the air conditioner stops in summer, there is a risk of awakening during the night. Also, even if the air conditioner is operated again when awakened in the middle, and reset by the timer so that it will be turned off after a certain time, and again falls asleep after the operation of the air conditioner stops again, the awakening is resumed, resulting in a lack of sleep The problem can occur.

  In order to solve the above problem, for example, in the air conditioner described in Patent Literature 1 and the sleeping device described in Patent Literature 2, a means for detecting body movement such as turning the sleeping person is provided separately, and the body of the sleeping person is provided by the means. When motion is detected, it is determined that the sleeper is difficult to sleep, and the air conditioner is controlled to adjust the room temperature.

JP-A-6-137638 Japanese Patent No. 28111977

  However, in the above conventional example, it is necessary to keep the air conditioner in an operating state all night, and there is a problem that the operating cost of the air conditioner becomes high. In addition, even if the room temperature is adjusted to an appropriate temperature for the sleeping person, the air conditioner is operating all night, which may affect the physical condition of the sleeping person.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and an object of the present invention is to provide an air conditioning control device that can reduce the operating cost of an air conditioner and reduce the influence on the physical condition of a sleeping person.

  In order to achieve the above object, a first aspect of the present invention provides a vibration sensor unit that is installed between a mattress and a bed table and outputs an electrical signal in response to vibration caused by the body movement of a sleeper, and a vibration sensor. A biological information detection unit that extracts a vibration component in the frequency band of the body movement of the sleeping person from the output signal of the sleeping part and detects a sleeping person's turning frequency from the vibration component; and installed in the vicinity of the sleeping person's head The temperature sensor unit for detecting the ambient temperature, the threshold setting unit for setting the threshold of the turnover frequency and the temperature threshold according to the sleeper's operation, and the detected turnover frequency and the room temperature are both threshold setting units. A sleepiness determination unit that determines that a sleeper is in a sleepless state when the set threshold value is exceeded, and an air conditioning control unit that controls the operation of the air conditioner, and the air conditioning control unit does not operate the air conditioner Bedridden in condition If it is determined that unable to sleep well at determining unit, characterized in that to operate the air conditioner.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the invention, the air conditioning control unit has a timer function for measuring the operation time of the air conditioner, and operates the air conditioner after a predetermined time has elapsed since the air conditioner was operated. It is characterized by being stopped.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the invention, the threshold setting unit has a function of setting a temperature for stopping the operation of the air conditioner and a threshold for stopping the turnover frequency according to the operation of the sleeper. The air conditioning control unit stops the operation of the air conditioner when the temperature or the turnover frequency detected in a state where the air conditioner is operating falls below at least one of the stop thresholds.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the invention according to any one of the first to third aspects, the threshold value setting unit sets a threshold value for forcible operation of a temperature higher than the temperature threshold value in accordance with a sleeper's operation. The air conditioning control unit forcibly operates the air conditioner when the temperature detected in a state where the air conditioner is not operating exceeds a threshold value for forced operation.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the invention according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, the biological information detection unit extracts a vibration component in a frequency band of a sleeper's heartbeat from an output signal of the vibration sensor unit. In addition, by detecting the index of the autonomic nerve by analyzing the heartbeat frequency obtained by the biological information detection unit, the sleep state estimation unit that estimates the sleep state of the sleeper from the index, It is determined that it is hard to sleep when the temperature detected in the state where the air conditioner is not operating is higher than when the air conditioner is stopped and the sleep state estimation unit estimates that the sleeper is in a shallow sleep state. It is characterized by.

  According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the fifth aspect of the present invention, the air conditioning control unit performs air conditioning when the sleep state estimating unit estimates a transition from a sleepy sleep state to a deep sleep state while the air conditioner is operating. The operation of the machine is stopped.

  According to the invention of claim 1, since the air conditioner is operated only when it is determined that the sleeper is hard to sleep, the air conditioner is not operated overnight as in the conventional example, and thus the operating cost of the air conditioner is reduced. can do. In addition, since not only the sleeper's body movement but also the temperature in the vicinity of the sleeper's head is determined together, the sleepiness is determined. For example, although the room temperature is appropriate for the sleeper, the body movement has occurred and it is difficult to sleep. It is possible to prevent air conditioning control against the sleeper's intention such as being judged and adjusting the room temperature.

  According to the invention of claim 2, since the operation is stopped after a certain time even if the air conditioner is operated, the air conditioner is not operated all night, so that the influence on the physical condition of the sleeping person is reduced. Can do.

  According to the invention of claim 3, since the air conditioner automatically stops when the temperature or the turnover frequency desired by the sleeper is reached, the air conditioner operates more than necessary to prevent the sleep environment of the sleeper from being damaged. be able to.

  According to the invention of claim 4, when the sleeper is in a deep sleep state that does not turn over and the sense of temperature is dull, the air conditioner is forced to operate if the temperature rises too much. Can be prevented from rising too much and becoming awake.

  According to the invention of claim 5, since the air conditioner is controlled according to the sleeping state of the sleeping person, the air conditioning control can be performed more in line with the sleeping person's sense. In addition, since it is possible to determine the difficulty of sleeping based on the sleep state estimation result even when the sleeping person is not in motion, the air conditioner can be controlled even in the state before the sleeping person turns over. .

  According to the invention of claim 6, since the sleeper's sleep is stabilized and the operation of the air conditioner is stopped, the sleep environment of the sleeper changes at the time when the operation of the air conditioner is stopped. It is possible to prevent awakening during the sleep state at that time, particularly when sleep is shallow.

1 is an overall schematic diagram showing an embodiment of an air conditioning control device according to the present invention. It is explanatory drawing of sleepiness determination same as the above. It is a block diagram which shows a sleep state estimation part same as the above.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of an air-conditioning control apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. As shown in FIG. 1, this embodiment is arranged between a bed table A and a mattress B placed on the bed table A, and is caused by the heartbeat, breathing, and body movement of a sleeper C on the mattress B. The vibration sensor unit 1 that outputs an electrical signal in response to the vibration to be performed, the temperature sensor unit 2 that detects the temperature of the environment disposed near the head of the sleeping person C, and the output of the vibration sensor unit 1 The vibration information due to the body movement of the sleeping person C is extracted from the signal, the biological information detecting unit 3 that calculates the sleeping frequency of the sleeping person C, and the turning frequency threshold value Fth and the temperature threshold value Tth are set according to the operation of the sleeping person C. The threshold setting unit 4, the sleepiness determination unit 5 that determines that the sleeper C is in a sleepless state when the detected turnover frequency and temperature both exceed the threshold set by the threshold setting unit 4, and the bedroom Arranged to adjust the temperature (room temperature) in the bedroom Composed of the air conditioning control unit 6 for controlling the operation of that air conditioner D. The air conditioner D has a remote control function and is capable of cooling and heating operations, and is well known, and therefore detailed description thereof is omitted here.

  The vibration sensor unit 1 is composed of a piezoelectric type element made of a polymer piezoelectric material such as PVDF (polyvinylidene fluoride), for example. Is converted into an electrical signal and output. The generated electric signal is input to an amplifying unit (not shown), amplified to a desired size in the amplifying unit, and then output to the biological information detecting unit 3.

  The temperature sensor unit 2 is composed of, for example, a thermistor formed by mixing and sintering an oxide such as nickel, manganese, cobalt, and iron. The temperature sensor unit 2 calculates the air temperature according to the resistance value that changes with the temperature change, and the detection result. Is output to the drowsiness determination unit 5. Here, since the temperature sensor unit 2 is disposed near the head of the sleeping person C, the detected air temperature is close to the temperature experienced by the sleeping person C.

  The biological information detection unit 3 extracts a vibration component due to body movement of the sleeping person C from the output signal of the amplification unit. In general, there is no fixed frequency band for body movement, and when body movement occurs, a signal having a wide frequency band component can be observed. For this reason, the biological information detection unit 3 extracts a vibration component due to body movement from a bandpass filter in a wide frequency band of 1 to 500 Hz. In addition, the biological information detection unit 3 calculates the turnover frequency by comparing the obtained output value of the vibration component due to body movement with a predetermined threshold value. Here, the turnover frequency indicates a ratio of a period during which the output value of the vibration component due to the body movement of the sleeping person C exceeds a predetermined threshold in one minute. For example, if the period during which the output value of the vibration component due to body movement exceeds a predetermined threshold in 15 minutes is 15 seconds, the turnover frequency is 25%. In this way, the biological information detection unit 3 calculates the turnover frequency in increments, and outputs the calculation result to the bedriddenness determination unit 5.

  The threshold setting unit 4 includes, for example, a reception input unit (not shown) that is configured by a push button and receives an operation input of the sleeper C, and a temperature threshold Tth and a turnover frequency threshold Fth according to the operation of the sleeper C. Set. Here, the temperature threshold value Tth is a temperature at which the sleeper C feels uncomfortable when the sleeper C rises more than this, or a temperature at which the sleeper C feels uncomfortable when falling further. Further, the turnover frequency threshold Fth is a value that sets how much the sleeper C himself wants to turn over and want to determine that it is difficult to sleep. Generally, in summer, it is determined that it is difficult to sleep when the temperature is 27 ° C. or higher and the turnover frequency is 50% or higher. Therefore, it is desirable to set the temperature threshold Tth to 27 ° C. and the turnover frequency threshold Fth to 50%. However, since there are individual differences in the temperature and the turnover frequency at which it is difficult to sleep, the threshold value setting unit 4 may appropriately change the temperature threshold value Tth and the turnover frequency threshold value Fth according to the sleeping person C.

  The bedriddenness determination unit 5 compares the turnover frequency calculated by the biological information detection unit 3 with the turnover frequency threshold Fth set by the threshold setting unit 4, and the temperature detected by the temperature sensor unit 2 and the threshold setting unit. The temperature threshold Tth set in 4 is compared. Then, as shown in FIG. 2, when both the detected turnover frequency and the temperature exceed the turnover frequency threshold Fth and the temperature threshold Tth, it is determined that the sleeper C is in a sleepless state, and the air conditioner D is An operation signal for operation is transmitted to the air conditioning control unit 6.

  The air conditioning control unit 6 transmits a control signal for operating the air conditioner D to the air conditioner D by infrared when receiving the operation signal from the drowsiness determination unit 5. And the air conditioner D will start an air-conditioning operation | movement, regardless of the presence or absence of a user's operation, if the said control signal is received. In the present embodiment, the control signal is transmitted to the air conditioner D by infrared rays. However, for example, it may be configured to transmit a wired signal conforming to JEMA (Japan Electrical Manufacturers' Association) standard.

  As described above, the air conditioner D is operated only when it is determined that the sleeper C is hard to sleep. Therefore, the air conditioner D is not operated overnight as in the conventional example, and thus the operating cost of the air conditioner D is reduced. can do. Further, since not only the body movement of the sleeper C but also the temperature in the vicinity of the head of the sleeper C is determined, it is determined whether the body movement has occurred although the temperature is appropriate for the sleeper C, for example. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the air conditioning control against the intention of the sleeper C from being determined to be difficult to sleep and adjusting the room temperature.

  By the way, if the air conditioner D is continuously operated, if air conditioning control is performed to keep the room temperature constant, there is a risk that the physical condition may be impaired by feeling cold at dawn due to the influence of the change in the deep body temperature of the sleeping person C. is there. Therefore, the air conditioning control unit 6 is provided with a timer function for measuring the operation time of the air conditioner D, and is configured to stop the operation of the air conditioner D after a certain time (for example, 15 minutes) has elapsed since the air conditioner D was operated. May be. In this case, even if the air conditioner D is operated, since the operation is stopped after a certain time, the air conditioner D is not operated all night, so that the influence on the physical condition of the sleeper C can be reduced. The time for operating the air conditioner D need not be limited to 15 minutes, and may be appropriately changed according to the sleeping person C.

  In addition, the threshold setting unit 4 is provided with a function for setting a temperature for stopping the operation of the air conditioner D according to the operation of the sleeper C and a threshold for turning off the turnover frequency, and the air conditioner D is operating. The air conditioning control unit 6 may be configured to stop the operation of the air conditioner D when the temperature detected in step 1 or the turnover frequency falls below at least one of the stop threshold values. In this case, since the air conditioner D is automatically stopped when the temperature or the turnover frequency desired by the sleeper C is reached, it is possible to prevent the air conditioner D from operating more than necessary and impairing the sleep environment of the sleeper C. it can.

  By the way, when the sleeper C enters a deep sleep state, the sleeper C's sensation becomes dull, and even when the temperature rises excessively and becomes hot, there may be a period in which the user does not turn over because the temperature is not felt. During this period, the sleepiness is not determined because the person does not roll over, and the air conditioner D does not operate. However, when the sleep becomes shallow during this period, the sensation is regained, the heat is instantaneously felt, the awakening is abrupt, and the person wakes up. There was a problem that.

  Therefore, the threshold setting unit 4 is provided with a function for setting a threshold value for forced operation of an air temperature higher than the temperature threshold value Tth (for example, an air temperature that is two degrees higher than the temperature threshold value Tth) according to the operation of the sleeper C, and the air conditioner D When the detected air temperature exceeds the threshold for forced operation, the air conditioning controller 6 forcibly operates the air conditioner D even if the rollover frequency does not exceed the rollover frequency threshold Fth. It doesn't matter. By configuring in this way, when the sleeper C is in a deep sleep state that does not turn over and the sense of temperature is dull, if the temperature rises too much, the air conditioner D is forced to operate. It is possible to prevent the temperature from rising too much and being awake. Note that the forcible operation threshold need not be limited to an air temperature that is twice higher than the temperature threshold Tth, and may be appropriately changed according to the sleeping person C.

(Embodiment 2)
Hereinafter, Embodiment 2 of the air-conditioning control apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. However, since the basic configuration of this embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment, common portions are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof is omitted. As shown in FIG. 3, this embodiment is characterized in that a sleep state estimation unit 7 that estimates the sleep state of the sleeper C is provided between the biological information detection unit 3 and the sleepiness determination unit 5. Note that the biological information detection unit 3 of the present embodiment also includes a bandpass filter that extracts only vibration components in the heart rate frequency band of, for example, 0.5 to 1.5 Hz, and detects the heart rate from the output signal of the amplification unit. Extracts vibration components in the frequency band. The extracted output signal is output to the sleep state estimation unit 7 described later, and is output to the autonomic nerve activity detection unit 72 described later via the frequency analysis unit 70.

  The sleep state estimation unit 7 calculates the heart rate of the sleeping person C from the vibration component of the heartbeat obtained by the biological information detection unit 3, and the estimation results of the time series distribution detection unit 71 and the autonomic nerve activity detection unit 72 described later. In addition, the sleep state of the sleeping person C is estimated, and the sleep state estimation result is output to the sleepiness determination unit 5.

  The time series distribution detector 71 detects the heart rate time series distribution from the output signal of the biological information detector 3, and calculates the heart rate variance from this time series distribution. The obtained heart rate variance is used by the sleep state estimation unit 7 to estimate the sleep state. In general, in the awake state and the REM sleep state, the fluctuation of the output signal of the biological information detection unit 3 becomes large, so the dispersion of the heart rate becomes large. Thus, the heart rate variance is reduced. Therefore, each sleep state can be estimated using the variance of the heart rate as an index.

  The frequency analysis unit 70 converts the output signal of the biological information detection unit 3 from the time domain to the frequency domain by a frequency analysis method such as FFT (Fast Fourier Transform). And the autonomic nerve activity detection part 72 is a vibration component of a low frequency band (about 0.04-0.15 Hz) among the obtained frequency spectrum distribution, and a high frequency band (about 0.15-0.4 Hz). The power spectrum of each vibration component is calculated. Here, the ratio of the power spectrum of the low frequency band to the sum of the power spectrum of the low frequency band and the high frequency band is used as an index of the activity of the sympathetic nerve, and the power spectrum of the high frequency band is used as an index of the activity of the parasympathetic nerve. . In general, it is considered to be tense when sympathetic nerve is dominant and relaxed when parasympathetic nerve is dominant. Thus, the sympathetic nerve activity is dominant in the awake state, the parasympathetic nerve activity is dominant in the deep sleep state, and the sympathetic activity is close to the value at the awake time in the REM sleep state, and the heart rate is awake. Each sleep state can be estimated using the activity level of the sympathetic nerve and the parasympathetic nerve as an index, such as a decrease from the state.

  The sleepiness determination unit 5 determines the sleepiness of the sleeping person C based on the estimation result of the sleep state estimation unit 7 separately from the sleepiness determination in the first embodiment. Specifically, when the temperature tends to be higher than when the air conditioner D is stopped, the activity of the sympathetic nerve increases and the activity of the parasympathetic nerve decreases, so that the sleep from a deep sleep state to a light sleep When transitioning to the state, the sleepiness determination unit 5 determines that the sleeper C is in a sleepless state, and transmits an operation signal to the air conditioning control unit 6. The air conditioning control unit 6 transmits a control signal for operating the air conditioner D to the air conditioner D by infrared when receiving the operation signal from the drowsiness determination unit 5 as in the first embodiment.

  As described above, since the air conditioner D is controlled according to the sleeping state of the sleeping person C, the air conditioning control can be performed more in line with the feeling of the sleeping person C. Further, since the sleep difficulty can be determined based on the sleep state estimation result even when the sleeper C is not in motion, the air conditioner D is controlled even in a state before the sleeper C turns over. be able to.

  In the state where the air conditioner D is operating, for example, the activity of the parasympathetic nerve increases, and the sleep state estimation unit 7 shifts the sleeper C from a shallow sleep state to a deep sleep state, that is, the sleeper. When C re-sleeping is estimated, the air conditioning control unit 6 may be configured to stop the operation of the air conditioner D. In this case, the sleeper C shifts to a deep sleep state, that is, since the operation of the air conditioner D is stopped after the sleep of the sleeper C is stabilized, the sleeper C sleeps at the time when the operation of the air conditioner D is stopped. Since the sleep environment of the person C changes, it is possible to prevent the awakening during the sleep state at that time, particularly when the sleep is shallow.

  In this embodiment, the sleep state is estimated based on the heart rate of the sleeper C. However, the sleep state may be estimated by extracting the respiratory component of the sleeper C from the output signal of the amplification unit. Moreover, you may estimate a sleep state using both a heartbeat component and a respiratory component.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Vibration sensor part 2 Temperature sensor part 3 Biological information detection part 4 Threshold value setting part 5 Sleepiness determination part 6 Air conditioning control part 7 Sleep state estimation part A Bed stand B Mattress C Sleeper D Air conditioner

Claims (6)

  A vibration sensor unit that is installed between the mattress and the bed table and outputs an electrical signal in response to vibration caused by body motion of the sleeper, and vibration in the frequency band of the sleeper body motion from the output signal of the vibration sensor unit A biological information detection unit that extracts a component and detects a sleeper's turnover frequency from the vibration component, a temperature sensor unit that detects the temperature of an environment installed near the head of the sleeper, and the sleeper's A threshold setting unit that sets a threshold for turning over and an air temperature according to the operation, and a sleeper is in a sleepless state when both the detected turning over frequency and room temperature exceed the threshold set in the threshold setting unit. The air conditioning control unit controls the operation of the air conditioner, and the air conditioning control unit operates the air conditioner when the sleepiness determining unit determines that it is difficult to sleep when the air conditioner is not operating. The Air conditioning control device according to claim Rukoto.   2. The air conditioning according to claim 1, wherein the air conditioning control unit has a timer function for measuring an operation time of the air conditioner, and stops the operation of the air conditioner after a predetermined time has elapsed since the air conditioner was operated. Control device.   The threshold setting unit has a function of setting a temperature for stopping the operation of the air conditioner and a threshold for stopping the turnover frequency according to the sleeper's operation, and the air conditioning control unit is configured to operate the air conditioner. 2. The air conditioning control device according to claim 1, wherein the operation of the air conditioner is stopped when the detected temperature or the turnover frequency falls below at least one of the stop thresholds.   The threshold value setting unit has a function of setting a threshold value for forced operation of a temperature higher than the temperature threshold value according to a sleeper's operation, and the air conditioning control unit is detected in a state where the air conditioner is not operating. The air conditioning control device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the air conditioner is forcibly operated when the air temperature exceeds a threshold value for forced operation.   The biological information detection unit extracts a vibration component in the frequency band of the sleeper's heartbeat from the output signal of the vibration sensor unit, and analyzes the heartbeat frequency obtained by the biological information detection unit to obtain an autonomic nerve. And a sleep state estimation unit that estimates the sleep state of the sleeper from the index, and the sleepiness determination unit is configured such that the air conditioner is stopped when the temperature detected in a state where the air conditioner is not operating. The air conditioning control device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the air conditioning control device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the air conditioning control unit determines that it is difficult to sleep when the sleep state estimation unit estimates that the sleeper is in a shallow sleep state. .   The air conditioning control unit stops the operation of the air conditioner when the sleep state estimation unit estimates a transition from a sleepy sleep state to a deep sleep state in a state where the air conditioner is operating. 5. The air conditioning control device according to 5.

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