JPH049112A - Air mat system - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To inflict no injury on any person by controlling a pressing means in such manner that an air pressure within a mat body is added to a predetermined lower limit when a pressure sensor detects that the air pressure within the mat body falls below the predetermined lower limit. CONSTITUTION:In a control means 20, a pressing means 9 or pressure-reducing means 11 is controlled according to the operation by a setting operation means 19 to regulate an air pressure within a mat body; after the stop of operation, the air pressure at the point of time stopping operation is stored as a set air pressure; after the storage, a threshold value based on the set air pressure and the detected air pressure of pressure sensors 15a-15c are compared with each other; and the means 9, 11 are controlled according to the result of this comparison to regulate the air pressure within the mat body. In the control means 20, then, when the pressure sensors detect that the air pressure within the mat body falls below a predetermined lower limit, the pressing means 9 is controlled so as to add the air pressure within the mat body is added to said lower limit. As a result, it is possible to prevent the generation of injury or any hindrance to the operation of the pressure sensor.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to an air mat system for automatically controlling the air pressure of an air mat that is made elastic by being filled with air.

[Prior Art] Conventional air mats, as seen in Utility Model Application Publication No. 1-152558, have simply filled the mat body with pressurized air, but it is now possible to automatically set the air pressure desired by the user. I can't.

Therefore, the present inventors have provided an air pump for pressurization, a solenoid valve for exhaust pressure reduction, a pressure sensor for detecting the air pressure inside the mat body, and a setting operation means for setting the air pressure. We have already proposed an air mat system that automatically controls air pumps and solenoid valves by comparing the air pressure detected by a pressure sensor with the set air pressure so that the set air pressure is maintained.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] However, this air mat system does not set a lower limit for the air pressure inside the mat body, so it is possible to accidentally set the internal pressure inside the mat body to a state such as 0g701m2 or an extremely low state. If this happens, there is a risk that children may be injured if they jump on the mat itself.

In addition, if a pressure sensor using a first-order delay is used, there will be no internal pressure until the mat body expands from the soaked state at Og/cI12 and forms a certain shape (especially when using a rigid laminate). When a tube is used), the -order lag element does not work as expected and stable operation cannot be guaranteed in all pressure ranges.

Furthermore, the pressure sensor has a problem in that it cannot detect extremely low pressures because the zero point may shift due to changes over time or errors in initial settings.

The present invention was made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and its purpose is to maintain a constant air pressure by determining the lower limit of the air pressure inside the mat body, so that even if someone jumps on the mat body, there will be no injury. Furthermore, stable operation can be obtained by using a pressure sensor that uses a first-order delay element, and even if there is some variation in the accuracy of the pressure sensor, pressure can be detected reliably and normal control can be performed. We provide air mattress systems.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a mat main body,
A pressurizing means for sending pressurized air into the mat main body, a depressurizing means for exhausting and decompressing the air inside the mat main body, a pressure sensor for detecting the air pressure inside the mat main body, and a setting for setting and operating the air pressure inside the mat main body. The air pressure inside the mat body is adjusted by controlling the operating means and the pressurizing means or the depressurizing means according to the operation by the setting operating means, and after the operation is stopped, the air pressure at the time of the operation is stopped is stored as the set air pressure. A control means that compares a threshold value based on the stored post-filling set air pressure with the air pressure detected by the pressure sensor, and controls the pressurization means or the pressure reduction means based on the comparison result to adjust the air pressure inside the mat body. In the mat system, when the pressure sensor detects that the air pressure within the mat body has decreased below a predetermined lower limit value, the control means controls the pressurizing means to increase the air pressure within the mat body to the lower limit value. It was established.

[Function] According to the present invention, even if the air pressure inside the mat body falls below the lower limit value, the air pressure inside the mat body can be automatically pressurized and maintained up to this lower limit value, and the air pressure inside the mat body can be maintained at this lower limit value. It is possible to prevent the air pressure from becoming too low, causing injury or interfering with the operation of the pressure sensor.

[Example] The present invention will be explained below with reference to Examples.

Figures 1 and 2 show an embodiment in which the air mat system of the present invention is used for a bed. 3, the mat body 1 is installed on the bed base 3, and there are three air tubes 4a to 4a corresponding to the shoulders, waist, and legs of the sleeper, respectively.
4c are housed and arranged side by side in a chip molded urethane frame 8 whose upper and lower opening surfaces are covered with urethane plates 5.6, and covered with a quilted cover 7. Each air tube 4a~
Air flow pipes 14a to 14c connected to 4C are installed.

FIG. 3 shows the fluid circuit of the embodiment, and the air control device 2 includes an air pump 9 and electromagnetic valves 10a to 10c inserted into air flow passages connecting the air pump 9 and each air tube 4a to 4c. , an exhaust solenoid valve 11 , an air filter 12 attached to the air pump 9 , and an exhaust solenoid valve 1
Silencer 13 attached to 1 and solenoid valve 1.0 a to 10
Air tubes 4a to 4C and solenoid valve 10 correspond to c.
pressure sensors 15a to 1.5c that detect the pressure in the air flow passages connecting the air flow pipes 14a to 10c and detect the air pressure in the corresponding air tubes 4a to 4C; Connector L6a provided at one end of each
Connectors 1.8a to 18c provided at the ends of air flow pipes 17a to 17c from the electromagnetic valves 10a to 10c, respectively, are detachably connected to the connectors 1.8a to 16c.

FIG. 4 shows a basic schematic circuit configuration diagram of the air control device 2 of the embodiment, and shows the setting operation means for individually setting the air pressure in each air tube 4a to 4c and the assignment of each set air pressure P0. A hand-held operating section 19 is provided with a display means for displaying the range, and a control signal for controlling the solenoid valves 10a to 10c, 11 and the air pump 9 is output during setting operations by the setting operating means of the hand-held operating section 19. At the same time, the display on the display means of the hand operation unit 19 is controlled to correspond to the air pressure P detected by the pressure sensors 15a to 15c, and when the setting operation is stopped, the pressure sensor 1 at the time of the stop is adjusted.
The detected air pressure P of 5a to 15c is stored as the set air pressure P0, and then the set air pressure P is filled. The difference is detected by comparing the threshold value based on the detected air pressure P1 of the pressure sensors 15a to 1-5c, and the solenoid valves 10a to 10 are adjusted based on the difference.
c. 11, a control section 20 that outputs a control signal for controlling the air pump 9 and controls the display of the display means of the hand operation section 19 based on the set air pressure P0; and a control section 20 that receives the control signal from the control section 20. Solenoid valve 1.0 a~10
c, 11, it is composed of a drive section 21 that drives the air pump 9, and a power supply section 22 that supplies power to each section based on an important signal from the control section 20.

The hand operation unit 19 serves as an operation means for each air tube 4a.
- Pressure push buttons 23a+ to 23c1. for increasing/decreasing the set air pressure P0 in response to 4C. Decompression push button 2
3a2 to 23cz, and as display means, five display elements Ll to L that divide the settable range of air pressure into five groups and display which range the set air pressure P0 or the detected air pressure P1 belongs to. Pressure push buttons 23a to 23 correspond to the respective air tubes 4a to 4b.
3c1 and pressure reduction push buttons 23 a2 to 23 C2, each push button 22 al, 22 az to 22 c
, 22C2 are sent to the control section 20, and the operation signals from the control section 22C2 are sent to the control section 20.
The display signals from the hand control unit 19 are transmitted through the control unit 7 and the control unit 24, respectively.

In addition, the hand operation unit 19 is provided with an operation button 26 for instructing whether the main power supply is important, and a display element L0 for displaying the important state of the power supply.Similarly to the above, the operation signal and the display signal are transmitted through the cable. The information is exchanged between the control units 20 through 24. 25 is a connector for connecting between the hand operation section 19 and the control section 20.

The control unit 20 is actually composed of a one-chip microcomputer, and its functional circuit block is the fifth
As shown in the figure, A/D converters 27a to 27c convert analog electrical signals corresponding to the detected air pressure P from each pressure sensor 15a to 15c into digital signals, and the push buttons 23a+ and 23a2 of the hand operation unit 19. 23c+, 23C
2 and the operation signal input unit 2 that receives operation signals from the operation buttons 26.
8, a signal processing unit 34, and a control signal output unit 35 that outputs the control signal created by the signal processing unit 34 to the outside,
A display signal output unit 36 that sends out the display signal created by the signal processing unit 34 to the outside, a memory 37 such as a ROM that stores dead width data (described later), calculations of the signal processing unit 34, and control operation programs; It also includes a memory 29 such as a RAM used for reading and writing set air pressure data and the like.

The signal processing section 34 controls the power supply section 22 according to the operation of the operation button 26.
Create control signals for the push buttons 23a23az to 23c
+, Air pump 9, solenoid valve 10 according to the operation of 23cz
an operation control signal creation function 33 that creates control signals for controlling a to 10b, 11; and the push buttons 23a+, 23
When the operation of the az~23c++ 2302 is stopped, the value of the air pressure P of the pressure sensors 15a~15c at that time is written as the set air pressure P0 into the two memory storage areas corresponding to the respective air tubes 4a~4C, and the power supply section 2
Memory control function 3 that writes the important status of 2 to the memory 29
0, and the set air pressure P written in the memory 29 after the setting is completed. threshold value based on and A/D converters 26a to 2
a control signal creation function 31 that compares the detected air pressure P converted in step 6c and creates a control signal for controlling the air pump 9 and the solenoid valves 10a to 1-Ob, 11 based on the difference;
Display signal and set air pressure P according to the importance of the power supply unit 22. and a display control function 32 that creates a display signal such as a display signal according to the detected air pressure P1.

Next, the operation of the entire air mattress system of the present invention will be explained.

First, when using it for the first time, connect the power supply part 2 to the power outlet.
In the power down state when plug 2 is not inserted, the RAM
No set air pressure data is stored in the memory 29 such as . Now insert the plug into the power outlet,
The control unit 20 is energized through the power supply unit 22, and the control unit 20 resets each unit to an initial state.

In this state, the display signal is sent to the hand operation unit 19 from the signal processing unit 3.
4, the display element L0 and each of L1 to L are in an off state.

When the operation button 26 of the hand-held operation section 19 is operated, the operation signal input circuit 27 of the control section 20 receives the operation signal and writes the data of the power supply section into the memory 29. In this state, the display control function 32 sends a display signal for lighting the display element L0 to the hand operation unit 19, the lighting of the display element L0 indicates the power supply unit, and the device enters a standby state. In this state, each of the solenoid valves 10a to 10c and 11 is in a closed state.

Since the pressure inside each air tube 4a to 4C of the air mat 1 is in a non-pressure state, the user presses the push buttons 23a to 2 on the pressurizing side.
It is necessary to operate 3c1 to give a pressurizing operation signal to the control section 20.

First, for example, when the push button 23al is operated, the control unit 20 starts operating based on the manual operation routine shown in FIG. The control unit 20 determines whether the air pump is for pressurization or depressurization, and the control unit 20 that determines that it is for pressurization generates a control signal for the air pump 9 and a control signal for opening the solenoid valve 10a, that is, a control signal for opening the solenoid valve 10a, based on the operation control signal generation function 33. A control signal for driving the means is given to the drive unit 21, and at the same time the air pump 9 starts operating through the drive unit 21, the solenoid valve 1 is activated.
Open 0a. Therefore, pressurized air is sent into the air tube 4a, increasing the internal pressure of the air tube 4a.

This air tube 4a internal pressure is continuously detected by a pressure sensor Z5a, and based on the detected air pressure P, the display control function 32 of the control section 20 uses a display element provided corresponding to the air tube 4a.

A display signal of ~L is sent to the hand-operated unit 18, and the range to which the detected air pressure P belongs is displayed by lighting. The user pressurizes the mat body 1 until the desired air pressure is reached based on this display and the feeling when the user places his or her body on the mat main body 1.

Here, the display elements L1 to Ls display 5 to 5.
20g/cIm2, and 2117 in Ll and L2
cm2~35 g/cm'', 36g/c1~50g/em' in L+~L3 display, L+~L<
51 g/Cpa2 to 70 g/clI2, L
, ~71g/am"-120g7cm" as shown in 1-3
As described above, the control section 20 sequentially controls the display element Ll based on the air pressure P detected by the pressure sensor 15a.
~L5 is turned on.

The width of this range setting is not evenly allocated, but is set to be equally spaced to give the softness that people feel.

Now, when the desired air pressure is obtained and the push button 23 a I is released, the operation control signal generation function 3 of the control section 20 is activated.
3 acts to stop the output of the control signal for the air pump 9, stopping the operation of the air pump 9, and at the same time stopping the driving of the solenoid valve 10a to close it, thereby maintaining the air pressure in the air tube 4a. At the same time, the control unit 20 writes and stores the detected air pressure P of the pressure sensor 15a in the corresponding area of the memory 29 as the set air pressure P0.

Furthermore, if you feel that the air pressure is too high and too hard, you can operate the pressure reduction push button 23a2. In this case, the control unit 20 sends a control signal to the solenoid valves 10a and 11 as a pressure reduction means in response to the operation of the push button 23a2. is sent to the drive unit 21 to open the solenoid valves 10a and 11, and this opening exhausts the air in the air tube 4a to reduce the pressure. In addition, the display elements L1 to L are controlled to turn off in accordance with this pressure reduction, and the data of the set air pressure P0 stored in the memory 29 is input by pressing the button 2.
When the push operation of 3a2 is released, the air pressure is rewritten to the air pressure at that time. In this way, the air pressure of each air tube 4a to 4c is sequentially set to the desired hardness corresponding to the shoulder, waist, and leg values, and each detected air pressure P is stored as the set air pressure P0. do.

After setting the air pressure of each of the air tubes 4a to 4c so as to obtain the desired hardness in this manner, control shifts to an automatic pressure adjustment routine.

Next, the operation of this automatic pressure adjustment routine will be explained based on the flowchart shown in FIG.

First, the control unit 20 determines whether the set air pressure P0 stored in the memory 29 belongs to the above-mentioned five ranges (level 1 (=1 to n)), and also controls the detected air pressure P for a certain period of time (in the embodiment). Sample the air pressure every 20 minutes), compare it with the set air pressure P0 stored in the memory 29, find the pressure difference, and check whether it is within the dead width ΔPi, which is a threshold value set in advance and stored in the ROM 30. The determination is made, and if the two dead widths ΔPi are exceeded, the pressure is adjusted by performing pressure reduction or pressurization control. If not, it is determined whether a new pressure setting has been made by the manual operation routine described above, and if there is no new setting, the above-mentioned comparative determination is successively performed.

Here, the dead width ΔPi is the increase in air pressure due to temperature rise,
In addition to preventing air pressure control from being performed frequently in response to changes in air pressure due to fluctuations in atmospheric pressure, the mat itself
In order to prevent air pressure control in response to changes in air pressure caused by changes in load due to people getting on and off the top, it is set within a range in which the human body does not feel any difference in stiffness in sensory evaluation, and the dead width ΔPi is based on the set air pressure. The above 5 divided variable range of P0
The + side and - side are set as shown in the table below, corresponding to each level i.

The above-mentioned comparative judgment is made based on this table, and the air pressure PI detected by each of the pressure sensors 15a to 15C is sampled (sampling timing is indicated by a black dot), and the air pressure at that time is stored and set in the memory 29. The control unit 20 compares and determines whether the upper limit value of the + side dead width ΔPi+ corresponding to the set air pressure P0 is exceeded or the lower limit value of the one side dead width ΔPi2, as described above. pressure control. Of course each air tube 4
Control is performed separately for each of a to 4c.

In order to prevent excessive fluctuations, the above-mentioned automatic pressure adjustment may be performed only when the determination result exceeds the dead width ΔPi three times in a row as shown in FIG.

In this case, when the detected air pressure P is outside the dead width ΔPi, 1 is added to the data in a predetermined area in the memory 29, and when it is within the dead width ΔPi, the data in the predetermined area is returned to 0, thereby counting. .

In addition, when you sit on a bed, you usually sit on your feet or the center, so it is rare that you sit on your lower back and shoulders for more than 30 minutes at the same time, and it is better to sit on the air tube 4a ~ In view of the fact that the pressure inside 4C tends to be high, the above sampling interval is set so that air pressure control is not performed in such a seat, and the air tubes 4a and 4b in the shoulder and waist areas are set. The automatic pressure adjustment may be performed by outputting the control signal as described above only when the pressures P1 within the pressure range exceed the dead width ΔPt three times in a row.

Now, in the above automatic pressure adjustment, when a control signal for pressure reduction is output, the solenoid valve 11 is opened and the solenoid valve 1 corresponding to the air tubes 4a to 4C to be depressurized is opened.
When 1a to llc are opened and pressure reduction is started, the control unit 20
continuously takes in the detected air pressure P1 of the pressure sensors 15a to 15c corresponding to the pressure reduction, and connects the corresponding air tube 4a.
~4 (when the air pressure within is below the upper limit above and a constant value (3g
/eM2), the output of the control signal is stopped and the solenoid valve 11 and the corresponding solenoid valves 10a to 10C are closed.

Similarly, in the case of pressurization, the air pump 9 is driven and the solenoid valves 11a to 11c corresponding to the air tubes 4a to 4c to be depressurized are opened to start pressurization.
0 indicates pressure sensors 15a to 15c that correspond to continuous pressurization.
The detected air pressure P is taken in, and the corresponding air tube 4 is
If the air pressure in a to 4c exceeds the lower limit above and reaches a constant value (3g
7 cm2>, the output of the control signal is stopped, the operation of the air pump 9 is stopped, and the corresponding solenoid valves 10a to 10c are closed.

In this way, it is determined based on the above conditions whether the upper limit of the dead width ΔP, t+ is exceeded or the lower limit of the dead width AP is exceeded, and when the conditions are met, pressure reduction or pressurization control is performed. , the air pressure in the air tubes 4a to 4C is maintained within a dead width ΔPi set around the set air pressure P0. Of course, control may be performed to return to the set air pressure P0 during the pressure adjustment.

Display element L1 during the control operation of this automatic pressure adjustment
The display of L maintains the display corresponding to the set air pressure P0 and does not change even if the actual air pressure in the air tubes 4a to 4c exceeds or falls below the range to which the set air pressure P0 belongs.

In other words, the upper air pressure appears to be unchanged, so that the user is not confused by the change in display.

By the way, a lower limit value (5g/c@2>) is set for each of the air pressures of the air tubes 4a to 4b, and when the air pressure drops to this lower limit value, the air pressure is controlled in the same manner as the above-mentioned pressurization control. 5 H7es". In other words, even if the dead width ΔPi for the set air pressure P0 of level 1 includes a value below the above lower limit value, if it falls below the lower limit value, the above lower limit value must be maintained. So do it.

In addition, an upper limit is set for the pressurizing operation in the manual automatic pressure adjustment, and when the air pressure reaches 120 g 7 cm, the control unit 20 automatically stops outputting the control signal to the air pump 9 and stops the operation. .

In addition, the time is counted from the start of the pressurization/depressurization operation, and if the operation time continues for a certain period of time (for example, 30 minutes) = 20, the main power is turned off and the solenoid valves 10a to 10c are
The operation of the air pump 9 or the solenoid valve 11 is stopped, and the display element is displayed.

The control unit 2o is configured to send a flicker display signal to the hand-held operation unit 19 to cause it to blink.

Now, after setting the air pressure corresponding to the desired hardness as described above, if the power is cut off, the air tube 4a~
Since the air pressure in air tube 4b is maintained by the closed state of solenoid valves 10a to 10b, when the power is turned on again, the control unit 2o controls the air pressure in air tubes 4a to 4F+ detected by pressure sensors 15a to 15c at this time. The air pressure P, is written in the memory 29 as the set air pressure P0, and thereafter the control state is entered by the above-mentioned automatic pressure adjustment routine.

[Effects of the Invention] In the air mat system configured as described above, when the pressure sensor detects that the air pressure inside the mat body has decreased below a predetermined lower limit value, the air pressure inside the mat body is adjusted to the lower limit value. Since it is equipped with a control means that controls the pressurizing means to pressurize, even if the air pressure inside the mat body falls below the lower limit value, the air pressure inside the mat body is automatically pressurized and maintained to this lower limit value. As a result, the air pressure inside the mat body will not become too low and cause injury, and stable operation can be obtained even when using a pressure sensor that uses next-order delay. Furthermore, even if there are variations in the zero point adjustment of the pressure sensor, there is no problem in the detection operation.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a partially cutaway perspective view of an embodiment of the present invention, Fig. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the mat main body of the above, Fig. 3 is a schematic circuit diagram of the same, and Fig. 4 is a fluid circuit diagram of the same. , Fig. 5 is a conceptual circuit configuration diagram of the control section of the above, Fig. 6 is a flowchart showing the manual operation routine of the above, Fig. 7 is a flowchart of the automatic pressure adjustment routine of the above, and Fig. 8 is a sampling operation of the same as the above. It is a waveform diagram for explanation. 1 is the mat body, 2 is the air pressure control device, 4a to 4c are air tubes, 9 is the air pump, 1.0a to 10c are solenoid valves, 11 is the exhaust solenoid valve, 15a to 15c are the pressure sensors, 19 is the hand operation No. 20 is the control section. Agent Patent Attorney Ishi 1) Voluntary writing of amendments in 7 procedures) June 7, 1990 1990 Patent Application No. 114360 2 Name of the invention Air Mat System 3 Relationship with the case of the person making the amendment Patent applicant residence Address: 1048 Kadoma, Kadoma City, Osaka Prefecture Name (58
3) Matsushita Electric Works Co., Ltd. Representative Toshio Miyoshi 4 Agent postal code 530 Address 1-12-17-5 Umeda, Kita-ku, Osaka City Date of amendment order Voluntary order 6 Number of claims increased by amendment None 7. Drawings subject to correction

Claims (1)

[Claims] (1) A mat main body, a pressurizing means for sending pressurized air into the mat main body, a decompression means for exhausting and reducing the pressure of the air within the mat main body, a pressure sensor that detects the air pressure within the mat main body, and a mat main body. a setting operation means for setting and operating the air pressure inside the mat body, and adjusting the air pressure inside the mat body by controlling the pressurizing means or the pressure reducing means according to the operation by the setting operation means,
After the operation is stopped, the air pressure at the time of the operation stop is stored as the set air pressure, and after this storage, a threshold value based on the set air pressure is compared with the detected air pressure of the pressure sensor, and the pressure increasing means or the pressure reducing means is activated based on the result of this comparison. In an air mat system equipped with a control means that controls and adjusts the air pressure inside the mat body, when the pressure sensor detects that the air pressure inside the mat body has decreased below a predetermined lower limit value, the air pressure inside the mat body reaches the lower limit value. An air mat system characterized by comprising a control means for controlling a pressurizing means so as to pressurize the air pressure.