JPS6155302B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides a multi-system, such as an air conditioner, comprising an outdoor unit (central device) including a central control section and a plurality of indoor units (terminal devices) having terminal control sections connected to the outdoor unit (central device). In a data transmission system that blocks digital data and transmits it between each terminal control unit and a central control unit, all terminals transmit and receive data simultaneously in synchronization with clock pulses sent from the central control unit. , recognizes the status of each terminal at the same time, making it easier to control controlled objects such as compressors and valves connected to the central control unit in a way that matches the overall status, and also prevents malfunctions and de-energization of each control unit. The purpose of this invention is to provide a data transmission method for system equipment that can easily detect.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail using an example in which the present invention is applied to a home multi-air conditioner having one outdoor unit, three indoor units, and another control panel.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of the above system.

1 is a central control section installed in the outdoor unit (central equipment), which in addition to the transmission lines shown in the figure, controls the compressor, blower, and valves that control the refrigerant leading to each indoor unit (terminal equipment) in each room. The main purpose is to control the air conditioning of each indoor unit according to the status of the unit, and for this purpose, various data such as operating switches and room temperature are exchanged between each indoor unit. 2, 3, and 4 are indoor units connected to outdoor units, respectively.
Each is provided with a terminal control section for exchanging data with the central control section and for controlling equipment provided in the indoor unit, such as a blower fan and various displays.

Reference numeral 5 denotes a central control panel connected to the central control unit, which displays the operating status of each room, and also includes a terminal control unit that communicates data with the central control unit 1. Each indoor unit 2,
3 and 4 and the outdoor unit, there are connections necessary for the air conditioner, such as refrigerant piping, in addition to the illustrated transmission lines, but these will not be explained here.

Now, the transmission line constituting the transmission system according to the present invention consists of three lines between the central control unit and one terminal: a data line consisting of a transmission line, a reception line, and a synchronization line. Of course, a common ground line is also required, but this is not included for simplicity.

Now, in FIG. 1, the transmission lines between the central control section 1 and the terminal control sections of one indoor unit 2 are, considering the central control section 1 as the center, the transmission line SL1 connected to the output end S1, This is connected to the input terminal of the terminal control unit, and from the perspective of the terminal control unit it becomes a receiving line, but to avoid confusion, from now on all lines are connected to the central control unit 1.
Look at it as the main subject.

Receiving line connected to input terminal R1 of central control unit 1
Three synchronization lines RL1 and CKL connected to the output end S1 of the central control unit 1 are connected. Then, in synchronization with the pulse of the output terminal CLK, the central control unit 1
At the same time, the data to be transmitted is outputted from the output terminal S1 and read into the terminal control section, and at the same time, the data is outputted from the terminal control section and inputted to the input terminal R1 of the central control section 1.

Similarly, the terminal control section of the indoor unit 3 and the central control section 1 are connected to another transmission line SL2 and reception line RL2, which are independent of the terminal control section 1, and in addition to this, a synchronization line common to the entire unit is connected. It is connected. The terminal control sections and central control section 1 of the other indoor units 4 and the central control panel 5 are connected to independent transmission lines.
SL3, SL4 and reception lines RL3, RL4 are connected, and CKL is connected as a common synchronization line.

Now, in order to realize the data transmission system according to the present invention, a logic judgment section is required to create the transmission data and analyze the reception data, and at the same time, a timer and the like to measure the interruption time of the clock pulse are required. In addition, although not shown in the drawings, as mentioned above, considerable logical judgment and calculation functions are required to control various devices such as the compressor and the blower fan. Considering these points, it is preferable to use a so-called microcomputer for each control section. A microcomputer is a computer that inputs data, performs calculations, and outputs data according to predetermined control procedures.
FIG. 2 shows a block diagram of a one-chip microcomputer, which is an integrated circuit element that can be turned on and off, and also has a storage section for storing the aforementioned control procedure integrated into one integrated circuit element.
This is a microcomputer suitable for implementing the present invention, and the ROM is a storage unit that stores predetermined control procedures, so-called programs. The instruction analysis section analyzes the code stored in the ROM, the RAM is a temporary data storage section, X and Y are registers, ACC is a calculation register, ALU is a logic operation unit, and output through the output buffer. Ends S1, S2...
There is a CLK, and there is also an input end connected to the input buffer.

The OSC is an oscillator that generates the operating timing for the entire microcomputer, and the control section controls all of these. Furthermore, the timer counts the oscillations from the OSC and sets TF when it reaches a predetermined value, and by using this timer, it is possible to measure a predetermined time. Also, the shift register synchronizes with the pulse that enters the input terminal CLKK,
Outputs the data in the shift register to SO and reads it into the shift register from the input terminal SI.
Further, the contents in this shift register can be taken into the calculation register ACC by an appropriate command, stored in the storage RAM, or can be subjected to logical judgment and calculation. In addition, the shift counter is activated when the pulse input to the input terminal CLKK reaches a predetermined value.
Set SF to indicate that the shift register is full of data.

When a microcomputer as described above is used as the central control unit 1 of the present invention, the transmission lines SL1, SL2...SL4 to each terminal control unit are connected to the output terminals S1, S2,...S4 via appropriate buffers. and receive lines RL1, RL2... from each terminal control unit.
... are input terminals R1 and R2 through appropriate buffers.
Connect to... It is also preferable to connect the synchronizing line CKL to the output terminal CLK via a suitable buffer.

When used as a terminal control section, the transmission line SL from the central control section 1 becomes an input in the terminal control section, so it is connected to the input terminal SI of the shift register, and the reception line RL of the central control section 1 is connected to the input terminal SI of the shift register. Since it is the output of the terminal control section, connect it to the output terminal SO of the shift register. It is very convenient to connect the synchronizing line CKL to CLKK, which is the shift clock input of the shift register. In other words, data is output from the shift register in synchronization with the pulse of the data clock line CKL, and is read from the input terminal SI at the same time. When the shift register is full, SF becomes 1, so at this time the data in the shift register is All you have to do is make a judgment and set new transmission data in the shift register.

Now, FIG. 3 shows a time sequence in the central control unit for data transmission according to the present invention. The figure only shows the interaction with the terminal control section of the indoor unit 1. S1 is a signal on the transmission line SL1, R1 is a signal on the reception line RL1, and CLK is a signal on the synchronization line CKL.

The central control unit 1 first sends the transmission data to the output terminal S1.
After setting the output terminal CLK to 1, the data is read into the terminal control section of the indoor unit 1 and simultaneously sent to the receiving line RL1. After setting the synchronization line CKL to φ, continue this received data,
Thereafter, this process is repeated at a substantially constant period t _a .
When a predetermined number of data transmissions are completed, one block is completed and the clock pulse is kept at φ for a starting time t _b before starting transmission of the next one block. In this way, the period t _a and the start time t _b can be easily measured by using the built-in timer. After the start time tb has elapsed, transfer of the next block is started in the same way.

Now, although the figure shows interaction with one terminal control unit, in reality, data from other terminals is also sent and received at the same time.

The problem here is that the central equipment and terminal equipment have separate power switches and outlets. Therefore, the central device needs to know whether each terminal device is in a controllable state or not. Depending on the situation, it is necessary to control the compressor and valves of the outdoor unit. Conversely, from the perspective of the indoor unit operator,
It is necessary to know whether the outdoor unit is malfunctioning or not.

Therefore, in the present invention, it is determined whether the received data is correct. There are various methods for data error detection, but in Figure 3, 1
Detection can be performed by setting the first data of the block to be 1 and the last data to be φ.

That is, by checking the first and last bits after receiving one block of data, it is possible to detect errors in the data of that block. When this block error continues, for example, for 16 blocks in a row, it can be determined that the other party's control unit is malfunctioning or is not energized.

Furthermore, if a similar test is performed in the terminal control unit, it can be determined that the other party (that is, the central control unit) is malfunctioning. In addition, if the terminal control section detects that the clock pulse is paused for a certain value longer than time _tb , it can be determined that the central control section is out of order or is not energized.

In other words, in the present invention, failure or de-energization is determined by: (1) In the central control unit 1, the block of error continues for a predetermined number of times or more; (2) In the terminal control unit, a clock pulse is not sent for a predetermined period of time or more; Continued.

Alternatively, the central control unit determines that there is a failure or a non-energization when the error block continues for a predetermined number of times or more.

Therefore, according to the present invention, the central control unit can detect a malfunctioning or de-energized terminal while sending out clock pulses to all the terminal control units at the same time, so that a corresponding malfunction can be detected. It can display things and control valves, etc. Or, conversely, if incorrect information (for example, all 1s) is sent to the required terminal, the corresponding terminal control unit can determine that the central control unit has failed and display the message, while also informing the remaining terminals. You can send and receive data using This is effective when the entire system is stopped, such as when the power to the central control panel shown in FIG. 1 is not turned on. At this time, if normal data is communicated to the central control panel 5 while sending all 1's to the transmission data to the indoor units 2, 3, and 4 as described above, the terminals of the indoor units 2, 3, and 4 will be sent. Centralized control panel 5 while displaying that it is in a failure state
Energization can be monitored.

FIG. 4 shows the transmission processing procedure in the terminal control section. A is the starting point of the transmission control section. In B, it is determined whether the SF, that is, the shift register, is full, that is, it is checked whether the clock pulse has come and data has been sent and received.If SF = 1, data has been sent and received, so in B, the data is stored in an appropriate RAM. Then, the next sending data is set in the shift register. At step 1, a clock counter is set to φ for counting the number of consecutive times the clock pulse has been paused for a time _tc . Then reset the timer and check for errors in the data.
If it is correct, in wo, set the error counter that counts the number of consecutive errors to φ and return to the beginning. If there is an error, add 1 to the error counter, and if this value reaches 16 times or more in wa, it means that the error has occurred 16 times in a row, so it is determined that there is a failure and the process goes to ka.

Also, when the clock pulse does not come, it is determined whether the timer has elapsed at t _c or not, and when it goes to step 2, since t _c has elapsed (that is, the timer is reset when the clock pulse comes),
When the timer reaches _tc , it means that the clock pulse will not come for _tc ), and the start of a new block is expected, so the data at the beginning of the block is set in the shift register, and the data at the beginning of the next block is set. Prepare. At the same time, at E, 1 is added to the clock counter to count that the clock has been interrupted for _tc . This counter is set to φ when the clock arrives, so when this clock counter reaches 16, it means that the clock has stopped for t _c × 16, and here, t
Since it is set as _b < 16×t _c , it is determined that there is a failure by clock detection in W.

In this way, the terminal control section consists of a transmitting/receiving section consisting of a shift register, an error detection section mainly consisting of N, L, and W in Fig. 4, and an error detection section mainly consisting of H, C, and C. It consists of a clock halt detection section and a terminal error detection section consisting of a clock halt detection section and a terminal error detection section.

According to the present invention, the following effects can be obtained.

(1) By measuring the pause time of the clock pulse, it is possible to determine whether there is a failure in the central control unit and to display this information for the user to understand.

(2) Since failures are determined by detecting data errors, it is possible to communicate with only the necessary terminals while sending clock pulses to all terminals.

(3) Since the central control unit communicates with all terminals at the same time, information and responses from the entire system are quick.

(4) Since the start and end of a data block can be recognized by the pause time of the clock pulse, no special code is required.

(5) This can be achieved very easily using a microcomputer.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a system diagram of a household air conditioner implementing the system equipment data transmission method of the present invention, and Fig. 2 is a configuration diagram of an example of a microcomputer suitable for configuring a control unit implementing the contents of the present invention. 3 is a time chart showing an example of the data transmission method of the present invention, and FIG. 4 is a flow chart of the control procedure in the terminal control section of the data transmission method of the present invention. 1... Central control unit, 2, 3, 4... Terminal equipment having a terminal control unit, 5... Terminal equipment (central control panel), CKL... Synchronization line, SL1, SL2, SL3, SL
4...Transmission line, RL1, RL2, RL3, RL4...
receiving line.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1 Central equipment and central control unit that controls it;
A plurality of terminal devices coupled to the central device, a terminal control section for controlling each terminal device, and a terminal control section provided for transmitting and receiving digital data between the terminal control section and the central control section. A synchronization line is commonly connected to the plurality of terminal control units and the central control unit in order to synchronize the data line and the data line, and the central control unit a clock sending unit that simultaneously sends clock pulses to all terminal control units at intervals shorter than a predetermined time;
A data transmitting/receiving unit sends and receives block data consisting of a predetermined number of data to and from each terminal control unit, and determines whether or not there is an error in the received block data according to a predetermined procedure. A central unit that counts the number of consecutive errors, and when the counted value exceeds a predetermined value, determines that the corresponding terminal control unit is malfunctioning or is not energized, and outputs a predetermined signal. In addition to having an error detection section, the terminal control section includes a transmitting/receiving section that transmits and receives data in synchronization with the clock pulse, and a transmitting/receiving section that determines whether or not there is an error in the received block data according to a predetermined procedure. an error counter that counts the number of consecutive errors and outputs a "continuous error signal" when the counted value exceeds a predetermined value, and counts the pause time of the clock pulse;
a clock halt detection section that outputs a "pause signal" when the pause time exceeds a predetermined time; A data transmission system for system equipment, characterized in that the central control unit includes a terminal error detection unit that determines that the central control unit is out of order or is not energized and outputs a predetermined signal.