Ventilation apparatus and method for filter dirt detection

• US 10,343,097 B2
• Filed: 08/13/2015
• Issued: 07/09/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 08/15/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Delta Electronics Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Delta Electronics Incorporated
• Inventors: Hung, Chen-Yu, Hsieh, Yuan-Ping, Chan, Chao-Hsien, Shih, Tung-Hung, Chang, Chih-Hsiang
• Primary Examiner(s): Smith, Duane
• Assistant Examiner(s): Anbacht, Brit E.
• Application Number:
  US14/825,885
• Publication Number:
  US 20160045854A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,426 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: B01D 46/0086 Filter condition indicators
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/39 Monitoring filter performance
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/52 Indication arrangements, e.g. displays
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/58 using Internet communication
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/62 characterised by the type of control or by internal processing, e.g. using fuzzy logic, adaptive control or estimation of values
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/77 by controlling the speed of ventilators
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/79 for controlling the direction of the supplied air
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 2110/40 Pressure, e.g. wind pressure
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 2120/10 Occupancy
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 8/10 by separation, e.g. by filtering
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/042 using digital processors G05B19/05 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/0428 Safety, monitoring G05B19/0423 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/048 Monitoring; Safety
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/2614 HVAC, heating, ventillation, climate control
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 23/1919 characterised by the type of controller
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 23/1928 sensing the temperature of one space
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/24 for communication between two or more posts wireless communication networks H04W
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2827 Reporting to a device within the home network; wherein the reception of the information reported automatically triggers the execution of a home appliance functionality
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 90/84 Greenhouse gas [GHG] management systems

Abstract

A ventilation apparatus includes a main body, an air entry and an air exit respectively arranged on two sides of the main body, a filter arranged behind the air entry, and a pressure sensor module located between the filter and the air exit, which senses pressure caused by air flowing inside the main body through the air entry and the filter. The pressure sensor module firstly senses pressure related data when the apparatus begins to start for initial data, and senses pressure related data continuously after the apparatus starts for working data, and transmits these data externally. An analysis monitor device computes a reference pressure offset value and a working pressure offset value according to the initial data and the working data, and compares the two pressure offset values for determining whether the filter needs to be replaced.

Claims

1. A ventilation apparatus with filter dirt detection, comprising:

a main body comprising an air entry and an air exit at two sides of the main body respectively;

a filter behind the air entry for filtering air flowing into the main body via the air entry and the filter;

a fan;

a motor connected to the fan, the motor being configured to operate under different motor rotation speeds such that the fan is caused to rotate;

a motor sensor module connected to the motor, the motor sensor module being configured to sense a current motor rotation speed of the motor and to generate corresponding rotation speed data;

a pressure sensor module between the filter and the air exit, the pressure sensor module being configured to;

sense a static pressure value of the main body before enabling the ventilation apparatus;

sense multiple initial pressure values of the main body respectively corresponding to each of the motor rotation speeds when the ventilation apparatus is just enabled; and

continuously sense a working pressure value of the main body after the ventilation apparatus is enabled; and

an analysis monitor device configured to;

wirelessly receive the static pressure value, the multiple initial pressure values, the working pressure value and the rotation speed data;

calculate multiple reference pressure offset values, based on the static pressure value and the multiple initial pressure values, and respectively corresponding to each of the motor rotation speeds;

calculate a working pressure offset value based on the static pressure and the working pressure;

identify a predetermined pressure offset range based on the rotation speed data;

identify a corresponding one of the multiple reference pressure offset values based on the rotation speed data;

calculate an operating status offset value between the corresponding one of the multiple reference pressure offset values and the working pressure offset value; and

generate a warning message related to the filter if the operating status offset value is within the predetermined pressure offset range.

2. The ventilation apparatus of claim 1, wherein the pressure sensor module comprises a pressure sensor unit and a wireless transmission unit connected to the pressure sensor unit, the pressure sensor unit is configured to detect the static pressure value, the initial pressure value and the working pressure value, the wireless transmission unit is configured to transmit the static pressure value, the initial pressure value and the working pressure value to the analysis monitor device.

3. The ventilation apparatus of claim 2, wherein the wireless transmission unit is a Wireless Fidelity (Wi-Fi) transmission unit, a Radio Frequency (RF) transmission unit, or a Near Field Communication (NFC) transmission unit.

4. The ventilation apparatus of claim 2, wherein the wireless transmission unit is a Bluetooth low energy (BLE) transmission unit.

5. A ventilation apparatus with filter dirt detection, comprising:

a main body with an air entry and an air exit at two sides of the main body respectively;

a filter behind the air entry for filtering air flowing into the main body from the air entry and the filter;

a fan;

a motor connected to the fan, the motor being configured to operate under different motor rotation speeds such that the fan is caused to rotate;

a motor sensor module connected to the motor, the motor sensor being configured to sense a current motor rotation speed of the motor and to generate corresponding rotation speed data; and

a pressure sensor module between the filter and the air exit, the pressure sensor module being configured to;

sense a static pressure value of the main body before the ventilation apparatus is enabled;

sense multiple initial pressure values of the main body respectively corresponding to each of the motor rotation speeds when the ventilation apparatus is just enabled; and

continuously sense a working pressure value of the main body after the ventilation apparatus is enabled; and

an analysis monitor device wirelessly connected to the pressure sensor module, the analysis monitor device being configured to;

receive the static pressure value, the multiple initial pressure values, the working pressure value and the rotation speed data;

calculate multiple reference pressure offset values respectively corresponding to each of the motor rotation speeds according to the static pressure value and the multiple initial pressure values;

calculate a working pressure offset value according to the static pressure value and the working pressure value;

obtain a corresponding one of the multiple reference pressure offset values and a corresponding predetermined pressure offset range according to the rotation speed data; and

issue a warning message related to the filter based on a determination that an offset value between the obtained corresponding reference pressure offset value and the working pressure offset value falls within the corresponding predetermined pressure offset range.

6. The ventilation apparatus of claim 5, wherein the pressure sensor module comprises a pressure sensor unit and a wireless transmission unit connected to the pressure sensor unit, the pressure sensor unit is configured to detect the static pressure value, the initial pressure value and the working pressure value, and the wireless transmission unit is configured to transmit the static pressure value, the initial pressure value and the working pressure value to the analysis monitor device.

7. The ventilation apparatus of claim 6, wherein the wireless transmission unit is a Wi-Fi transmission unit, a RF transmission unit or a NFC transmission unit, and the analysis monitor device is a smart mobile device, a central server or a cloud server supporting Wi-Fi transmission, RF transmission or NFC transmission.

8. The ventilation apparatus of claim 6, wherein the wireless transmission unit is a BLE transmission unit, the analysis monitor device is a smart mobile device or a central server supporting BLE transmission.

9. A method for filter dirt detection method for a ventilation apparatus, the ventilation apparatus comprising a main body, an air entry and an air exit disposed at two sides of the main body respectively, a filter disposed behind the air entry, a pressure sensor module disposed between the filter and the air exit, a fan, a motor sensor module connected to the motor for sensing current motor rotation speed of the motor and generating corresponding rotation speed data, and an analysis monitor device wirelessly connected to the pressure sensor module, the filter dirt detection method comprising:

a) sensing pressure related data in the main body as multiple initial data when the ventilation apparatus just being enabled, comprising;

a1) sensing a static pressure value in the main body before the ventilation apparatus being enabled; and

a2) controlling the motor to operate under different motor rotation speeds and controlling the pressure sensor module to sense multiple initial pressures values of the main body respectively corresponding to each of the motor rotation speeds when the ventilation apparatus just being enabled, wherein the multiple initial data respectively comprise the static pressure value and one of the multiple initial pressure values;

b) wirelessly transmitting the multiple initial data to the analysis monitor device;

c) the analysis monitor device respectively calculating multiple reference pressure offset values respectively corresponding to each of the motor rotation speeds according to the multiple initial data after the step b);

d) the pressure sensor module continuously sensing pressure related data in the main body as working data after the ventilation apparatus is enabled;

e) wirelessly transmitting the working data to the analysis monitor device;

f) the analysis monitor device calculating a working pressure offset value according to the working data after the step e);

g) obtaining a corresponding one of the multiple reference pressure offset values and a corresponding predetermined pressure offset range according to the rotation speed data; and

h) the analysis monitor device determining whether to issue a warning message relate to the filter according to whether an offset value between the obtained corresponding reference pressure offset value and the working pressure offset value falls within the predetermined pressure offset range.

10. The filter dirt detection method of claim 9, wherein the step d) is continuously sensing a working pressure value in the main body after the ventilation apparatus is started, and the step f) is calculating the working pressure offset value according to the static pressure value and the working pressure value.

11. The filter dirt detection method of claim 10, wherein the pressure sensor module and the motor sensor module connect to the analysis monitor device via BLE transmission respectively.