Radio remote control system

• US 20050253682A1
• Filed: 05/12/2005
• Published: 11/17/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 05/13/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Rinnai Corporation
• Original Assignee: Rinnai Corporation
• Inventors: Kato, Keiji, Adachi, Ikuro
• Granted Patent: US 7,471,186 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/3.700
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/042 using digital processors G05B19/05 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/25289 Energy saving, brown out, standby, sleep, powerdown modus for microcomputer

Abstract

It is an object of the invention to provide a radio remote controller system that, when power saving for a radio remote controller is realized by intermittently setting a data receivable period in the radio remote controller, can easily and flexibly change a length of a period for making it impossible to receive the radio data and reduce power consumption of the radio remote controller. A master set connected to a water heater main body by wire transmits monitor data G(G₁, G₂, G₃) indicating an operation state of the water heater main body, which include transmission time information indicating the next time (t₁₄ at G₁, and t₁₇ at G₂) of transmission of the monitor data G, to a slave set serving as a radio remote controller. The slave set, which has received the monitor data G, comes into a “standby state” (slave set Rx and slave set Tx are OFF), in which power consumption is smaller than “data receivable state” (a slave set Rx is ON) and transmission and reception of radio data are impossible, until the next time of transmission of the monitor data G acquired from the monitor data (T_off1, T_off2, T_off3). When start time (t₁₃, t₁₆) for reception of monitor data has come, the slave set is switched from the “standby state” to the “data receivable state” to receive the monitor data G.

Claims

1. A radio remote control system, comprising:

a controlled apparatus that has first radio communication means; and

a radio remote controller that has second radio communication means, operating means, and display means, and performs data communication by radio with the controlled apparatus to remotely control the controlled apparatus;

the controlled apparatus transmittng monitor data indicating an operation state of the controlled apparatus to the radio remote controller at predetermined timing and, when operation instruction data instructing operation of the controlled apparatus is received from the radio remote controller, operating the controlled apparatus according to the operation instruction data; and

when the monitor data is received, the radio remote controller displaying an operation state of the controlled apparatus corresponding to the monitor data on the display means and, when the operating means is operated, transmitting the operation instruction data corresponding to the operation to the controlled apparatus;

wherein

the monitor data includes transmission start time information indicating next start time of transmission of the monitor data by the controlled apparatus, and

the radio remote controller includes state switching means for, when the monitor data is received, setting the second radio communication means in a standby state, in which power consumption is smaller than a data receivable state and data reception is impossible, until start time of reception of monitor data set near the next start time of transmission of monitor data acquired from the monitor data unless the operating means is operated and, when the start time for reception of monitor data has come, switching the second radio communication means from the standby state to the data receivable state.

2. The radio remote control system according to claim 1, wherein

the state switching means switches the second radio communication means to data transmittable state, in which data transmission is possible, when the operating means is operated in the standby state and switches the second radio communication means to the data receivable state when the transmission of the operation instruction data ends, and

when the operation instruction data is received, the controlled apparatus transmits new monitor data at the time when predetermined processing applied to the operation instruction data ends regardless of the next time of transmission according to transmission time information in the monitor data transmitted last time.