Remote management system

• US 5,859,778 A
• Filed: 05/23/1997
• Issued: 01/12/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 02/28/1994
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sanyo Electric Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Sanyo Electric Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Fukuoka, Ichiro, Kuroda, Kiyomitsu
• Primary Examiner(s): Elmore, Reba I.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Rao, Sheela S.
• Application Number:
  US08/862,863
• Time in Patent Office: 599 Days
• Field of Search: 364/474.11, 364/132, 364/138, 364/140, 364/146, 364/147, 364/479
• US Class Current: 700/169
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 2103/24 Spin speed; Drum movements
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 33/32 Control of operational steps, e.g. optimisation or improvement of operational steps depending on the condition of the laundry
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 34/05 for wireless communication between components, e.g. for remote monitoring or control
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/0421 Multiprocessor system
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/23039 Remote programmer
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/23336 Identification of program, application, device to be controlled
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/24048 Remote test, monitoring, diagnostic
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/24058 Remote testing, monitoring independent from normal control by pc
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/24114 Continue program if crashed microprocessor, program module is not crucial
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/25175 Modem, codec coder decoder
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/2633 Washing, laundry

Abstract

A remote management system wherein a central control apparatus is connected with machines installed in a shop by communication means, so that set values of the operating conditions of each machine set in a microcomputer within the machine can be changed from the central control apparatus and, resetting of the microcomputer and restarting of the machine can be directed from the central control apparatus, thereby eliminating the need for dispatching personnel to the shop and reducing the management cost, while in case of a trouble in the machine, information indicating the occurrence of the trouble and information specifying the location of the trouble are transmitted to the central control apparatus thereby to shorten the time required for restarting the machine by the personnel and improve the management efficiency, and further featuring a controller which periodically collects information related to the operation of the machine from the microcomputer and stores the information in a memory thereof while erasing the collected data already stored in the memory of the microcomputer, thereby allowing a small memory capacity for the microcomputer and suppressing the machine cost.

Claims

1. A remote management system with a plurality of machine control units, each of which respectively stores previously set operational condition data for each operation of a plurality of machines in a write permit memory, and detects a state of each of plural parts of the machines by a plurality of sensors, respectively, thereby to control the operations of the machines based on the operational condition data stored in said memory and the detected values inputted from said sensors, each said machine control unit being connected by communication means with a central control unit to manage the machines by remote control,

said central control unit comprising:

means for inputting at least one updating instruction and value to collectively update the previously set operational condition data for the operations stored in the memory of the machine control units for a specified subset of the machines; and

means for transmitting said at least one inputted updating instruction and value to the machine control unit via said communication means;

each said machine control unit comprising;

means for updating the operational condition data stored in said memory according to the updating data transmitted from the central control unit.

2. The remote management system of claim 1, further comprising a data transmission controller for collecting data related to an operation of a machine from each said machine control unit, for transmitting the collected data to said central control unit, and further for supplying said machine control unit with the data transmitted from said central control unit,

said data transmission controller comprising:

means for collecting the data related to the operation conditions of the machine at regular time intervals;

a memory for storing the data collected by said collecting means;

means for detecting whether data indicting occurrence of a trouble condition is included in the collected data from the machine control unit;

means for transmitting the data indicating the occurrence of the trouble condition and the data related to the trouble condition by calling said central control unit when the data indicating the occurrence of the trouble condition is included in the collected data from the machine control unit;

means for irregularly collecting the data related to the machine operating conditions from said machine control unit irrespective of the regular data collection time from the machine control unit when the transmission demanding instruction is transmitted; and

means for transmitting the irregularly collected data from the machine control unit to the central control unit.

3. The system as set forth in claim 2, wherein said machine control unit comprises:

a memory for storing the data related to the operation of the machine; and

means for erasing the already collected data in said memory after the data transmission controller collects the data.

4. The system as set forth in claim 3, wherein said central control unit comprises means for displaying the data indicating the occurrence of the trouble condition and the data related to the trouble condition.

5. The system as set forth in claim 4, wherein said machine is a laundry machine.

6. The system as set forth in claim 2, wherein said central control unit comprising means for displaying the data indicating the occurrence of the trouble condition and the data related to the trouble.

7. The system as set forth in claim 2, wherein said machine is a laundry machine.

8. The system as set forth in claim 1, wherein said machine is a laundry machine.

9. The system as set forth in claim 1, wherein said specified group of machines is classified by machine type, and said inputting means of the central control unit includes means for further inputting data to specify the machine type of the specified group to be updated.

10. The system as set forth in claim 9, wherein said machine is a laundry machine.

11. The system as set forth in claim 1, wherein said specified group of machines is classified by a site where the machines are installed, and said inputting means of the central control unit includes means for further inputting data to specify the site at which the machines of the specified group to be updated are installed.

22. The system as set forth in claim 11, wherein said machine is a laundry machine.

12. A remote management system with a machine control unit which comprises a microcomputer having an I/O port, and which stores previously set operational condition data for operation of a machine in a write permit memory, and detects a state of each of plural parts of the machine by a plurality of sensors, respectively, thereby to control the operation of the machine based on the operational condition data stored in said memory and the detected values inputted from said sensors, said machine control unit being connected by communication means with a central control unit to manage the machine by remote control,

said central control unit comprising:

means for inputting an instruction to transmit via said communication means an output level of the operational condition data outputted from the machine control unit to each part of the machine and an input level of the detected values inputted from said sensors to the machine control unit;

means for transmitting an instruction to the machine control unit to transmit the input and output levels therefrom;

a memory for storing the input and output levels associated with said microcomputer I/O port when each part of the machine performs normal operation;

means for comparing the input and output levels associated with said microcomputer I/O port of the machine parts normal operation stored in said memory with the input and output levels associated with said microcomputer I/O port which are transmitted from the machine control unit;

means for specifying a machine part with a trouble condition when the comparison result disagrees, based on the different phase portion of the input and output levels from the levels of normal operation; and

means for informing a remote location of the machine part with a trouble condition as specified by said specifying means;

said machine control unit comprising;

means for transmitting the output level of the operational condition data for each part of the machine and the input level of the detected values from said sensors to the central control unit via said communication means.

13. The system as set forth in claim 12, wherein said machine is a laundry machine.

14. A remote management system with a machine control unit which stores previously set operational condition data for operation of a machine in a write permit memory, and detects a state of each of plural parts of the machine by a plurality of sensors, respectively, thereby to control the operation of the machine based on the operational condition data stored in said memory and the detected values inputted from said sensors, but stops the operation of the machine upon detecting occurrence of a trouble condition according to the values detected by said sensors, and calls to inform a central control unit for managing the machine by remote control of the occurrence of the trouble condition, said central control unit being connected by communication means with the machine control unit,

said machine control unit comprising:

a memory for storing data which indicates occurrence of a trouble condition; and

means for storing the data which indicates the occurrence of the trouble condition in said memory when detecting the occurrence of the trouble condition;

said central control unit comprising;

means for inputting an instruction to the machine control unit to transmit therefrom the data related to the trouble condition that has occurred, and for inputting an instruction to erase the data which indicates the occurrence of the trouble condition stored in said memory; and

means for transmitting, to the machine control unit, the transmission instruction of the data related to the trouble condition, and erasing instruction of the trouble condition data;

a memory for storing the type of trouble condition for which the operation of the machine is allowed to be restarted immediately even when said machine control unit detects the occurrence of the trouble condition based on the detected value of the sensors;

means for comparing the type of trouble condition for which the erasing instruction is inputted from said inputting means with the type of trouble condition stored in said memory;

means for immediately transmitting said erasing instruction to the machine control unit when the comparison result agrees;

means for demanding outward to confirm whether to transmit said erasing instruction to the machine control unit when the comparison result disagrees;

means for inputting an instruction to confirm the transmission of said erasing instruction to the machine control unit when said demanding means demands to confirm whether to transmit said erasing instruction to the machine control unit; and

means for transmitting said erasing instruction to the machine control unit on receipt of said confirming instruction by said inputting means,

said machine control unit, further comprising;

means for collecting and transmitting the data related to the trouble condition that has occurred to the central control unit responsive to the transmission instruction transmitted from the central control unit; and

means for erasing the data which indicates the trouble condition occurrence stored in said memory responsive to the erasing instruction transmitted from the central control unit,

wherein said memory of the machine control unit is a memory for storing the data which indicates the occurrence of the trouble condition by the type of trouble, said storing means of the machine control unit includes means for storing the data which indicates the occurrence of the trouble condition and discriminating the type of the trouble upon the occurrence of the trouble condition being detected in an area assigned to the trouble type discriminated, said transmitting means of the machine control unit includes means for collecting and transmitting the type of the trouble condition occurring except for data related to the occurrence of a trouble condition responsive to the transmission instruction of the trouble condition related data transmitted from the central control unit, and said erasing means for the machine control unit includes means for erasing the trouble condition of the type corresponding to the erasing instruction.

15. The system as set forth in claim 14, wherein said machine control unit further comprises means for restarting the operation of the machine responsive to the erasing of the data which indicates the occurrence of the trouble condition.

16. The system as set forth in claim 15, wherein said central control unit further comprising means for displaying the trouble condition related data transmitted from the machine control unit.

17. The system as set forth in claim 16, wherein said means for storing or erasing said data which indicates the occurrence of the trouble condition comprises means for setting or resetting a flag.

18. The system as set forth in claim 17, wherein said machine is a laundry machine.

19. The system as set forth in claim 14, wherein said central control unit further comprises means for displaying the trouble condition related data transmitted from the machine control unit.

20. The system as set forth in claim 14, wherein said means for storing or erasing said data which indicates the occurrence of the trouble condition includes means for setting or resetting a flag.

21. The system as set forth in claim 14, wherein said machine is a laundry machine.