Program timer

• US 6,658,303 B2
• Filed: 12/15/2000
• Issued: 12/02/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 12/15/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Electric Works Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Asahi Matsushita Electric Works Ltd. (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Hatemata, Takeshi, Yoshimura, Yuichi
• Primary Examiner(s): PATEL, RAMESH B
• Application Number:
  US09/736,144
• Publication Number:
  US 20010014832A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,082 Days
• Field of Search: 700/9, 700/14, 700/15, 700/16, 700/18, 700/23, 700/86, 700/87, 713/400, 713/500, 713/502, 713/600, 713/601
• US Class Current: 700/14
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/23398 Set start time and duration
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/25278 Timer plus microprocessor
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/2642 Domotique, domestic, home control, automation, smart house
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/16 by timing means
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 20/40 Control techniques providing energy savings, e.g. smart controller or presence detection

Abstract

A timer processing section 10 instructs a transmission processing section 11 to control load in accordance with a time schedule stored in a program storage section 12. The transmission processing section 11 is connected to a two-wire signal line and gives a load control instruction to each terminal to which load is connected according to a time-division multiplex transmission system. The time schedule stored in a program storage section 12 is a set of the address related to the load to be controlled and the control contents and the control time of the load. Therefore, when the time set according to the time schedule is reached, the load specified by the address is controlled.

Claims

1. A program timer used with a remote supervisory control system comprising:

a plurality of terminals including unique addresses, the terminals being connected to a signal line, a transmission signal being transferred according to a time-division multiplex transmission system between a transmission unit connected to the signal line and the terminals, and load connected to another terminal can be controlled in response to supervisory input to one of the terminals using the address correspondence;

a program storage section for storing a set of the address related to the load to be controlled and the control contents and the control time of the load as a time schedule;

a setting and operation section for setting the control contents and the control time by address and setting a time schedule in said program storage section;

a clock section for counting the current time, and

a signal processing section, when the control time in each time schedule stored in said program storage section matches the current time counted by said clock section, for functioning as a terminal with the control contents in the time schedule as supervisory input with the address in the time schedule as the address.

2. The program timer as claimed in claim 1, wherein said time schedules corresponding to a plurality of days are stored in said program storage section on a daily basis and wherein a basic time schedule repeatedly used and a special-day time schedule other than the basic time schedule can be set as the time schedules, said program timer further including a special-day specification terminal to which external contact input of no voltage can be connected for specifying which of the basic time schedule and the special-day time schedule is to be used.

3. The program timer as claimed in claim 1, wherein said time schedules corresponding to a plurality of days are stored in said program storage section on a daily basis,

wherein the time schedules sets as a basic time schedule repeatedly used and a special-day time schedule other than the basic time schedule, said signal processing section includes a schedule mode flag for specifying which of the basic time schedule and the special-day time schedule is to be used, and

wherein when the address of a transmission signal transmitted via the signal line matches the address related to the schedule mode flag, said signal processing section switches the schedule mode flag in response to the control contents of the transmission signal.

4. The program timer as claimed in claim 1, wherein time schedules corresponding to a plurality of days are stored in said program storage section on a daily basis,

wherein the time schedules sets as a basic time schedule repeatedly used and a special-day time schedule other than the basic time schedule, and

wherein if a schedule mode flag is set so as to specify the special-day time schedule before the current time counted by said clock section reaches a specific time, said signal processing section automatically switches the schedule mode flag to setting of indicating the basic time schedule at the specific time.

5. The program timer as claimed in claim 1 further comprising:

a timer control stop terminal to which external contact input of no voltage can be connected for selecting load control based on the time schedule or stopping the load control based on the time schedule.

6. The program timer as claimed in claim 1 wherein said signal processing section includes a control mode flag for selecting load control based on the time schedule or stopping the load control based on the time schedule and when the address of a transmission signal transmitted via the signal line matches the address related to the control mode flag, said signal processing section switches the control mode flag in response to the control contents of the transmission signal.

7. The program timer as claimed in claim 1 wherein said signal processing section includes a control mode flag for selecting load control based on the time schedule or stopping the load control based on the time schedule and if the control mode flag is set so as to specify stopping the load control based on the time schedule before the current time counted by said clock section reaches a specific time, said signal processing section automatically switches the control mode flag to setting of specifying the load control based on the time schedule at the specific time.

8. The program timer as claimed in claim 1 wherein when the address of a transmission signal transmitted via the signal line matches the address set as a synchronous address, said signal processing section instructs said clock section to adjust the current time to a stipulated time.

9. The program timer as claimed in claim 1 further comprising:

a program-by-time-zone storage section for storing a set of one operation address by time zone related to a terminal receiving supervisory input, at least one control address by time zone related to the load to be controlled, and a time zone using the control address by time zone as time zone control data,

wherein when the address of a transmission signal transmitted via the signal line matches the operation address by time zone, said signal processing section functions as a terminal with the control contents specified by the supervisory input as supervisor input with the control address by time zone paired with the operation address by time zone as the address in the time zone containing the current time counted by said clock section and if either of the operation address by time zone and the control address by time zone is unset, said signal processing section does not function as a terminal.

10. The program timer as claimed in claim 1, wherein said setting and operation section has a function of setting the number of repetitions and the time interval of placing the load in the same control state as a time schedule.

11. The program timer as claimed in claim 1 further comprising:

a daylight saving time terminal to which external contact input of no voltage can be connected for selecting a mode of advancing the current time counted by said clock section by a given time or a mode of restoring the time to the former time mode.

12. The program timer as claimed in claim 1 further comprising:

a daylight saving time flag for selecting a mode of advancing the current time counted by said clock section by a given time or a mode of restoring the time to the former time mode,

wherein when the address of a transmission signal transmitted via the signal line matches the daylight saving time address related to the daylight saving time flag, said signal processing section switches the daylight saving time flag in response to the control contents of the transmission signal.

13. A program timer unit used with a remote supervisory control system comprising:

an operation terminal and a control terminal each having a unique address are connected to transmission unit via a two-wire signal line, data being transmitted and received with a time-division multiplex transmission signal, the transmission unit sending a transmission signal containing address data to the signal line to access the operation terminal and the control terminal separately, and upon reception of supervisory data from the operation terminal with supervisory input in a signal return period setting in synchronization with the transmission signal, the transmission unit generating control data based on the supervisory input and transmitting the control data to the control terminal having preset address correspondence with the operation terminal generating the supervisory data for controlling load connected to the control terminal;

input means for inputting data containing load control time and control contents;

program creation means for creating a load control program based on the data input through said input means;

storage means for storing the created control program;

clock means for counting the current time;

transmission signal transmission-reception means for transmitting and receiving a transmission signal to and from the transmission unit via the signal line; and

timer control means for generating supervisory data in sequence based on the current time data output from said clock means and the control program read from said storage means and causing said transmission signal transmission-reception means to send the generated supervisory data to the signal line.

14. The program timer unit used with the remote supervisory control system as claimed in claim 13 further comprising:

a cabinet for housing said input means, said program creation means, said storage means, said clock means, said transmission signal transmission-reception means, said timer control means said means, respectively, the cabinet being formed as dimensions corresponding to dimensions of circuit breaker for agreement type wiring for light distribution panelboard.

15. The program timer unit used with the remote supervisory control system as claimed in claim 13, wherein said program creation means creates a weekly program in which the load control time and control contents are set for each day of the week and a special-day program in which the load control time and control contents are set for special date and time.

16. The program timer unit used with the remote supervisory control system as claimed in claim 13, further comprising:

display means for displaying at least items of data that can be input through said input means.

17. The program timer unit used with the remote supervisory control system as claimed in claim 13, wherein data of sunset times and sunrise times for each district is stored in said storage means and

wherein said program creation means reads the data of the sunset times and the sunrise times in the district specified through said input means from said storage means and creates a control program based on the read data.

18. The program timer unit used with the remote supervisory control system as claimed in claim 17, wherein the Japan area is divided into a plurality of districts and data of yearly sunset times and sunrise times in each district is stored in said storage means.

19. The program timer unit used with the remote supervisory control system as claimed in claim 13, further comprising:

synchronous signal input/output means for inputting and outputting a time correction signal from and to the outside at least on the hour,

wherein the current time of said clock means is corrected based on the time correction signal input from the synchronous signal input/output means on the hour.