Ventilation device

• US 8,669,730 B2
• Filed: 08/05/2010
• Issued: 03/11/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 02/17/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Nakajima, Tsuraki, Ichikawa, Tooru
• Primary Examiner(s): Ip, Paul
• Application Number:
  US13/522,763
• Publication Number:
  US 20120286715A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,314 Days
• Field of Search: 318/400.1, 318/400.17, 318/400.21, 318/400.38, 318/450
• US Class Current: 318/450
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/75 for maintaining constant air flow rate or air velocity
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/77 by controlling the speed of ventilators
• CPC Class Codes: H02P 7/2913 whereby the speed is regulated by measuring the motor speed and comparing it with a given physical value
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 30/70 Efficient control or regulation technologies, e.g. for control of refrigerant flow, motor or heating

Abstract

A ventilating system that can make an air flow rate variable includes a DC motor that drives blades and a control circuit that controls the DC motor. The control circuit includes a first current detecting unit that detects a current flowing in the DC motor, a rotating speed detecting unit that detects a rotating speed of the DC motor, and a control unit that controls the DC motor based on a rotating speed detected by the rotating speed detecting unit and a current detected by the first current detecting unit. The current detecting unit includes a plurality of low-resistance resistors, detects a motor current by using divided voltages of the low-resistance resistors, and calculates a ventilation air flow rate based on the rotating speed detected by the rotating speed detecting unit and the current detected by the first current detecting unit.

Claims

1. A ventilating system that can make an air flow rate variable, comprising:

a DC motor that drives blades in a main body; and

a control drive IC that is built in the DC motor and controls the DC motor, wherein

a control circuit in the main body includes a first current detecting unit that detects a current flowing in the DC motor, a second current detecting unit that detects a motor drive current that flows in the control drive IC and drives the DC motor, a rotating speed detecting unit that detects a rotating speed of the DC motor, and a control unit that controls the DC motor based on the rotating speed detected by the rotating speed detecting unit, the current detected by the first current detecting unit and the current detected by the second current detecting unit, and

the first current detecting unit includes a plurality of low-resistance resistors and detects the current flowing in the DC motor by switching the low-resistance resistors, and calculates a ventilation air flow rate from the rotating speed detected by the rotating speed detecting unit and a current value calculated by subtracting the current detected by the second current detecting unit from the current detected by the first current detecting unit.

2. The ventilating system according to claim 1, comprising

a low-resistance resistor switching unit that switches connection/disconnection of the plurality of low-resistance resistors, wherein

the control unit switches the low-resistance resistor switching unit based on the current detected by the first current detecting unit.

3. The ventilating system according to claim 2, comprising

a current value calculating unit that converts current detected values of the first current detecting unit that are discontinuous by switching the resistance of the first current detecting unit by the low-resistance resistor switching unit into continuous values based on a ratio of the resistances.

4. The ventilating system according to claim 3, comprising:

a memory unit that stores a voltage value generated across both ends of the low-resistance resistor in a state in which a specific current value flows in the low-resistance resistor in a nonvolatile memory device as a memory value in association with the specific current value; and

a current value calculating unit that compares a voltage value generated across both the ends of the low-resistance resistor in an operation state of the DC motor with the memory value stored in the memory unit to calculate the current value.

5. The ventilating system according to claim 2, wherein

the low-resistance resistor switching unit makes current threshold values to switch resistances of the first current detecting unit differential.

6. The ventilating system according to claim 2, comprising

a designation voltage varying unit that varies a motor designation voltage to the DC motor when the resistances of the first current detecting unit are switched by the low-resistance resistor switching unit.

7. The ventilating system according to claim 2, wherein

all the switching units of the low-resistance resistor switching unit are turned off in a motor-lock state.

8. The ventilating system according to claim 1, comprising:

an amplifier that amplifies a ground potential of the DC motor; and

a gain changing unit that changes a gain of the amplifier, wherein

the control unit switches the gain changing unit based on the current detected by the first current detecting unit.

9. The ventilating system according to claim 1, comprising

a voltage detecting unit that detects a voltage applied to a motor, wherein

the ventilation air flow rate is calculated based on the rotating speed, the current, and the voltage.

10. The ventilating system according to claim 9, comprising

a current detecting unit that detects a current flowing in a winding of the DC motor.

11. The ventilating system according to claim 1, comprising

a differential pressure detecting unit, wherein

the ventilation air flow rate is determined based on a detected value of the differential pressure detecting unit when the current value detected by the first current detecting unit is a predetermined value or less.

12. The ventilating system according to claim 11, comprising

a differential pressure adjusting unit that voltage-corrects an output voltage obtained depending on an attaching state of the differential pressure detecting unit.

13. The ventilating system according to claim 1, wherein

a temperature detecting unit is arranged in the control circuit.

14. The ventilating system according to claim 1, wherein

a temperature detecting unit is arranged in the DC motor.

15. The ventilating system according to claim 14, comprising

a hall element temperature correcting unit that corrects temperature characteristics of a hall element that measures a temperature in the DC motor and corrects temperature characteristics of the hall element built in the motor.

16. The ventilating system according to claim 1, comprising

a humidity measuring unit that measures an ambient humidity of the ventilating system.

17. The ventilating system according to claim 1, wherein

a memory unit that stores a turning-on/off state of a power supply and a secondary battery that supplies a power to the control circuit when the power supply is turned off are arranged in the control circuit, and the control unit always monitors the turning-on/off state of the power supply.