Air conditioner

• US 9,342,081 B2
• Filed: 01/17/2012
• Issued: 05/17/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 01/20/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fujitsu General Company Limited (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Fujitsu General Company Limited (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Kawai, Tomofumi
• Primary Examiner(s): Bahta, Kidest
• Application Number:
  US13/980,867
• Publication Number:
  US 20130297081A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,582 Days
• Field of Search: 700/286, 700/276, 621/25, 702/183
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/30 for purposes related to the operation of the system, e.g. for safety or monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/32 Responding to malfunctions or emergencies
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/46 Improving electric energy efficiency or saving
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/56 Remote control
• 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: G05D 23/19 characterised by the use of electric means G05D23/1393 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 17/02 using a radio link

Abstract

An air conditioner includes a remote controller that performs bidirectional communication using radio waves with an air-conditioner main body. The air-conditioner main body includes a main-body receiver that receives a control signal from the remote controller and a main-body transmitter that transmits operating information to the remote controller. The remote controller includes a remote-control transmitter that transmits a control signal to the main-body receiver, a remote-control receiver that receives the operating information from the main-body transmitter, a display unit that displays the operating information, a display controller that controls the display unit. The display controller displays, on the display unit, the operating information when the display controller receives the operating information from the main-body transmitter, and an indication of communication error when the display controller failes to receive the operating information, when communication between the remote controller and the air-conditioner main body is not established.

Claims

1. An air conditioner comprising:

an air-conditioner main body; and

a remote controller configured to perform bidirectional communication using radio waves and to control operation of the air-conditioner main body, wherein

the air-conditioner main body includes;

a main-body receiver that receives a control signal to control operation from the remote controller, and

a main-body transmitter that transmits operating information of the air-conditioner main body to the remote controller, and

the remote controller includes;

a remote-control transmitter that transmits the control signal of operation control to the air-conditioner main body,

a remote-control receiver that receives the operating information transmitted from the air-conditioner main body,

a display unit that displays control content of the operation control or the operating information,

a display controller that controls display content of the display unit, and

a reception-time limiting unit that sets the remote-control receiver in a reception standby state when the remote-control transmitter transmits the control signal and that cancels the reception standby state in a predetermined length of time, and

the display controller displays the operating information on the display unit when the display controller has received the operating information from the main-body transmitter, and displays an error indication of communication being not available on the display unit when the display controller has failed to receive the operating information, when communication between the remote controller and the air-conditioner main body is not established during the reception standby state.

2. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the remote controller includes, in place of the reception-time limiting unit, a power-saving standby unit that sets the remote-control receiver in a reception standby state when a request signal that requests operating information is transmitted from the remote controller to the air-conditioner main body at a predetermined time interval, and that cancels the reception standby state in a predetermined length of time.

3. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the display controller displays on the display unit, in place of the error indication, an indication of communication being successful when communication between the remote controller and the air-conditioner main body is successful during the reception standby state.

4. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the display controller continues the display even when the remote controller is in the reception standby state.

5. The air conditioner according to claim 2, wherein the display controller displays operating information at a point of time of transmitting the request signal when the operating information is not acquired.

6. The air conditioner according to claim 2, wherein the display controller displays control content at a point of time of transmitting the request signal when the operating information is not acquired.