ELECTRICAL EQUIPMENT AND ELECTRIC POWER CONTROL SYSTEM

• US 20150073614A1
• Filed: 09/05/2014
• Published: 03/12/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 09/11/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Inventors: YOSHIDA, Masaaki, TAKAI, Masami
• Granted Patent: US 9,780,589 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 700/295
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 15/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2310/14 The load or loads being home appliances
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 3/14 by switching loads on to, or off from, network, e.g. progressively balanced loading
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0068 Battery or charger load switching, e.g. concurrent charging and load supply H02J7/0013 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 9/005 using a power saving mode for copiers G03G15/5004
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 70/30 Systems integrating technologies related to power network operation and communication or information technologies for improving the carbon footprint of the management of residential or tertiary loads, i.e. smart grids as climate change mitigation technology in the buildings sector, including also the last stages of power distribution and the control, monitoring or operating management systems at local level
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 70/3225 Demand response systems, e.g. load shedding, peak shaving
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 20/20 End-user application control systems
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 20/222 Demand response systems, e.g. load shedding, peak shaving
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 20/242 Home appliances

Abstract

An electrical equipment is supplied with electric power from one of an electric power supply system and a secondary battery. The electrical equipment includes a switch circuit and a module. The switching circuit switches a power supply source for supplying electric power to the electrical equipment between the electric power supply system and the secondary battery. The module includes a processor to execute a program to perform a controlling process including a process of controlling the switch circuit to selectively connect the electrical equipment to one of the electric power supply system and the secondary battery according to a control signal supplied from an external device.

Claims

1. An electrical equipment configured to be supplied with electric power from one of an electric power supply system and a secondary battery, the electrical equipment comprising:

a switch circuit that switches a power supply source for supplying electric power to the electrical equipment between the electric power supply system and the secondary battery; and

a module including a controller to control the switch circuit to selectively connect the electrical equipment to one of the electric power supply system and the secondary battery according to a control signal supplied from an external device.

2. The electrical equipment as claimed in claim 1, wherein the module further includes:

an electric power sensor that detects electric power and outputs detection data; and

a communication interface that transmits the detection data output from the electric power sensor to an external control device and receives information regarding the controlling process from the external control device.

3. The electrical equipment as claimed in claim 2, further including a plurality of receptacles each of which is connectable to a power supply plug of an electric device so that the electrical equipment serves as a power strip.

4. The electrical equipment as claimed in claim 3, wherein each of the receptacles is provided with an operating part that is operated by a user to input priority information to be set to the electric device connected to the corresponding one of the receptacles.

5. The electrical equipment as claimed in claim 2, further including a lamp holder in which the module is incorporated and an LED lamp attached to the lamp holder so that the electrical equipment serves as an LED lamp.

6. The electrical equipment as claimed in claim 5, wherein a battery for emergency is incorporated in the lamp holder.

7. An electric power control system comprising:

the electrical equipment as claimed in claim 1;

an electric power supplying part including the electric power supply system and the secondary battery;

a plurality of electric devices that receive electric power from the electric power supplying part, the electric equipment serving as one of the electric devices;

an environment sensor that detects physical amounts representing a condition of an environment of the electric power control system and outputs detection data; and

an electric power control device that controls electric power supplied to the electric devices.

8. The electric power control system as claimed in claim 7, wherein the electric power control device includes a computer that executes a program to perform an electric power controlling process including:

collecting the detection data from the electric power sensor and the environment sensor and storing the collected detection data in a detection data storing part;

storing control condition data in an electric power condition data storing part, the control condition data including information regarding a contract amount of electric power previously set and information regarding an accumulated amount of power consumption;

storing control device data in a control target device data storing part, the control device data including device identification information for identifying each of the electric devices and priority order identification information for identifying a priority order given to each of the electric devices;

determining which one of the electric power control system and the secondary battery is to supply electric power to the electric devices on an individual device basis based on information including the detection data, the control condition data and the control device data, and also determining an amount of electric power to be supplied to the electric devices on an individual device basis or determining whether to stop supplying electric power to the electric devices on an individual device basis; and

sending an instruction to each of the modules to control corresponding one of the switch circuits in accordance with results of the aforementioned determinations.

9. The electric power control system as claimed in claim 8, wherein the control condition data stored in the electric power condition data storing part includes a total amount of power consumption determined by a user, information regarding a battery remaining amount value, information regarding a planned power outage, information regarding a demand response, and information regarding an interruption of electric power supply from the electric power supply system.

10. The electric power control system as claimed in claim 8, wherein the electric power control device includes a display device that displays information regarding electric power supply and an input device that is used to update the control condition data and change the priority order given to each of the electric devices, and wherein the electric power controlling device computes a usable time for the electric devices currently being operated if the electric devices are continuously used by electric power supplied from the secondary battery, and displays the computed usable time on the display device.

11. The electric power control system as claimed in claim 8, wherein the control target device data stored in the control target device data storing part includes information regarding which one of the electric power supply system and the secondary battery is connectable to each of the electric devices on an individual device basis.

12. The electric power control system as claimed in claim 8, wherein the electric power supply system includes a wiring board that serves as an electric power receiving terminal and provided with an electric power sensor, and the electric power supply device controls the supply of electric power to the electric devices using a detection signal output from the electric power signal provided in the wiring board.

13. The electric power control system as claimed in claim 8, wherein the electric power supply system includes a wiring board and/or a distribution board serving as an electric power receiving terminal, and when the electric power supply system and the secondary battery is connected in association with each other, the electric power supply device controls an amount of electric power supplied from the secondary battery to be smaller than or equal to an amount of electric power consumed by the electric devices using the electric power of the secondary battery.

14. The electric power control system as claimed in claim 8, wherein the electric power supply system includes a wiring board that serves as an electric power receiving terminal and provided with an electric power sensor, and when the electric power supply system and the secondary battery is connected in association with each other, the electric power control device monitors an amount of electric power detected by the electric power sensor provided in the wiring board, and controls the electric power supplied from the secondary battery so that the electric power supply from the electric power supply system does not stop.