JP2013040724A - Air conditioner - Google Patents

Abstract

An air conditioner capable of preferentially performing air conditioning control intended by a user in an area where the user is air-conditioned using a remote controller.
From a remote controller 1 for transmitting a control command for an air conditioner, a signal receiving unit 4 for receiving a control command, an image input unit 2 for capturing an image of an indoor space, and an image captured from the image input unit 2 Human body position detection means 31 for detecting a human body detection area where a human body exists, remote control position detection means 32 for detecting a remote control detection area where the remote control 1 exists from an image captured from the image input means 2, a human body detection area and a remote control When the human body detection area and the remote control detection area coincide with each other at the timing when the detection area coincides with the coincidence area determination means 5 that determines whether or not the detection area coincides with the signal reception means 4, And air conditioning control means 6 for preferentially performing the air conditioning control.
[Selection] Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to an air conditioner.

  Conventionally, a technique for dividing a room into a plurality of areas and performing air conditioning on an area where a human body is detected using an infrared detection type sensor, a camera, or the like has been disclosed (for example, Patent Document 1).

Japanese Patent No. 4589371

  However, in the above prior art, when there are people in a plurality of areas, the area where the user who actually operated the remote controller cannot be specified cannot be specified. On the other hand, there was a problem that the air conditioning control intended by the user could not be performed preferentially.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above, and provides an air conditioner capable of preferentially performing air conditioning control intended by a user with respect to an area where the user is air-conditioned using a remote controller. The purpose is to do.

  In order to solve the above-described problems and achieve the object, an air conditioner according to the present invention is an air conditioner that air-conditions an indoor space divided into a plurality of areas, and provides a control command for the air conditioner. A remote controller for transmitting; a signal receiving means for receiving the control command; an image input means for capturing an image of the indoor space; and a human body position for detecting a human body detection area where a human body is present from the image captured from the image input means. Detecting means; remote control position detecting means for detecting a remote control detection area where the remote control is present from an image captured from the image input means; and determining whether or not the human body detection area and the remote control detection area match. At the timing when the coincidence area determination means and the signal reception means receive the control command, the human body detection area and the remote control detection area are detected. Doo is if they match, characterized in that it comprises, and the air conditioning control means for performing preferentially air-conditioning control with respect to the matching area.

  According to the present invention, there is an effect that the air conditioning control intended by the user can be preferentially performed on the area where the user who has set the air conditioning using the remote controller is present.

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of an appearance of an air conditioner according to the first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of the air conditioner according to the first embodiment. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of an indoor space in which the indoor unit of the air conditioner according to the first embodiment is installed on a wall surface. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a signal format transmitted from the remote controller of the air conditioner according to the second embodiment. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of an appearance of a remote controller of the air conditioner according to the third embodiment. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a captured image of the image input unit of the air conditioner according to the third embodiment.

  An air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. In addition, this invention is not limited by embodiment shown below.

Embodiment 1 FIG.
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of an appearance of an indoor unit of an air conditioner according to the first embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the image input means 2 is installed in the front surface of the indoor unit 100 of the air conditioner according to the first embodiment. In the example illustrated in FIG. 1, the image input unit 2 is provided in the center of the front surface of the indoor unit 100, but the installation position of the image input unit 2 is not limited to this, and the front end, side surface, or bottom surface of the indoor unit 100 is not limited thereto. You may install in.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of the air conditioner according to the first embodiment. As shown in FIG. 2, the air conditioner according to the first embodiment includes a remote controller 1, the image input means 2, the image processing means 3, the signal receiving means 4, the coincidence area determining means 5, and the air conditioning control means 6 described above. I have. The image processing unit 3 includes a human body position detecting unit 31 and a remote control position detecting unit 32.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of an indoor space in which the air conditioner according to the first embodiment is installed on a wall surface. In the example shown in FIG. 3, an example is shown in which the indoor space that is subject to air conditioning by the air conditioner according to the embodiment is divided into six areas A to F of two sections in the vertical direction and three sections in the horizontal direction. The number of areas into which the indoor space is divided is not limited to this, and may be 9 areas of 3 sections in the vertical direction and 3 sections in the horizontal direction and 12 areas of 3 sections in the vertical direction and 4 sections in the horizontal direction, and more areas. It may be divided into.

  The remote controller 1 is a wireless controller using an infrared light emitting element, and has a function of transmitting a control command to the air conditioner according to the first embodiment to the signal receiving unit 4 of the indoor unit 100 by infrared light emission by a user operation. Have.

  The image input means 2 captures an image of the indoor space that is the air conditioning target of the air conditioner. The image input means 2 may be, for example, a CCD camera using a CCD image sensor or a CMOS image sensor, an infrared camera using an infrared sensor, or a plurality of pyroelectric sensors, thermopile sensors, or the like. An infrared sensor or a sensor that recognizes the shape by reflection of radio waves or ultrasonic waves may be used.

  The human body position detection unit 31 detects the human body position from the image captured from the image input unit 2 and outputs a human body detection area where the human body exists.

  The remote control position detection means 32 detects the infrared emission of the remote control 1 from the image captured from the image input means 2 and outputs a remote control detection area where the remote control exists.

  The signal receiving means 4 receives a control command transmitted from the remote controller 1 by infrared light emission, converts it into an electrical signal, and outputs it to the air conditioning control means 6.

  The coincidence area determination unit 5 determines whether or not the human body detection area detected by the human body position detection unit 31 matches the remote control detection area detected by the remote control position detection unit 32.

  The air conditioning control means 6 performs air conditioning control giving priority to a specific area based on the control command and the determination result of the coincidence area determination means 5.

  Next, an operation for specifying an area in which air conditioning control is preferentially performed in the air conditioner according to the first embodiment will be described. In the present embodiment, air conditioning control is preferentially performed on an area where a user who operates the remote controller 1 exists. More specifically, the air-conditioning control means 6 preferentially controls the air-conditioning with respect to the matching area when the signal receiving means 4 receives the control command and the human body detection area and the remote control detection area match. To implement.

  For example, when a single user exists in an indoor space and the user operates the remote controller 1 to transmit a control command, the human body detection area and the remote control detection area coincide. Therefore, in this case, air conditioning control is preferentially performed on the matching area.

  On the other hand, when there are users straddling two or more areas of the indoor space, that is, when there are at least one user in each of the two or more areas, for example, a user existing in the E area shown in FIG. When the remote controller 1 is operated and a control command is transmitted, the E area becomes a coincidence area where the human body detection area and the remote control detection area coincide. Therefore, in this case, air conditioning control is preferentially performed on the matching area (here, E area), as in the case where one user exists in the indoor space. By doing in this way, even when a user exists in a plurality of areas, air conditioning control can be preferentially performed on the area where the user operating the remote controller 1 exists.

  In addition, when the human body detection area and the remote control detection area coincide with each other at the timing when the signal receiving means 4 receives the control command, the air conditioning control means 6 preferentially performs the air conditioning control on the coincidence area. The matching area is stored and held until the next time the human body detection area matches the remote control detection area.

  If the human body detection area and the remote control detection area do not match at the timing when the signal receiving means 4 receives the control command next time, air conditioning control is preferentially performed on the previous matching area. In this way, for example, even if the remote control position detection means 32 erroneously detects infrared light emission or noise of the remote control of another device, the user operating the remote control 1 is present in the same area as when the previous control command was received. It is possible to estimate and perform air conditioning control.

  Furthermore, when the human body detection area and the remote control detection area do not match at the timing when the signal receiving means 4 receives the control command, if there is one human body detection area, the human body detection area It is also possible to preferentially execute the air conditioning control. If it does in this way, it will become possible to implement air-conditioning control to the area where a user exists certainly.

  If there are two or more remote control detection areas at the timing when the signal receiving means 4 receives the control command, it may be reflected light or noise reflected on, for example, a window or a glass door of furniture. It is considered that the nature is high. At this time, if there is a remote control detection area that matches the human body detection area, air conditioning control may be preferentially performed on the matching area, and there is no remote control detection area that matches the human body detection area In this case, the air conditioning control may be preferentially performed on the previous matching area.

  As described above, according to the air conditioner of the first embodiment, when the human body detection area where the human body exists matches the remote control detection area where the remote control exists at the timing when the control command from the remote control is received. Since the air conditioning control is performed preferentially for the matching area, even when there are users in a plurality of areas, the user is given priority over the area where the user who set the air conditioning using the remote control exists. Can implement the intended air conditioning control.

  In addition, when the human body detection area and the remote control detection area coincide with each other at the timing when the control command is received from the remote control, the air conditioning control is performed preferentially for the matching area, and the matching area is stored. Hold until the next time the human body detection area and the remote control detection area match, and then when the human body detection area and the remote control detection area do not match at the timing when the control command from the remote control is received, By performing air conditioning control with priority over the matching area, for example, even if the remote control position detection means erroneously detects infrared light emission or noise of the remote control of another device, the user who operated the remote control can control the previous control command. It is possible to perform air-conditioning control on the assumption that it is in the same area as at the time of reception.

  Furthermore, when the human body detection area and the remote control detection area do not coincide with each other at the timing when the control command is received from the remote controller, and there is only one human body detection area, the human body detection area is given priority. By performing the air conditioning control, the air conditioning control can be performed on an area where the user exists reliably.

Embodiment 2. FIG.
In the first embodiment, the remote control position detection unit has been described as detecting the remote control detection area where the remote control exists by detecting the infrared emission of the remote control from the image captured from the image input unit. For example, the remote control position detection means may erroneously detect infrared light emission or noise of a remote control of another device. In the present embodiment, a remote control position detection frame is added to one or both before or after a control command transmitted by the remote control, and the remote control position detection means detects the remote control position detection frame, so that An example of suppressing erroneous detection due to infrared light emission or noise of the remote controller will be described. In addition, since the structure of the air conditioner concerning Embodiment 2 is the same as the air conditioner concerning Embodiment 1, description is abbreviate | omitted here.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a signal format transmitted from the remote controller of the air conditioner according to the second embodiment. As shown in FIG. 4, in the signal format transmitted from the remote controller 1 of the air conditioner according to the second embodiment, a start signal indicating the start of transmission is added as a remote control position detection frame before the control command. After this, an end signal indicating the end of transmission is added as a remote control position detection frame. In the example shown in FIG. 4, the remote control position detection frame is added before and after the control command. However, the remote control position detection frame may be added only before or after the control command. In this remote control position detection frame, the signal length is longer than the assumed noise, and the wavelength may be shorter than the wavelength of stationary light (daily light with constant brightness).

  The remote control position detecting means 32 detects a remote control position detection frame and detects a remote control detection area where the remote control exists. In this way, it is possible to suppress erroneous detection due to infrared light emission or noise of the remote controller of another device.

  As described above, according to the air conditioner of the second embodiment, the signal length is longer than the assumed noise and the steady light (constant brightness) before or after the control command. Remote control position detection frame with a wavelength shorter than the wavelength of the daily light) is added, and the remote control position detection means detects the remote control position detection frame. Can be suppressed, and the remote control position detection accuracy can be improved.

Embodiment 3 FIG.
FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of an appearance of a remote controller of the air conditioner according to the third embodiment. As shown in FIG. 5, in the remote controller 1 of the air conditioner according to the third embodiment, a plurality of signal transmission units 1a and 1b, which are infrared light emitting elements, are arranged at predetermined intervals with the optical axes directed in parallel in the same direction. Has been. In the example shown in FIG. 5, an example in which two signal transmission units 1 a and 1 b are arranged is shown, but the number of signal transmission units is not limited to this and may be three or more.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a captured image of the image input unit of the air conditioner according to the third embodiment. In the example shown in FIG. 6, the pixels are separated by ruled lines, and the infrared light emission of the signal transmission units 1a and 1b is detected by one pixel.

  The arrangement interval of the plurality of signal transmission units 1a and 1b may be determined based on the pixel pitch of a CCD image sensor or a CMOS image sensor used for the image input means 2. That is, for example, when the operation distance of the normal remote controller 1 is 1 to 3 m, at least 1 is detected between the detection pixels of the signal transmission units 1a and 1b on the captured image of the image input unit 2 as shown in FIG. If there is an interval of pixels, infrared light emission of the plurality of signal transmission units 1a and 1b can be detected independently.

  Then, the remote control position detection means 32 detects the infrared light emission of the plurality of signal transmission units 1a and 1b from the image captured from the image input means 2, and detects the remote control detection area where the remote control exists. At this time, when a plurality of infrared light emissions are detected in the same area, it can be estimated that the infrared light emission of the signal transmission units 1a and 1b has been detected. Is considered to be a highly accurate detection result.

  On the other hand, when a plurality of infrared emissions are detected in different areas, it is highly likely that any one of the infrared emissions is reflected light or noise reflected from, for example, a window or a glass door of furniture. In this case, as described in the first embodiment, when there is a remote control detection area that matches the human body detection area, air conditioning control may be performed on the matching area with priority. If there is no remote control detection area that matches the detection area, air conditioning control may be performed with priority over the previous match area.

  As described above, according to the air conditioner of the third embodiment, the remote controller is provided with a plurality of signal transmission units, the optical axes of the signal transmission units are arranged in parallel in the same direction at predetermined intervals, and the image Since the remote control detection area where the remote control exists is detected by detecting the infrared emission of multiple signal transmission units from the image captured from the input means, for example, when multiple infrared emission is detected in the same area It can be presumed that the infrared light emission of each signal transmission unit is detected, and the remote control position detection accuracy can be improved as compared with the case where the infrared light emission by a single signal transmission unit is detected.

  Note that the configuration shown in the above embodiment is an example of the configuration of the present invention, and can be combined with another known technique, and a part thereof is omitted without departing from the gist of the present invention. Needless to say, it is possible to change the configuration.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Remote control 1a, 1b Signal transmission part 2 Image input means 3 Image processing means 4 Signal reception means 5 Matching area determination means 6 Air-conditioning control means 31 Human body position detection means 32 Remote control position detection means 100 Indoor unit

Claims (6)

An air conditioner for air conditioning an indoor space divided into a plurality of areas,
A remote control for transmitting a control command for the air conditioner;
Signal receiving means for receiving the control command;
Image input means for capturing an image of the indoor space;
Human body position detecting means for detecting a human body detection area where a human body exists from an image captured from the image input means;
Remote control position detecting means for detecting a remote control detection area where the remote control is present from an image captured from the image input means;
A matching area determination means for determining whether or not the human body detection area and the remote control detection area match;
When the signal receiving means receives the control command, when the human body detection area and the remote control detection area coincide with each other, the air conditioning control means that preferentially performs air conditioning control on the coincidence area;
An air conditioner comprising:   The air conditioning control means holds the matching area, and when the human body detection area and the remote control detection area do not match at the timing when the signal receiving means receives the control command, the air conditioning control means 2. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein air conditioning control is preferentially performed.   The air conditioning control means, when the signal receiving means receives the control command, the human body detection area and the remote control detection area are inconsistent and the human body detection area is one, The air conditioner according to claim 1 or 2, wherein air conditioning control is preferentially performed on a human body detection area. The remote control transmits a remote control position detection frame to one or both before or after the control command,
The air conditioner according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the remote control position detection means detects the remote control position detection frame to detect a remote control detection area where the remote control exists.   The air conditioner according to claim 4, wherein the remote control position detection frame has a signal length longer than an assumed noise and a wavelength shorter than a wavelength of stationary light.   The air conditioner according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the remote controller has a plurality of signal transmission units arranged at predetermined intervals with the optical axes directed in parallel in the same direction.

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