JP7008475B2 - Lighting control devices, lighting control systems and programs - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a lighting control device, a lighting control system and a program.

In the midsummer daytime, there may be a shortage of electricity, and the electric power company may issue a request to save electricity. Responding to power saving requests from electric power companies is obligatory, and it is not permitted to use more power than specified. Therefore, control of the power consumption of the luminaire requires both control at the time when the power saving request is issued and control at the time when the power saving request is issued. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a technique of a lighting control device that controls the power consumption of a lighting fixture so as not to exceed an arbitrarily determined power consumption or a power consumption of a forcibly determined power saving request. Has been done.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 11-45782

In the lighting control device disclosed in Patent Document 1, the lighting fixture is dimmed to the minimum illuminance required by the user, and the power consumption is suppressed. When the lighting equipment is dimmed to the required minimum illuminance, for example, in the case of a store such as a convenience store (hereinafter referred to as a convenience store), the inside of the store becomes too dark. Therefore, there is a problem that the customer who is a user is given an impression of discomfort and discomfort, which leads to a decrease in the number of visitors.

The present invention solves these problems, and provides a lighting control device, a lighting control system, and a program for controlling a lighting fixture that does not cause discomfort to the user when it is necessary to suppress power consumption. The purpose is to do.

In order to achieve the above object, the lighting control device according to the present invention has been acquired by the user detection unit for each of the user detection unit that acquires the number of users in the sales floor and the plurality of target areas that divide the sales floor. A dimming rate determination unit that determines the target dimming rate according to the number of users, a power consumption calculation unit that calculates the target power consumption of lighting fixtures installed in multiple target areas, and an external power consumption When the communication unit that receives the reduction request and the reduction request power and the communication unit receives the power consumption reduction request, the target power consumption is the upper limit of the power consumption of the lighting equipment determined according to the reduction request power. If it exceeds, the reduction amount corresponding to the difference between the target power consumption and the upper limit value is subtracted from the target dimming rate of the luminaire, and the value obtained by subtraction is used as the dimming rate of the luminaire. A control unit that controls the illuminance of the luminaire and controls the illuminance of the luminaire by setting the dimming rate of the luminaire to the target dimming rate when the target power consumption of the luminaire is below the upper limit. Be prepared. When the number of users acquired by the user detection unit is zero, the dimming rate determination unit sets the target dimming rate of the window lighting fixture installed in the window area among multiple target areas as the first adjustment. The light rate is determined, and the target dimming rate of the internal lighting fixtures installed in the internal area other than the window area among multiple target areas is set to the second dimming rate, which is lower than the first dimming rate. If the number of users determined by the user detection unit is not zero, the target dimming rate of all the lighting fixtures installed in the plurality of target areas is determined as the first dimming rate. The user detection unit separately acquires the number of users into the number of customers who use the sales floor and the number of salesclerks other than the customers. When the control unit receives a request to reduce power consumption from the outside via the communication unit, if the number of customers acquired by the user detection unit is zero, the control unit determines the dimming rate of the window lighting fixture. While maintaining the 1 dimming rate, set the dimming rate of the internal lighting fixture to the 3rd dimming rate, which is lower than the 1st dimming rate and corresponding to the minimum illuminance, and set the illuminance. If the number of customers acquired by the user detection unit is not zero, the dimming rate of all the lighting fixtures is set to the first dimming rate to control the illuminance.

According to the lighting control device, the lighting control system and the program in the present invention, when it is necessary to suppress the power consumption, the dimming rate of the lighting fixture is determined based on the number of users in the sales floor, and the lighting fixture is used. By controlling the illuminance, it is possible to control the luminaire without causing discomfort to the user while suppressing the power consumption of the luminaire.

Block diagram of the lighting control system according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The figure which shows the hardware composition example of the lighting control apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. Schematic diagram showing an example of the arrangement of lighting fixtures in the sales floor according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The figure which shows the list of the target dimming rate of the luminaire which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. The figure which shows the case 1 of the change mode of the dimming rate which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. The figure which shows the case 2 of the change mode of the dimming rate which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. A flowchart showing the operation of the dimming rate control process according to the first embodiment of the present invention. Block diagram of the lighting control system according to the second embodiment of the present invention

Hereinafter, the lighting control device, the lighting control system, and the program according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The same or equivalent parts are designated by the same reference numerals.

Embodiment 1.
The lighting control system 100 according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 6.
The lighting control system 100 controls the illuminance of the lighting fixture 40 according to the target dimming rate determined based on the number of users present in the sales floor 30, thereby determining the power consumption of the lighting fixture 40. It is a system that controls not to exceed.
In the first embodiment, the room of the facility where the lighting fixture 40 is arranged will be described below as a sales floor of a convenience store.
As shown in FIG. 1, the lighting control system 100 includes n motion sensors 50_1 and 50_n arranged in the sales floor 30 of the convenience store, and a lighting control device 10 for controlling the power consumption of the lighting fixture 40.
The motion sensors 50_1 and 50_n are sensors that detect the number of people present in the sales floor 30. A plurality of motion sensors 50_1 and 50_n are attached at arbitrary positions in the sales floor 30. Note that n is an arbitrary numerical value of 2 or more, and the motion sensors 50_1 and 50_n are collectively referred to as the motion sensor 50.
The lighting fixture 40 is arranged on the ceiling surface 31 of the sales floor 30. The lighting fixture 40 includes a window-side lighting fixture 41 and an internal lighting fixture 42, although details will be described later.

The lighting control device 10 is a dimming unit that determines a dimming rate of a user detection unit 12, a lighting information storage unit 14, a communication unit 16, and a lighting fixture 40 connected to a motion sensor 50 arranged in a sales floor 30. It includes a rate determination unit 18, a power consumption calculation unit 20 for calculating the power consumption of the lighting fixture 40, and a control unit 22.

The user detection unit 12 acquires the number of people present in the sales floor 30 detected by the motion sensor 50.
The lighting information storage unit 14 stores installation position information indicating the installation position of the lighting fixture 40 in the sales floor 30, various databases described later, and a program for operating the lighting control device 10. The installation position information is information summarizing the coordinates in the sales floor 30 and the positional relationship between the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 corresponding to the coordinates.

The communication unit 16 is connected to an external network 25 such as the Internet. The communication unit 16 receives a power consumption reduction request and a power consumption reduction request power Wc from the electric power company via the network 25.

The dimming rate determining unit 18 determines the dimming rate of each of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 so that the illuminance of the sales floor 30 becomes the target illuminance. In the following description, the dimming rate determined by the dimming rate determining unit 18 will be referred to as a “target dimming rate”.

Further, since there is a correlation between the dimming rate of the lighting fixture 40 and the power consumption, the correlation is obtained in advance, a relational database is created, and the created relational database is stored in the lighting information storage unit 14. Store it.

The power consumption calculation unit 20 is based on the currently set dimming rate of each of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 from the correlation database stored in the lighting information storage unit 14, and the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42. 42 Obtain the power consumption of each. The power consumption calculation unit 20 determines that the power consumption of the current window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 is calculated from the total power consumption of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 obtained by the power consumption calculation unit 20. Find a certain current power consumption Wa.

Further, the power consumption calculation unit 20 is based on the target dimming rate of each of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 determined by the dimming rate determining unit 18 from the correlation database stored in the lighting information storage unit 14. , The power consumption of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 is obtained. The power consumption calculation unit 20 obtains the target power consumption Wb from the sum of all the power consumption of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42. The target power consumption Wb is the total power that is expected to be consumed when the dimming rate of all the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 is changed to the target dimming rate, that is, according to the target illuminance. It is the power consumption. The power consumption of each of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 may be measured by a power meter (not shown). In this case, the current power consumption Wa may be measured by a wattmeter, or the dimming rate may be actually changed to the target dimming rate to measure the target power consumption Wb.

When the control unit 22 receives a power consumption reduction request from the electric power company, the power consumption by the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 is reduced to the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 at the time of the predetermined reduction request. The dimming rate of each of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 is controlled so as not to exceed the upper limit of the power consumption due to the above.
For example, when the target power consumption Wb exceeds the upper limit value, the control unit 22 obtains a dimming rate corresponding to the difference between the target power consumption Wb and the upper limit value, that is, the total reduction amount of the dimming rate, and the dimming rate. The total reduction amount is divided into the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42, respectively, and the divided reduction amount is subtracted from the target dimming rate of each of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42. The control unit 22 uses the value obtained by subtraction as the dimming rate of each of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 to control the illuminance of each of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42.

Further, for example, the control unit 22 prorates the total reduction amount of the dimming rate to each of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42. The apportioned reduction amount is subtracted from the target dimming rate of each of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42, and the obtained value is used as the dimming rate of each of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42. In this way, the total reduction amount of the dimming rate is divided into the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42, respectively, and the dimming rate of each of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 is lowered. That is, the illuminance of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 is reduced.

FIG. 2 shows an example of the hardware configuration of the lighting control device 10.
The lighting control device 10 includes a processor 71, a memory 72 connected to the processor 71 via an internal bus 75, and an interface 73. Each function of the dimming rate determination unit 18, the power consumption calculation unit 20, and the control unit 22 in the lighting control device 10 is realized by the processor 71, respectively. The processor 71 is a CPU (Central processing unit) that executes a program stored in the memory 72.

The illumination information storage unit 14 is realized by the memory 72. The memory 72 stores a program executed by the processor 71, installation position information of the lighting fixture 40, and dimming control information. The memory 72 may be, for example, a RAM (Random access memory), a ROM (Read only memory), a flash memory, an EPROM (Erasable optical memory), an EEPROM (Electrically erasable memory), or an EEPROM (Electrically erable memory). , Magnetic discs, flexible discs, optical discs, compact discs, mini discs, storage elements such as DVDs (Digital Versailles disc), and storage media. Although FIG. 2 shows an example in which the processor 71 and the memory 72 are each configured by one, the above-mentioned functions may be executed in cooperation with a plurality of processors and a plurality of memories.

The interface 73 is an interface for transmitting / receiving signals to / from the outside of the lighting control device 10. The communication unit 16, the user detection unit 12, and the control unit 22 transmit and receive signals to and from the outside of the lighting control device 10 via the interface 73.

The dimming rate determination unit 18, the power consumption calculation unit 20, and the control unit 22 are realized by software, firmware, or a combination of software and firmware. Software and firmware are described as programs and stored in the memory 72. The processor 71 realizes the functions of the dimming rate determination unit 18, the power consumption calculation unit 20, and the control unit 22 by reading and executing the program stored in the memory 72.
Further, these programs cause a computer to execute the procedures and methods of the dimming rate determination unit 18, the power consumption calculation unit 20, and the control unit 22, respectively.

In addition, the above hardware configuration and flowchart are examples, and can be arbitrarily changed and modified.

FIG. 3 shows an example of the arrangement of the lighting fixture 40 in the sales floor 30 of the convenience store store.
A window 33 is arranged in the sales floor 30. The sales floor 30 is divided into a plurality of target areas. The plurality of target areas are divided into a window-side area 32 near the window 33, a first internal area 34_1 other than the window-side area 32, and a j-internal area 34_j. Here, j is an arbitrary numerical value of 2 or more, and the first internal area 34_1 and the j internal area 34_j are collectively referred to as an internal area 34.

On the ceiling surface 31 of the window-side area 32, m window-side lighting fixtures 41_1, 41_2, and 41_m are arranged. On the ceiling surface 31 of the first internal area 34_1, k first internal lighting fixtures 42_1, 42_2, 42_k are arranged. On the ceiling surface 31 of the j-part area 34_j, i-th p-internal lighting fixtures 42_k + 1, 42_k + 2, and 42_k + i are arranged. Here, m, k, j, i, and p are arbitrary numerical values of 2 or more. The window lighting fixtures 41_1, 41_2, and 41_m are collectively referred to as window lighting fixtures 41. The first internal lighting fixtures 42_1, 42_2, 42_k and the i internal lighting fixtures 42_k + 1, 42_k + 2, 42_k + i are collectively referred to as the internal lighting fixture 42.

The lighting control device 10 can individually control the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42. When a user who is a customer sees the sales floor 30 from the outside, he / she feels that it is difficult to enter if the inside of the sales floor 30 is dark. Therefore, it has been confirmed in various social experiments that the number of visitors to the sales floor 30 is significantly reduced as compared with the case where the user feels that the inside of the sales floor 30 is bright when viewed from the outside. Therefore, in the actual convenience store sales floor 30, the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 are always in a state close to all lights, creating an atmosphere in which the user can easily enter the sales floor 30.

However, when the number of users present in the sales floor 30 is zero, it is not necessary to keep the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 in a state close to all lights. In particular, when the power supply is insufficient due to a reduction request from an electric power company, it is necessary to reduce the power consumption based on the reduction request. Therefore, the lighting control device 10 dimmes the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 depending on the number of users detected by the motion sensor 50 arranged in the sales floor 30 and the presence or absence of a reduction request from the electric power company. To control.

The preset total reduction amount of the dimming rate of the lighting fixture 40 is defined as the reduction amount ΔR. A specific method for changing the dimming rate of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 based on the reduction amount ΔR will be described below.

First, with reference to FIG. 4, the target dimming rate of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 will be described. FIG. 4A is a table in which the target dimming rate in Case 1 is set, and FIG. 4B is a table in which the target dimming rate in Case 1 is set. In FIGS. 4A and 4B, the target area of the sales floor 30 is shown in the row, and the target dimming rate and the reduction amount at the time of the reduction request from the electric power company are shown in the column. The target dimming rate is a dimming rate determined based on the target illuminance for controlling the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42. The target dimming rate indicates the case where there is one or more users present in the sales floor 30. In addition, the reduction amount to be divided from the target dimming rate is set as the reduction amount of the reduction request from the electric power company.
Using the target dimming rate shown in FIG. 4, a method of changing the dimming rate of the window side area 32 and the internal area 34, which are the target areas of the sales floor 30, will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6 below. do.

First, a method of changing the dimming rate according to Case 1 will be described with reference to FIG. In FIGS. 5A to 5C, the horizontal axis shows the target area in the sales floor 30, and the vertical axis shows the dimming rate of the lighting fixture 40 in the target area.
FIG. 5A shows the dimming rate when one or more users are present in the sales floor 30. In this case, the target dimming rate of both the window side area 32 and the internal area 34 is 100%. Therefore, the window side area 32 and the internal area 34 are uniformly illuminated.
Next, FIG. 5B shows the dimming rate when no user is present at the sales floor 30. In this case, since no user is present in the sales floor 30, the dimming rate of the internal area 34 is lowered to suppress the power consumption of the internal lighting fixture 42. Therefore, the target illuminance is set higher for the window lighting fixture 41 and lower for the internal lighting fixture 42 than for the window lighting fixture 41. That is, the target dimming rate is also higher in the window lighting fixture 41 and lower in the internal lighting fixture 42 than in the window lighting fixture 41. Here, for example, the target dimming rate of the window side area 32 is 100%, and the target dimming rate of the internal area 34 is 80%.
FIG. 5C shows a dimming rate whose value is further reduced from the target dimming rate based on the reduction amount ΔR when a request for reduction of power consumption is received from the electric power company. Here, an example is shown in the case where no user is present in the sales floor 30.

In FIG. 5 (c), the broken line indicates the target dimming rate, and the solid line indicates the dimming rate whose value is lowered from the target dimming rate. In case 1, the control unit 22 divides the reduction amount ΔR by the number of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42. The value obtained by division is subtracted from the target dimming rate of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42. The value obtained by subtraction is used as the dimming rate of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42. That is, the target dimming rate of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 is uniformly lowered.
For example, when the number of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 is 10, the reduction amount ΔR is divided by 10, and the value (ΔR / 10) obtained by the division is used as the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42. Subtract from the target dimming rate of. Since the dimming rate of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 is uniformly reduced, it is possible to reduce the power consumption of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 while suppressing the influence on comfort. Become. That is, it is possible to reduce the power consumption without significantly reducing the illuminance of a part of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 and impairing the comfort.

The target illuminance of the window lighting fixture 41 is set high in order to avoid deterioration of customer attraction even when it is necessary to reduce power consumption. On the other hand, the target illuminance of the internal lighting fixture 42 is set lower than the target illuminance of the window lighting fixture 41 within a range that does not affect the work of the facility staff. Therefore, if further reduction in power consumption is required in Case 1, the illuminance of the internal lighting fixture 42 may be lowered too much, which may hinder the work of the facility staff.

Therefore, in the case 2, the reduction amount of the window lighting fixture 41 having high illuminance is increased to prevent the internal lighting fixture 42 from excessively reducing the illuminance. A method of changing the dimming rate according to Case 2 will be described with reference to FIG.
In FIGS. 6A to 6C, the horizontal axis indicates the position in the sales floor 30, and the vertical axis indicates the dimming rate of the lighting fixture 40 at each position.
FIG. 6A shows the dimming rate when one or more users are present in the sales floor 30. In this case, the target dimming rate of both the window side area 32 and the internal area 34 is 100%. Therefore, the window side area 32 and the internal area 34 are uniformly illuminated.
Next, FIG. 6B shows the dimming rate when no user is present at the sales floor 30. In this case, since no user is present in the sales floor 30, the dimming rate of the internal area 34 is lowered to suppress the power consumption of the internal lighting fixture 42. Here, the target dimming rate of the window side area 32 is 100%, and the target dimming rate of the internal area 34 is 80%.

FIG. 6 (c) shows a dimming rate whose value is further lowered from the target dimming rate when a request for reduction of power consumption is received from the electric power company. Here, an example is shown in the case where no user is present in the sales floor 30.
Here, any lighting fixture among the window lighting fixture 41 or the internal lighting fixture 42 is referred to as an arbitrary lighting fixture 43.
In Case 2, the amount of reduction in the dimming rate of any lighting fixture 43 is obtained according to the following equation (1).
Amount of reduction in dimming rate of any lighting fixture 43 =
Reduction amount ΔR × (target dimming rate of any lighting fixture 43)
/ (Total of target dimming rate of window lighting fixture 41 and internal lighting fixture 42) (1)
That is, the reduction amount of the dimming rate of the arbitrary lighting fixture 43 is determined so that the higher the target dimming rate of the arbitrary lighting fixture 43, the larger the reduction amount of the dimming rate. Further, in other words, any lighting fixture 43 having a larger ratio of the target dimming rate to the total of the target dimming rates of all the window lighting fixtures 41 and the internal lighting fixtures 42 increases the reduction amount of the dimming rate. Then, the control unit 22 subtracts the reduction amount obtained by the equation (1) from the target dimming rate of each of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42, and the value obtained by the subtraction is referred to as the window lighting fixture 41. It is used as the dimming rate of each of the internal lighting fixtures 42.

FIG. 6 (c) shows the result of subtracting the reduction amount obtained by the above formula (1) from the target dimming rate of each of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42. The broken line indicates the target dimming rate, and the solid line indicates the dimming rate obtained by subtracting the reduction amount obtained by the equation (1) from the target dimming rate.
As the target dimming rate is lower, the amount of reduction in the dimming rate is smaller, so that the rate of decrease in the dimming rate of the internal lighting fixture 42 is lower. Here, the reduction amount of the internal area 34 is ΔR + β as shown in FIG. 4 (b).
In addition, the amount of reduction in the dimming rate of the window lighting fixture 41, which has a high target dimming rate, increases accordingly. Here, the reduction amount of the window side area 32 is ΔR + α as shown in FIG. 4 (b).
Therefore, it is possible to prevent an excessive decrease in the illuminance of the internal lighting fixture 42.

Further, the dimming rate of each of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 may be lowered by a method other than the above-mentioned cases 1 and 2. For example, even if the amount of reduction in the dimming rate of any lighting fixture 43 having high power consumption is increased, the amount of reduction in the dimming rate of each of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 is determined by weighting. good. Explaining in Case 1, the reduction amount ΔR, which is the total reduction amount, is divided by the total number of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42, and the value obtained by the division is weighted according to the power consumption. The amount of reduction in the dimming rate for each of the lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 is obtained. The obtained reduction amount is subtracted from the target dimming rate of each of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42. As a result, compared to the case where the target dimming rate is uniformly lowered, the dimming rate of each of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 can be lowered more evenly, and the influence on comfort can be further suppressed. Become.

Further, the difference between the current power consumption Wa and the target power consumption Wb is obtained, and if the difference is smaller than the reduction request power Wc, the amount of power consumption reduction is insufficient, which corresponds to the shortage. The reduction amount ΔR may be obtained. Explaining with a specific numerical example, the current power consumption Wa is set to 300 kW, the target power consumption Wb is set to 250 kW, and the difference of 50 kW is obtained. Assuming that the reduction request power Wc is 100 kW, the difference <reduction request power Wc, which means that the amount of power consumption reduction is insufficient. Therefore, the reduction amount ΔR corresponding to the power consumption of 100 kW-50 kW = 50 kW of the shortage is obtained, and the target dimming rate of each of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 is lowered based on the reduction amount ΔR. By obtaining the reduction amount ΔR in this way, the same effect as in Case 1 described above can be obtained.

The operation of the lighting control device 10 for controlling the dimming rate of each of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 by the method of Case 1 described above will be described with reference to the flowchart of the dimming rate control process shown in FIG. do.
This dimming rate control process is stored in the lighting information storage unit 14 as a dimming rate control program. When the lighting control device 10 is activated, the lighting control device 10 reads a dimming rate control program from the lighting information storage unit 14. The read dimming rate control program is executed by the control unit 22 during the activation of the lighting control device 10.
The control unit 22 creates a target dimming rate database in which the target town efficiency for each target area in the sales floor 30 is set in advance. As shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B, for example, the target dimming rate database is a target for each target area of the sales floor 30 when there is one or more users present in the sales floor 30. It is a database that sets the dimming rate and the amount of reduction when a reduction request is made by the electric power company. The target dimming rate database is stored in the lighting information storage unit 14.

Next, the user detection unit 12 acquires the number of users present in the sales floor 30 from the motion sensor 50. The number of users is the number excluding the number of clerk. (Step S101). If the number of users present in the sales floor 30 is one or more (step S102; YES), the control unit 22 sets the entire sales floor 30 as a uniform area (step S103). If the number of users present in the sales floor 30 is zero (step S102; No), the control unit 22 divides the sales floor 30 into a window side area 32 and an internal area 34 (step S104).

The control unit 22 acquires the target dimming rate of the window side area 32 and the internal area 34 from the target dimming rate database (step S105).

The power consumption calculation unit 20 uses the correlation database stored in the lighting information storage unit 14 to determine the target dimming rate of the window side area 32 and the internal area 34, and the window lighting device 41 and the internal lighting device 42 based on the dimming rate. The target power consumption Wb, which is the sum of all power consumption, is obtained. Further, the power consumption calculation unit 20 determines the current power consumption of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 based on the dimming rate currently set for the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 from the correlation database. The current power consumption Wa, which is the sum of the above, is obtained (step S106). For example, the current power consumption Wa is 300 kW, and the target power consumption Wb is 250 kW.

If the lighting control device 10 receives the power consumption reduction request and the power consumption reduction request power Wc transmitted from the electric power company via the communication unit 16 (step S107; YES), the control unit 22 will use the control unit 22. The difference Wx between the current power consumption Wa and the power consumption reduction request power Wc is obtained (step S108). Here, a concrete numerical example will be described. The power Wc requested to reduce the amount of power consumed transmitted from the power company is set to 100 kW. As described above in step S106, the current power consumption Wa is 300 kW, and the target power consumption Wb is 250 kW. The difference between the current power consumption Wa and the reduction request power Wc is as follows.
Difference Wx = Current power consumption Wa (300 kW) -Reduction request power Wc (100 kW)
= 200kw
This difference Wx corresponds to the upper limit of the electric power that can be consumed by all the window lighting fixtures 41 and the internal lighting fixtures 42 installed in the sales floor 30. That is, it means that the electric power of up to 200 kW can be consumed by all of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42. In the following description, the difference Wx is referred to as an upper limit value Wx. By determining the amount of power that can be consumed, it is possible to prevent the lighting equipment from dimming more than necessary.
Further, if the lighting control device 10 does not receive the power consumption reduction request and the power consumption reduction request power Wc transmitted from the power company via the communication unit 16 (step S107; NO), the control unit 22 Changes the dimming rate of the lighting fixture 40 to the target dimming rate (step S111). As a result, the illuminance of the luminaire 40 is changed to the target illuminance.

The control unit 22 compares the target power consumption Wb with the upper limit value Wx. When the target power consumption Wb exceeds the upper limit value Wx (step S109; YES), the difference ΔW between the target power consumption Wb and the upper limit value Wx is obtained (step S110). Explaining with a specific numerical example, when the target power consumption Wb is 250 kW and the current power consumption Wa is 300 kW, the difference ΔW = the target power consumption Wb (250 kW) -the upper limit value Wx (200 kW) = 50 kW. This difference ΔW is the power consumption that is not sufficiently reduced by the target power consumption Wb with respect to the reduction requested power Wc. That is, the amount of reduction in power consumption with the difference ΔW = 50kWh is insufficient.

The control unit 22 obtains a reduction amount ΔR corresponding to the difference ΔW based on the correlation between the dimming rate and the power consumption amount in order to reduce the difference ΔW which is the insufficient power consumption (step S112). This reduction amount ΔR corresponds to the total reduction amount of the dimming rate of all the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42. Then, the control unit 22 changes the dimming rate of each of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 based on the reduction amount ΔR (step S113). For example, the control unit 22 divides the reduction amount ΔR into the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42, and subtracts the divided reduction amount from the target dimming rate of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42. The value obtained by subtraction is used as the dimming rate of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 to control the illuminance of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42. As a result, the illuminance of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 is reduced according to the difference ΔW. As an example, the control unit 22 prorates the reduction amount ΔR to the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42, and lowers the dimming rate of each of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42.

The control unit 22 compares the target power consumption Wb with the upper limit value Wx, and when the target power consumption Wb is equal to or less than the upper limit value Wx (step S109; No), the target power consumption Wb with respect to the reduction request power Wc. Since the amount of power consumption reduction is sufficient, the control unit 22 changes the dimming rate of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 to the target dimming rate (step S111). As a result, the illuminance of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 is changed to the target illuminance.

As described above, when the power supply shortage occurs, the reduction amount ΔR corresponding to the difference between the target power consumption Wb and the upper limit value Wx of the power consumption, that is, the dimming rate of all the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42. The total reduction amount is divided into the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42, and the divided reduction amount is subtracted from the target dimming rate of the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42, and the dimming is obtained by subtracting. By using the rate as the dimming rate of each of the window luminaire 41 and the internal luminaire 42, the dimming rate can be reduced while reducing the power consumption of the window luminaire 41 and the internal luminaire 42 in response to the power supply shortage. It is possible to suppress the effect of change on comfort. That is, since the influence of the insufficient power supply is divided between the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42, it is possible to suppress the influence on the comfort. In particular, since a power supply shortage may occur suddenly, it is difficult to predict in advance the amount of reduction in the requested power Wc and the dimming rate. However, on the other hand, it is necessary to suppress the influence on comfort due to the change in the dimming rate. In the present invention, the dimming rate corresponding to the shortage of power consumption is divided by the lighting fixture 40 to reduce the dimming rate, so that even if the power supply is suddenly insufficient, the power supply is insufficient. While responding, it is possible to suppress the influence on comfort due to changes in the dimming rate.

As described above, according to the first embodiment, even when the window lighting fixture 41 and the internal lighting fixture 42 are controlled by the request for reduction of power consumption, it is possible to prevent the lighting fixture 40 from being dimmed more than necessary. can. It is also possible to change the control of each target area depending on the presence or absence of users in the sales floor 30. Therefore, it is possible to control the lighting fixture 40 without causing inconvenience or discomfort to the user while reducing the power consumption of the entire sales floor 30.

Embodiment 2.
In the lighting control device 10 according to the second embodiment, the user detection unit 12 acquires the number of people in the sales floor 30 based on the data output from the video camera 60 and the attendance management device 62 provided in the sales floor 30. do.

The clerk at the sales floor 30 is usually doing some work. Since the motion sensor 50 of the lighting control device 10 according to the first embodiment merely detects the number of people present in the sales floor 30, it is not possible to distinguish between the store clerk and the customer who is the user. For convenience stores, if the illuminance of the lighting fixture 40 can distinguish between customers who do not want to give discomfort or discomfort and clerk who can tolerate some discomfort if it does not interfere with work, it will be illuminated in a more desirable state. The appliance 40 can be controlled.

The lighting control device 10 according to the second embodiment of the present invention has the ceiling of the sales floor 30 when the number of users in the sales floor 30 is zero regardless of whether or not the clerk is present in the sales floor. The illuminance of the window lighting fixture 41 arranged on the surface 31 is maintained, and the internal lighting fixture 42 is controlled to the minimum illuminance that does not interfere with the work of the clerk. When one or more users are present in the sales floor 30, the same shall apply to the first embodiment.

FIG. 8 shows a block diagram of the lighting control device 10 and the lighting control system 100A.
A video camera 60 and an attendance management device 62 are arranged in the sales floor 30. The video camera 60 is a camera that captures video. The attendance management device 62 is a device for managing the attendance of a clerk. It is located in a place that is not seen by convenience store users, such as the backyard of the sales floor 30, the waiting room of the clerk, and the management office. Further, the configuration of the lighting control device 10 is the same as that of the first embodiment.
The video camera 60, the attendance management device 62, and the lighting control device 10 constitute a lighting control system 100A.

The user detection unit 12 of the lighting control device 10 acquires a video image taken by the video camera 60. The user detection unit 12 recognizes the acquired video image and acquires the total number of people present in the sales floor 30. Next, the user detection unit 12 acquires the number of clerk present at the sales floor 30 from the attendance management device 62. The control unit 22 calculates the number of convenience store users by subtracting the number of store clerk from the number of people present in the sales floor 30 acquired by the user detection unit 12.

The lighting control device 10 according to the second embodiment determines whether or not there are users in the sales floor 30 based on the calculated number of users in step S102 of the dimming rate control process shown in FIG.

From the above, in the second embodiment, the number of users can be surely obtained by distinguishing between the users present in the sales floor 30 and the clerk by using the video camera 60 and the attendance management device 62. can.

(Modification 1)
In the first and second embodiments of the present invention, the sales floor 30 is divided into two areas, but it can be further subdivided if necessary. Further, in the second embodiment of the present invention, since the number of users present in the sales floor 30 is held as information, the lighting fixture can be controlled according to the number of users. For example, it can be used for the purpose of increasing the illuminance of a specific place to attract the user's eyes and guiding the user to that place when the number of people increases.

(Modification 2)
In the first and second embodiments of the present invention, the sales floor 30 is used as the store sales floor of the convenience store facility, but the sales floor 30 may be a part constituting the virtual power plant (VPP). When it is a part of VPP, it may be required to receive the upper limit of power consumption of the entire facility from the remote server that controls VPP for each time zone and operate according to it. In this case, unlike a request from an electric power company to save power, which is rarely issued suddenly, control at regular intervals is required at all times. Of course, manual response is not possible, and the introduction of an automatic control system is indispensable. Embodiments 1 and 2 of the present invention can cope with this without any problem.

(Modification 3)
In the first and second embodiments of the present invention, the processor 71 and the memory 72 that realize the functions of the dimming rate determination unit 18, the power consumption calculation unit 20, and the control unit 22 in the lighting control device 10 do not depend on a dedicated system. , Can be realized using a normal computer system. For example, a program for realizing each of the above functions is stored and distributed in a recording medium such as a computer-readable CD-ROM (Compact disk read only memory) or DVD-ROM (Digital versail disc read only memory). However, by installing this program on a computer, a computer capable of realizing each of the above-mentioned functions may be configured. Then, when each function is realized by sharing the OS (Operating system) and the application, or by cooperating with the OS and the application, only the application may be stored in the recording medium.

Further, it is also possible to superimpose each program on the carrier wave and distribute it via the network 25. For example, the program may be posted on a BBS (Bulletin board system) which is a bulletin board on the network 25, and the program may be distributed via the network 25. Then, by starting these programs and executing them in the same manner as other application programs under the control of the OS, the above-mentioned processing may be executed.

(Modification example 4)
In the first and second embodiments of the present invention, the lighting control system 100 and 100A do not include the lighting fixture 40, but the lighting control system 100 and 100A may include the lighting fixture 40. good.
In this case, the lighting control system 100 is a lighting control device that controls the power consumption of the lighting fixture 40 arranged on the ceiling surface 31 of the sales floor 30 of the convenience store, the motion sensor 50 arranged in the sales floor 30, and the lighting fixture 40. It is provided with 10.

Further, the lighting control system 100A controls the power consumption of the lighting fixture 40 arranged on the ceiling surface 31 of the sales floor 30 of the convenience store, the video camera 60 and the attendance management device 62 arranged in the sales floor 30, and the lighting fixture 40. It is provided with a lighting control device 10.

(Modification 5)
In the second embodiment, the video camera 60 and the attendance management device 62 are used to distinguish the user from the facility staff, but the means for distinguishing the user from the facility staff is not limited. For example, instead of the attendance management device 62, facility staff are obliged to wear an identification device such as a name tag or uniform in which an RFID (Radio frequency identification) tag is embedded. The user detection unit 12 of the lighting control device 10 can know the number of facility staff by counting the identification devices by communication.

Further, for example, if the facility has an entrance / exit used only by the user, a motion sensor 50 that can detect not only the presence / absence of a person but also the traveling direction may be installed in the vicinity. Since the motion sensor 50 that can detect the traveling direction can individually count the users who enter and the users who leave, the number of only the users who are present can be calculated from the difference between the two. In this case, the counting of facility staff can be omitted.

Further, if the sales floor 30 is a convenience store sales floor, users rarely stay in the store for a long time. It is also possible to know the existence of customers by using this. A motion sensor 50 is installed near the doorway. The motion sensor 50 does not have to be able to detect the traveling direction. If the motion sensor 50 responds, that is, if the sensor does not respond for a long time after passing through someone's doorway, the number of customers in the store is determined to be zero. It is not effective if you come and go more frequently than a certain frequency, but it is considered to be practical only at night. With this method, additional equipment and costs can be minimized.

The technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments and modifications. The present invention can be freely applied, modified or improved as far as the technical idea described in the claims is concerned.

10 Lighting control device, 12 User detection unit, 14 Lighting information storage unit, 16 Communication unit, 18 Dimming rate determination unit, 20 Power consumption calculation unit, 22 Control unit, 25 Network, 30 Sales floor, 31 Ceiling surface, 32 Window side Area, 33 windows, 34 internal area, 40 lighting fixtures, 41 window lighting fixtures, 42 internal lighting fixtures 50 motion sensors, 60 video cameras, 62 attendance management devices, 71 processors, 72 memories, 73 interfaces, 75 internal buses, 100 , 100A lighting control system.

Claims (8)

A user detection unit that acquires the number of users in the sales floor,
A dimming rate determination unit that determines a target dimming rate according to the number of users acquired by the user detection unit in each of the plurality of target areas divided in the sales floor.
The power consumption calculation unit that calculates the target power consumption of the lighting fixtures installed in the plurality of target areas, and
A communication unit that receives power consumption reduction requests and reduction request power from the outside,
When the communication unit receives the power consumption reduction request, the target power consumption exceeds the upper limit of the power consumption of the lighting fixture determined according to the reduction request power. The amount of reduction in the dimming rate corresponding to the difference between the electric power and the upper limit value is subtracted from the target dimming rate of the luminaire, and the value obtained by the subtraction is used as the dimming rate of the luminaire. When the illuminance of the luminaire is controlled and the target power consumption of the luminaire is equal to or less than the upper limit value, the dimming rate of the luminaire is set to the target dimming rate and the illuminance of the luminaire. And the control unit that controls
Equipped with
When the number of users acquired by the user detection unit is zero, the dimming rate determining unit determines the target dimming of the window lighting fixture installed in the window area among the plurality of target areas. The rate is determined as the first dimming rate, and the target dimming rate of the internal lighting fixture installed in the internal area other than the window area among the plurality of target areas is lower than the first dimming rate. If the number of the users acquired by the user detection unit is not zero, the target dimming of all the lighting fixtures installed in the plurality of target areas is determined. The rate is determined to be the first dimming rate,
The user detection unit obtains the number of users by distinguishing between the number of customers who use the sales floor and the number of salesclerks other than the customers.
When the control unit receives a request for reduction of power consumption from the outside via the communication unit, and the number of customers acquired by the user detection unit is zero, the control unit of the window lighting fixture. A third dimming rate predetermined as a dimming rate lower than the first dimming rate and corresponding to the minimum illuminance while maintaining the dimming rate at the first dimming rate. The dimming rate is set to control the illuminance, and if the number of customers acquired by the user detection unit is not zero, the dimming rate of all the lighting fixtures is set to the first dimming rate. To control the illuminance,
Lighting control device. The lighting control device according to claim 1 , wherein the control unit subtracts the reduction request power from the current power consumption of the lighting fixture to obtain the upper limit value. When the target power consumption of the luminaire exceeds the upper limit value, the control unit divides the reduction amount of the dimming rate by the number of the luminaires to obtain a value obtained by dividing the target dimming of the luminaire. The lighting control device according to claim 1 or 2 , wherein a sixth dimming rate subtracted from the rate is calculated, and the dimming rate of the lighting fixture is set to the sixth dimming rate to control the illuminance. When the target power consumption of the luminaire exceeds the upper limit value, the control unit has a dimming rate of the luminaire in proportion to the ratio of the target dimming rate to the total of the target dimming rates of the luminaire. The lighting control device according to any one of claims 1 to 3 , wherein the reduction amount is changed and the dimming rate of the lighting fixture is set to the dimming rate to control the illuminance. When the target power consumption of the luminaire exceeds the upper limit value, the control unit changes the reduction amount of the dimming rate of the luminaire according to the power consumption of the luminaire, and dims the luminaire. The lighting control device according to any one of claims 1 to 4 , wherein the dimming rate is set to a changed rate to control the illuminance. A user detection unit that obtains the number of users in the sales floor separately from the number of customers who use the sales floor and the number of sales staff other than the customers.
A dimming rate determination unit that determines a target dimming rate according to the number of users acquired by the user detection unit in each of the plurality of target areas divided in the sales floor.
The power consumption calculation unit that calculates the target power consumption of the lighting fixtures installed in the plurality of target areas, and
A communication unit that receives power consumption reduction requests and reduction request power from the outside,
When a request for reduction of power consumption is received from the outside via the communication unit, if the number of customers acquired by the user detection unit is zero, the area near the window among the plurality of target areas While maintaining the dimming rate of the installed window lighting fixtures at the 4th dimming rate, which is the dimming rate when the power consumption reduction request is received, the internal area other than the window area among the plurality of target areas. The dimming rate of the internal lighting fixture installed in the above is set to a predetermined 5th dimming rate as a dimming rate lower than the 4th dimming rate and corresponding to the minimum illuminance, and the illuminance is controlled. When the number of customers acquired by the user detection unit is not zero, a control unit that controls the illuminance by setting the dimming rate of the internal lighting fixture to the fourth dimming rate.
Lighting control device. Lighting fixtures installed in each of multiple target areas divided into sales floors,
A lighting control system including a lighting control device for controlling the lighting equipment.
The lighting control device is
A user detection unit that acquires the number of users in the sales floor,
In each of the plurality of target areas where the lighting equipment is installed, a dimming rate determining unit that determines a target dimming rate according to the number of users acquired by the user detecting unit, and a dimming rate determining unit.
The power consumption calculation unit that calculates the target power consumption of the lighting equipment,
A communication unit that receives power consumption reduction requests and reduction request power from the outside,
When the communication unit receives the power consumption reduction request, the target power consumption exceeds the upper limit of the power consumption of the lighting fixture determined according to the reduction request power. The amount of reduction in the dimming rate corresponding to the difference between the electric power and the upper limit value is subtracted from the target dimming rate of the luminaire, and the value obtained by the subtraction is used as the dimming rate of the luminaire. When the illuminance of the luminaire is controlled and the target power consumption of the luminaire is equal to or less than the upper limit value, the dimming rate of the luminaire is set to the target dimming rate and the illuminance of the luminaire. With a control unit to control
When the number of users acquired by the user detection unit is zero, the dimming rate determining unit determines the target dimming of the window lighting fixture installed in the window area among the plurality of target areas. The rate is determined as the first dimming rate, and the target dimming rate of the internal lighting fixture installed in the internal area other than the window area among the plurality of target areas is lower than the first dimming rate. If the number of the users acquired by the user detection unit is not zero, the target dimming of all the lighting fixtures installed in the plurality of target areas is determined. The rate is determined to be the first dimming rate,
The user detection unit obtains the number of users by distinguishing between the number of customers who use the sales floor and the number of salesclerks other than the customers.
When the control unit receives a request for reduction of power consumption from the outside via the communication unit, and the number of customers acquired by the user detection unit is zero, the control unit of the window lighting fixture. A third dimming rate predetermined as a dimming rate lower than the first dimming rate and corresponding to the minimum illuminance while maintaining the dimming rate at the first dimming rate. The dimming rate is set to control the illuminance, and if the number of customers acquired by the user detection unit is not zero, the dimming rate of all the lighting fixtures is set to the first dimming rate. To control the illuminance,
Lighting control system. For the computer that controls the lighting control system,
The process of determining the target dimming rate according to the number of users in each of the multiple target areas that divide the sales floor,
The process of calculating the target power consumption of the lighting fixtures installed in the plurality of target areas, and
Processing to receive power consumption reduction request and reduction request power from the outside,
When the target power consumption exceeds the upper limit of the power consumption of the lighting fixture determined according to the reduction request power when the power consumption reduction request is received from the outside, the target power consumption The reduction amount of the dimming rate corresponding to the difference between the upper limit value and the upper limit value is subtracted from the target dimming rate of the luminaire, and the value obtained by subtracting the reduction amount is used as the dimming rate of the luminaire. When the illuminance of the luminaire is controlled and the target power consumption of the luminaire is equal to or less than the upper limit value, the dimming rate of the luminaire is set to the target dimming rate and the illuminance of the luminaire is set. The process to control and
To execute,
Further, when the number of the users is zero, the target dimming rate of the window lighting fixture installed in the window area among the plurality of target areas is determined as the first dimming rate, and the plurality of users are determined. The target dimming rate of the internal lighting fixture installed in the internal area other than the window area of the target area is determined to be the second dimming rate, which is lower than the first dimming rate, and the user. When the number of people is not zero, the process of determining the target dimming rate of all the lighting fixtures installed in the plurality of target areas as the first dimming rate.
Processing to obtain the number of users by distinguishing between the number of customers who use the sales floor and the number of salesclerks other than the customers.
When the number of customers is zero when a request for reduction of power consumption is received from the outside, the internal lighting fixture keeps the dimming rate of the window lighting fixture at the first dimming rate. The dimming rate is set to a predetermined third dimming rate as a dimming rate lower than the first dimming rate and corresponding to the minimum illuminance, and the illuminance is controlled, and the number of customers is zero. If not, the process of setting the dimming rate of all the lighting fixtures to the first dimming rate to control the illuminance,
A program to execute.

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