A water heater control method and water heater

Abstract

The present invention discloses a control method for a water heater and a water heater. The control method for the water heater comprises the following steps: S1: recording the effective time zone of the water heater operation within a cycle according to the user's water use habits; S2: taking a certain effective time zone n recorded on the first day of the cycle; S3: obtaining a set {n‑1, n, n+1} of the effective time zone n and the previous time zone n‑1 of the effective time zone n and the next time zone n+1 of the effective time zone n; S4: comparing with the effective time zone n of the remaining days in the cycle, calculating the number of days day_num that the effective time zone appears in the set and the number of days (n‑1)_num, n_num, (n+1)_num that each effective time zone appears in the set; S5: taking the time zone greater than or equal to day_num / m among (n‑1)_num, n_num, (n+1)_num as the operation time zone of the water heater; wherein m is a natural number greater than 1. The water heater provided by the present invention is operated by adopting the above-mentioned control method for the water heater.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of household appliances, and in particular to a control method for a water heater and a water heater. Background Art

[0002] Existing water heaters are generally put into operation by users manually turning them on, have a low level of intelligence, and are unable to automatically operate according to the user's own usage habits, resulting in a poor user experience.

[0003] Therefore, a control method for a water heater is urgently needed to solve the above problems. Summary of the invention

[0004] The present invention aims to solve at least one of the problems existing in the existing related technologies to a certain extent. To this end, the present invention proposes a control method for a water heater, which can make the water heater more intelligently operate in line with the user's usage habits and provide a better user experience.

[0005] The above purpose is achieved through the following technical solutions:

[0006] A method for controlling a water heater comprises the following steps:

[0007] S1: The effective time zone of the water heater operation within a cycle is recorded according to the user's water use habits;

[0008] S2: Take a valid time zone n recorded on the first day of the period;

[0009] S3: Obtain a set {n-1,n,n+1} of the effective time zone n, the time zone n-1 before the effective time zone n, and the time zone n+1 after the effective time zone n;

[0010] S4: Compare with the remaining days of the valid time zone n in the period, calculate the number of days day_num that the valid time zone appears in the set and the number of days (n-1)_num, n_num, (n+1)_num that each valid time zone appears in the set;

[0011] S5: taking the time zone among (n-1)_num, n_num, (n+1)_num that is greater than or equal to day_num / m as the operation time zone of the water heater;

[0012] Here, m is a natural number greater than 1.

[0013] Optionally, it also includes S6: judging whether there are any remaining valid time zones n in the first day, if so, returning to S3, if not, executing all steps after S3 for the remaining valid time zones n in the period in sequence.

[0014] Optionally, before executing all steps after S3 for the valid time zone n of the next day, the valid time zone that has been calculated before the previous day is first eliminated.

[0015] Optionally, the cycle is one week, and m=2.

[0016] Optionally, in S1, recording the effective time zone of the water heater operation within a cycle according to the user's water usage habits specifically includes the following steps:

[0017] S11: Divide the 24 hours of a day into time zones;

[0018] S12: Recording users’ water use habits by time zone;

[0019] S13: Filter out the valid time zone n.

[0020] Optionally, in S11, dividing 24 hours a day into time zones specifically includes: dividing 24 hours a day into time zones of not less than 1 minute each, and the minute value of each time zone can be divided by 24 hours.

[0021] Optionally, in S11, dividing 24 hours a day into time zones specifically includes: dividing 24 hours a day into time zones of 10 minutes each.

[0022] Optionally, in S13, filtering out the effective time zone n specifically includes: filtering out a time zone with a water usage time greater than or equal to 1 minute as the effective time zone n.

[0023] Optionally, the period is 1 week, 2 weeks, or 1 month.

[0024] Optionally, before a full cycle is recorded according to the user's water usage habits, the water heater enters the operating state of the previous day x minutes in advance at the same time of the next day and the previous day.

[0025] Optionally, after a full cycle is recorded according to the user's water usage habits, the water heater enters the operating state of the operating time zone x minutes in advance before the operating time zone arrives on each day of the next cycle.

[0026] Another aspect of the present invention provides a water heater, which is operated by using the above-mentioned water heater control method.

[0027] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has at least the following beneficial effects:

[0028] The control method of the water heater provided by the present invention obtains the operating time zone of the water heater by calculating the set of valid time zones and the number of days the valid time zones appear in the set and the number of days each valid time zone appears in the set within a cycle, and then controls the water heater to operate in the corresponding operating time zone, thereby enabling the water heater to operate more intelligently in accordance with the user's usage habits and providing a better user experience. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0029] Figure 1 is a step diagram of a water heater control method provided by a specific embodiment of the present invention;

[0030] Figure 2 It is a step diagram of recording the effective time zone of the water heater operation within a cycle according to the user's water use habits in the water heater control method provided by the specific embodiment of the present invention;

[0031] Figure 3 In the water heater control method provided by the specific embodiment of the present invention, a part of the valid time zones n is obtained with Monday to Sunday as a cycle;

[0032] Figure 4 is the operating time zone of the water heater provided in the specific embodiment of the present invention on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday (the operating time zone is obtained only after calculating the effective time zone 42);

[0033] Figure 5 It is the operating time zone of the water heater provided by the specific embodiment of the present invention in one cycle. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0034] The following examples illustrate the present invention, but the present invention is not limited to these examples. Modifications to the specific embodiments of the present invention or equivalent replacement of some technical features without departing from the spirit of the present invention should be included in the scope of the technical solution claimed by the present invention.

[0035] Please refer to Figure 1 The present invention provides a control method for a water heater, comprising the following steps:

[0036] S1: The effective time zone of the water heater operation within a cycle is recorded according to the user's water use habits;

[0037] S2: Take a valid time zone n recorded on the first day of the cycle;

[0038] S3: Obtain a set {n-1,n,n+1} of the effective time zone n, the time zone n-1 before the effective time zone n, and the time zone n+1 after the effective time zone n;

[0039] S4: Compare with the remaining days of valid time zones n in the cycle, calculate the number of days day_num that the valid time zone appears in the set and the number of days (n-1)_num, n_num, (n+1)_num that each valid time zone appears in the set;

[0040] S5: The time zone among (n-1)_num, n_num, (n+1)_num that is greater than or equal to day_num / m is used as the operation time zone of the water heater;

[0041] Here, m is a natural number greater than 1.

[0042] The control method of the water heater provided by the present invention obtains the operating time zone of the water heater by calculating the set of valid time zones and the number of days the valid time zones appear in the set and the number of days each valid time zone appears in the set within a cycle, and then controls the water heater to operate in the corresponding operating time zone, thereby enabling the water heater to operate more intelligently in accordance with the user's usage habits and providing a better user experience.

[0043] Optionally, the process further includes S6: determining whether there are any remaining valid time zones n on the first day, if so, returning to S3, if not, executing all steps after S3 for the remaining valid time zones n on the remaining days in the cycle in sequence.

[0044] Optionally, before executing all steps after S3 for the valid time zone n of the next day, the valid time zone that has been calculated before the previous day is first eliminated.

[0045] Optionally, the cycle is one week, and m=2.

[0046] Please refer to Figure 2 Optionally, in S1, recording the effective time zone of the water heater operation within a cycle according to the user's water usage habits specifically includes the following steps:

[0047] S11: Divide the 24 hours of a day into time zones;

[0048] S12: Recording users’ water use habits by time zone;

[0049] S13: Filter out valid time zone n.

[0050] Optionally, in S11, dividing 24 hours a day into time zones specifically includes: dividing 24 hours a day into time zones of not less than 1 minute each, and the minute value of each time zone can be divided by 24 hours.

[0051] Optionally, in S11, dividing 24 hours a day into time zones specifically includes: dividing 24 hours a day into 10 minutes per time zone, so that there are 144 time zones in a day, and the time zone sequence n is 0 to 143. Of course, in other embodiments, a day can also be divided into time zones of 5 minutes, 30 minutes, or 1 hour per time zone, which is not limited here, as long as the time can be divided by 24 hours.

[0052] Optionally, in S13, screening out the valid time zone n specifically includes: screening out the time zone with a water usage time greater than or equal to 1 minute as the valid time zone n.

[0053] Optionally, the period is 1 week, 2 weeks, or 1 month.

[0054] For example, taking Monday to Sunday as a cycle, the obtained partial valid time zones n are as follows: Figure 3 (The notes in brackets in the table indicate specific time periods) As shown above, the steps to calculate the operating time period of the water heater are as follows:

[0055] First, take the effective time zone 42 for Monday, the time zone before 42 is 41, and the time zone after 42 is 43, and the obtained set is {41, 42, 43}.

[0056] Then, calculate the number of days in the set {41,42,43}, according to Figure 3 It can be seen that Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday all have valid time zones that fall within the set, that is, day_num = 4. Specifically, valid time zones 42 and 43 on Monday, valid time zone 43 on Tuesday, valid time zones 42 and 43 on Wednesday, and valid time zone 43 on Thursday all fall within the set, and in the set, the number of days that valid time zone 41 appears is 0, that is, 41_num = 0, the number of days that valid time zone 42 appears is 2 (Tuesday and Wednesday), that is, 42_num = 2, and the number of days that valid time zone 43 appears is 4 (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday), that is, 43_num = 4.

[0057] Then, substitute the corresponding data into day_num / m, and get 4 / 2=2. And 41_num<2, 42_num≥2, 43_num≥2, that is, the operating time zones of the water heater are 42 and 43. Correspondingly, the operating time zones of the water heater on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday are as follows: Figure 4 shown.

[0058] It should be noted that if the corresponding data is substituted into day_num / m, and the obtained value has a decimal, the value is rounded down and used as the actual calculation data. For example, if day_num / 2=2.5, 2 is taken as the actual calculation data.

[0059] Then, continue to calculate the remaining valid time zone 43 for Monday according to the above steps;

[0060] When the remaining valid time zones on Monday are calculated, the valid time zones from Tuesday to Sunday are calculated in the same way as above. Before executing all steps after S3 for the valid time zone n of the next day, the valid time zones that have been calculated before the previous day are first eliminated. The specific steps are as follows:

[0061] When calculating the effective time zone on Tuesday, first remove the effective time zones 42 and 43 that have been calculated on Monday, and calculate the remaining effective time zone 44;

[0062] When calculating the effective time zone on Wednesday, first remove the effective time zones 42, 43, and 44 that have been calculated before Tuesday. There are no remaining effective time zones, so no calculation is required at this time.

[0063] When calculating the effective time zone on Thursday, first remove the effective time zones 42, 43, and 44 that have been calculated before Wednesday. There are no remaining effective time zones, so no calculation is required at this time.

[0064] When calculating the effective time zone on Friday, first remove the effective time zones 42, 43, and 44 that have been calculated before Thursday, and calculate the remaining effective time zone 45;

[0065] When calculating the effective time zone on Saturday, first remove the effective time zones 42, 43, 44, and 45 that have been calculated before Friday, and calculate the remaining effective time zones 47 and 48;

[0066] When calculating the effective time zone on Sunday, first remove the effective time zones 42, 43, 44, 45, 47, and 48 that have been calculated before Saturday, and calculate the remaining effective time zone 49;

[0067] Finally, we get Figure 5 The operating time zones of the water heater during a cycle are shown.

[0068] Optionally, before a full cycle is recorded according to the user's water usage habits, the water heater enters the operating state of the previous day x minutes in advance at the same time of the next day and the previous day.

[0069] Optionally, after a full cycle is recorded according to the user's water usage habits, the water heater enters the operating state of the operating time zone x minutes in advance before the operating time zone arrives on each day of the next cycle.

[0070] Exemplarily, in this embodiment, x is 5. Of course, in other embodiments, x may be set to other values ​​between 2 and 10 according to actual needs, which is not limited here.

[0071] Another aspect of the present invention provides a water heater, which is operated by using the above-mentioned water heater control method.

[0072] The above are only some embodiments of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, several modifications and improvements can be made without departing from the creative concept of the present invention, which all belong to the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A method for controlling a water heater, characterized in that: The following steps are involved: S1: The effective time zone of the water heater operation within a cycle is recorded according to the user's water use habits; S2: Take a valid time zone n recorded on the first day of the period; S3: Obtain a set {n-1,n,n+1} of the effective time zone n, the time zone n-1 before the effective time zone n, and the time zone n+1 after the effective time zone n; S4: Compare with the valid time zone n of the remaining days in the period, calculate the number of days day_num that the valid time zone appears in the set and the number of days (n-1)_num, n_num, (n+1)_num that each valid time zone appears in the set; S5: taking the time zone among (n-1)_num, n_num, (n+1)_num that is greater than or equal to day_num / m as the operation time zone of the water heater; Here, m is a natural number greater than 1.

2. The water heater control method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The process also includes S6: determining whether there are any remaining valid time zones n on the first day, if so, returning to S3, if not, executing all steps after S3 for the remaining valid time zones n on the remaining days in the cycle in sequence.

3. The control method of the water heater according to claim 2, characterized in that: Before executing all steps after S3 for the effective time zone n of the next day, the effective time zone that has been calculated before the previous day is first eliminated.

4. The control method of the water heater according to claim 1, characterized in that: The cycle is one week, m=2.

5. The water heater control method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: In S1, recording the effective time zone of the water heater operation within a cycle according to the user's water use habits specifically includes the following steps: S11: Divide the 24 hours of a day into time zones; S12: Recording users’ water use habits by time zone; S13: Filter out the valid time zone n.

6. The control method of the water heater according to claim 5, characterized in that: In S11, dividing the 24 hours of a day into time zones specifically includes: dividing the 24 hours of a day into time zones of not less than 1 minute each, and the minute value of each time zone can be divided by 24 hours.

7. The control method of the water heater according to claim 6, characterized in that: In the S11, dividing the 24 hours of a day into time zones specifically includes: dividing the 24 hours of a day into time zones of 10 minutes each.

8. The control method of the water heater according to claim 5, characterized in that: In the S13, filtering out the effective time zone n specifically includes: filtering out a time zone with a water usage time greater than or equal to 1 minute as the effective time zone n.

9. The water heater control method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: The cycles are 1 week, 2 weeks, and 1 month.

10. The water heater control method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: Before a full cycle is recorded according to the user's water use habits, at the same time of the next day and the previous day, the water heater enters the operating state of the previous day x minutes in advance.

11. The water heater control method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: After a full cycle is recorded according to the user's water use habits, the water heater enters the operating state of the operating time zone x minutes in advance before the operating time zone arrives on each day of the next cycle.

12. A water heater, characterized in that: The water heater is operated by the control method according to any one of claims 1 to 11.

Images