Heat pump system and control method thereof

Abstract

The present application provides a heat pump system and a control method thereof, relating to the field of heat pump technology. The heat pump system includes: a plurality of heat pump units, each heat pump unit being used to heat, cool, or heat domestic hot water; a controller being configured to: upon receiving an instruction corresponding to a first operating mode, start a first heat pump unit less than or equal to a first preset number, and start a second heat pump unit greater than or equal to a second preset number; the first heat pump unit represents a heat pump unit used for heating or cooling a space among the plurality of heat pump units, and the second heat pump unit represents a heat pump unit used for heating domestic hot water among the plurality of heat pump units, the first preset number being less than the second preset number; upon receiving an instruction corresponding to a second operating mode, start a second heat pump unit less than or equal to a third preset number, and start a first heat pump unit greater than or equal to a fourth preset number; the third preset number being less than the fourth preset number.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the field of heat pump technology, and in particular to a heat pump system and a control method thereof. Background Art

[0002] At present, due to the energy-saving and environmentally friendly characteristics of heat pump systems, their application in life is becoming increasingly widespread. Users usually use heat pump systems for cooling, heating or heating domestic water.

[0003] However, in related technologies, heat pump systems often mainly have heating or cooling functions, with heating of domestic hot water as a supplementary function. In daily life, the allocation of heat pump system resources cannot meet the various usage needs of users, which not only causes a certain amount of resource waste, but also affects the user experience.

[0004] Therefore, how to reasonably allocate the resources of the heat pump system is an urgent problem to be solved. Summary of the Invention

[0005] An embodiment of the present application provides a heat pump system and a control method thereof, which are used to control the number of heat pump units for heating, cooling or heating domestic hot water in accordance with instructions corresponding to the working mode of the heat pump system.

[0006] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention adopts the following technical solutions:

[0007] In a first aspect, a heat pump system is provided, the system comprising:

[0008] Multiple heat pump units, each heat pump unit is used to heat or cool a space or heat domestic hot water;

[0009] A controller is electrically connected to the plurality of heat pump units, and the controller is configured to:

[0010] Upon receiving an instruction corresponding to the first operating mode, starting a first heat pump unit that is less than or equal to a first preset number, and starting a second heat pump unit that is greater than or equal to a second preset number; the first heat pump unit represents a heat pump unit for heating or cooling a space among the plurality of heat pump units, and the second heat pump unit represents a heat pump unit for heating domestic hot water among the plurality of heat pump units, and the first preset number is less than the second preset number;

[0011] When receiving the instruction corresponding to the second working mode, the second heat pump units less than or equal to the third preset number are turned on, and the first heat pump units greater than or equal to the fourth preset number are turned on; wherein the third preset number is less than the fourth preset number.

[0012] The technical solutions provided by the embodiments of the present application provide at least the following beneficial effects: Users may have different requirements for heat pump systems in different situations. For example, users may typically use the heat pump system for space heating or cooling rather than domestic hot water heating. When users need to use domestic hot water in a centralized manner, the need for domestic hot water heating by the heat pump system may outweigh the need for space heating or cooling. However, in related art, the number of heat pump units allocated for space heating or cooling and domestic hot water heating in a heat pump system is fixed, which not only fails to meet the diverse needs of users but also results in a certain amount of resource waste. In response to this, the embodiments of the present application allocate the number of heat pump units for space heating or cooling and domestic hot water heating based on received instructions corresponding to different operating modes. This allows multiple heat pump units to be prioritized for domestic hot water heating when users need centralized domestic hot water, and prioritized for space heating or cooling when users need to quickly heat or cool a space. This not only quickly meets user needs but also avoids resource waste.

[0013] In some embodiments, the controller is further configured to: upon receiving an instruction corresponding to the third operating mode, start a second heat pump unit less than or equal to a fifth preset number, and start a first heat pump unit greater than the fifth preset number; the sum of the number of the second heat pump units and the first heat pump units is less than or equal to the total number of the multiple heat pump units.

[0014] It can be seen from the above embodiments that when the user needs to heat domestic hot water and heat or cool the space at the same time, since the heating of domestic hot water does not require a long-term operation of the heat pump unit, the number of heat pump units required for heating or cooling the space is relatively large, and the number of heat pump units required for domestic hot water is relatively small. In this regard, the present application controls the number of heat pump units for heating or cooling the space to be greater than the number of heat pump units for heating domestic hot water, so that more heat pump units can be used to cool or heat the space, which not only improves the user's comfort but also saves resources.

[0015] In some embodiments, the heat pump system also includes a temperature sensor for monitoring the temperature of domestic hot water; when the controller receives an instruction corresponding to the third working mode, it starts the second heat pump units that are less than or equal to the fifth preset number, and starts the first heat pump units that are greater than the fifth preset number. It is specifically configured to: obtain the temperature difference and temperature change value of the domestic hot water, the temperature difference value represents the difference between the target temperature and the current actual temperature of the domestic hot water, and the temperature change value represents the temperature change value of the domestic hot water within a preset time after receiving the instruction corresponding to the third working mode; if the temperature difference is less than or equal to the temperature change value, all the second heat pump units are turned off.

[0016] It can be seen from the above embodiment that when the temperature difference between the target temperature value of domestic hot water and the current actual temperature is less than or equal to the temperature change value of domestic hot water, it means that the speed at which the current number of heat pump units heats the domestic hot water can reach the target temperature value within the preset time. In this regard, all heat pump units heating domestic hot water are shut down to avoid continuing to heat the domestic hot water with the current number of heat pump units to a temperature higher than the target temperature, which can also save resources.

[0017] In some embodiments, the controller is further configured to: if the temperature difference is greater than the temperature change value, control the number of heat pump units for heating domestic hot water to be a sixth preset number, where the sixth preset number is a positive integer.

[0018] As can be seen from the above embodiment, when the temperature difference between the target temperature value and the current actual temperature of the domestic hot water is greater than the temperature change value of the domestic hot water, it indicates that the heating speed of the domestic hot water by the current number of heat pump units cannot reach the target temperature within the preset time. Therefore, it is necessary to continue heating the domestic hot water. Because users need to heat domestic hot water and heat or cool the space simultaneously, not all heat pump units can be used to heat domestic hot water. Therefore, when the temperature change value of the domestic hot water is less than the temperature difference between the target temperature value and the current actual temperature of the domestic hot water, the number of heat pump units heating domestic hot water is controlled to be at least one.

[0019] In some embodiments, the above-mentioned controller is also configured to determine the working mode corresponding to the heat pump unit in the current time period based on the correspondence between the working mode of the heat pump unit and the time period; use the working mode corresponding to the heat pump unit in the current time period as the working mode of the current heat pump system; and obtain instructions corresponding to the working mode of the current heat pump system.

[0020] It can be seen from the above embodiments that the heat pump system provided in the embodiments of the present application can store the working modes corresponding to each time period, so that when the user does not set a specific working mode, the working mode corresponding to the heat pump unit in the current time period is used as the working mode of the current heat pump system, thereby improving the user experience.

[0021] In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a control method for a heat pump system, wherein the heat pump system includes a plurality of heat pump units, each heat pump unit being used to heat or cool a space or to heat domestic hot water;

[0022] The method includes:

[0023] Upon receiving an instruction corresponding to the first operating mode, starting a first heat pump unit that is less than or equal to a first preset number, and starting a second heat pump unit that is greater than or equal to a second preset number; the first heat pump unit represents a heat pump unit for heating or cooling a space among the plurality of heat pump units, and the second heat pump unit represents a heat pump unit for heating domestic hot water among the plurality of heat pump units, and the first preset number is less than the second preset number;

[0024] When receiving the instruction corresponding to the second working mode, the second heat pump units less than or equal to the third preset number are turned on, and the first heat pump units greater than or equal to the fourth preset number are turned on; wherein the third preset number is less than the fourth preset number.

[0025] In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a controller comprising: one or more processors; one or more memories; wherein the one or more memories are used to store computer program code, the computer program code includes computer instructions, and when the one or more processors execute the computer instructions, the controller executes the control method provided in the second aspect.

[0026] In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium, which includes computer instructions. When the computer instructions are controlled on a computer, the computer executes the method provided in the second aspect and possible implementation methods.

[0027] In the fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a computer program product, which can be directly loaded into a memory and contains software code. After being loaded and executed by a computer, the computer program product can implement the method provided in the second aspect and possible implementation methods.

[0028] It should be noted that the above-mentioned computer instructions may be stored in whole or in part on a computer-readable storage medium. The computer-readable storage medium may be packaged together with the processor of the controller or separately from the processor of the controller, and this application does not limit this.

[0029] The beneficial effects described in the second to fifth aspects of this application can be analyzed by referring to the beneficial effects of the first aspect, and will not be repeated here. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0030] The accompanying drawings are used to provide a further understanding of the technical solution of the present invention and constitute a part of the specification. Together with the embodiments of the present application, they are used to explain the technical solution of the present invention and do not constitute a limitation on the technical solution of the present invention.

[0031] Figure 1 A schematic structural diagram of a heat pump system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0032] Figure 2 A schematic structural diagram of a heat pump unit provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0033] Figure 3 A schematic structural diagram of another heat pump unit provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0034] Figure 4 A schematic structural diagram of another heat pump unit provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0035] Figure 5 A schematic structural diagram of another heat pump unit provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0036] Figure 6 A schematic diagram of the hardware structure of a controller provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0037] Figure 7 A flow chart of a control method for a heat pump system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0038] Figure 8 A flow chart of another method for controlling a heat pump system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0039] Figure 9 A flow chart of another method for controlling a heat pump system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0040] Figure 10 A schematic diagram of the hardware structure of another controller provided in an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0041] The following will be combined with the drawings in the embodiments of this application to clearly and completely describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application. Obviously, the embodiments described are only part of the embodiments of this application, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments in this application, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without making creative efforts are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0042] In the description of the present invention, it should be understood that the terms "center", "up", "down", "front", "back", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "top", "bottom", "inside", "outside", etc., indicating the orientation or position relationship, are based on the orientation or position relationship shown in the accompanying drawings, and are only for the convenience of describing the present invention and simplifying the description, rather than indicating or implying that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore cannot be understood as limiting the present invention.

[0043] The terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly specifying the number of the technical features being referred to. Thus, a feature specified as "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of such features. Throughout this application, unless otherwise specified, "plurality" means two or more.

[0044] The term "and / or" in this article is merely a description of the association relationship between associated objects, indicating that three relationships may exist. For example, A and / or B can mean: A exists alone, A and B exist at the same time, and B exists alone.

[0045] In the description of the embodiments of the present application, it should be noted that, unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, the terms "connected" and "connect" should be understood in a broad sense. For example, it can be a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection. For those of ordinary skill in the art, the specific meanings of the above terms in this application can be understood according to the specific circumstances. In addition, when describing pipelines, the terms "connected" and "connected" used in this application have the meaning of conducting. The specific meaning needs to be understood in the context.

[0046] The terms "including," "having," and any variations thereof mentioned in the description of this application are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusions. For example, a process, method, system, product, or apparatus comprising a series of steps or units is not limited to the listed steps or units, but may optionally include other steps or units not listed, or may optionally include other steps or units inherent to the process, method, product, or apparatus.

[0047] Furthermore, in the embodiments of this application, words such as "exemplary" or "for example" are used to indicate examples, illustrations, or descriptions. Any embodiment or design described as "exemplary" or "for example" in the embodiments of this application should not be interpreted as being preferred or advantageous over other embodiments or designs. Rather, the use of words such as "exemplary" or "for example" is intended to present the relevant concepts in a concrete manner.

[0048] As described in the background technology, in the existing technology, the heat pump system often mainly has the function of heating or cooling, and the function of heating domestic hot water is supplementary. In daily life, the allocation of heat pump system resources cannot meet the various usage needs of users, which not only causes a certain amount of resource waste, but also affects the user experience.

[0049] In view of this, an embodiment of the present application provides a heat pump system and a control method thereof that can allocate the number of heat pumps used for heating, cooling or heating domestic hot water in a space according to user needs. In this way, it can not only quickly meet the various needs of users, but also avoid waste of resources.

[0050] To further describe the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, Figure 1 Shown is a structural diagram of a heat pump system provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0051] Reference Figure 1 The heat pump system 1 includes a plurality of heat pump units 10 and a controller 20. The plurality of heat pump units and the controller 20 are electrically connected, and the heat pump system 1 can be formed by cascading a plurality of heat pump units 10.

[0052] In some embodiments, as Figure 2 As shown, the heat pump unit 10 may include an indoor unit 100 , an outdoor unit 200 and connecting pipes 300 . Figure 2 The indoor unit 100 shown in the figure is an indoor hanging unit, which is merely an example. It can also be a terminal device such as a fan coil unit, a radiator or a floor heating unit. The embodiment of the present application does not impose any limitation thereto.

[0053] In some embodiments, as Figure 3 As shown, the indoor unit 100 may include an indoor heat exchanger 101 for assisting the refrigerant and the terminal equipment (such as Figure 3 Heat exchange occurs among terminal device 1, terminal device 2 and terminal device 3).

[0054] Optional, such as Figure 4 As shown, the terminal device can be a water tank 30, and the indoor heat exchanger 101 can be connected to the water tank 30, so as to heat the domestic hot water in the water tank 30. The indoor heat exchanger 101 and the water tank 30 form a cold water circulation loop.

[0055] Optional, such as Figure 5 As shown, the terminal device may be a radiator 40, and the indoor heat exchanger 101 may be connected to the radiator 40, thereby achieving heating or cooling of the indoor space.

[0056] For example, when the heat pump unit 10 is used to heat the terminal device, the indoor heat exchanger 101 works as a condenser to help the terminal device heat up. When the heat pump unit 10 is used to cool the terminal device, the indoor heat exchanger 101 works as an evaporator to help the terminal device cool down.

[0057] In some embodiments, the outdoor unit 200 is usually set outdoors to assist the refrigerant in exchanging heat with the outdoor environment. Figure 2 In the figure, the outdoor unit 200 is located outdoors on the opposite side to the indoor unit 100 across a wall surface, and therefore the outdoor unit 200 is indicated by a dotted line.

[0058] In some embodiments, continuing as Figure 3 As shown, the outdoor unit 200 includes a compressor 201, an outdoor heat exchanger 202, and a throttling device 203. The compressor 201, the outdoor heat exchanger 202, the throttling device 203, and the indoor heat exchanger 101 form a refrigerant circulation loop.

[0059] In some embodiments, the compressor 201 is disposed in the outdoor unit 200 to provide power for the refrigerant circulation and to compress the refrigerant.

[0060] In some embodiments, the outdoor heat exchanger 202 is connected to the exhaust port of the compressor 201 to enable heat exchange between the refrigerant flowing through the heat transfer pipe of the outdoor heat exchanger 202 and the outdoor air.

[0061] In some embodiments, the throttling device 203 is disposed between the outdoor heat exchanger 202 and the indoor heat exchanger 101. It has the effect of expanding the refrigerant flowing through the throttling device 203 to achieve a reduced pressure, thereby regulating the refrigerant flow rate in the refrigerant passage. Optionally, the throttling device 203 may be an expansion valve.

[0062] In some embodiments, the connecting pipe 300 is provided between the indoor unit 100 and the outdoor unit 200 for connecting the indoor unit 100 and the outdoor unit 200 to form a refrigerant circulation loop for refrigerant circulation.

[0063] In some embodiments, a temperature sensor 50 is further provided in the water tank 30 for monitoring the temperature of the water in the water tank 30 .

[0064] In some embodiments, as Figure 6As shown, the controller 20 is electrically connected to the indoor heat exchanger 101, the compressor 201, the outdoor heat exchanger 202, the throttling device 203, and the temperature sensor 50. It is configured to generate an operation control signal based on the instruction operation code and the timing signal, instructing the heat pump system 1 to execute the control command. For example, the controller 20 can determine the operating mode corresponding to the heat pump unit in the current time period based on the correspondence between the operating mode of the heat pump unit and the time period, and use the operating mode corresponding to the heat pump unit in the current time period as the current operating mode of the heat pump system.

[0065] Exemplarily, the controller 20 may be a central processing unit (CPU), a general-purpose processor, a network processor (NP), a digital signal processor (DSP), a microprocessor, a microcontroller, a programmable logic device (PLD), or any combination thereof. The controller 20 may also be other devices with processing functions, such as circuits, devices, or software modules, and the embodiments of the present application do not impose any restrictions on this.

[0066] In some embodiments, the controller 20 may be a microcontroller unit (MCU). An MCU, also known as a single-chip microcomputer, is a CPU with reduced frequency and specifications. It integrates memory, timers, USB, A / D converters, UARTs, PLCs, DMA, and other peripheral interfaces, as well as LCD driver circuits, onto a single chip, forming a chip-level computer capable of providing diverse control combinations for different applications.

[0067] In addition, the controller 20 can be used to control the operation of various components in the heat pump system 1 so that the various components of the heat pump system 1 operate to achieve various predetermined functions of the heat pump system 1.

[0068] Optionally, a controller in a heat pump system provided in an embodiment of the present application is configured to: upon receiving an instruction corresponding to a first working mode, start a first heat pump unit less than or equal to a first preset number, and start a second heat pump unit greater than or equal to a second preset number; the first heat pump unit represents a heat pump unit among multiple heat pump units for heating or cooling a space, and the second heat pump unit represents a heat pump unit among multiple heat pump units for heating domestic hot water, and the first preset number is less than the second preset number; upon receiving an instruction corresponding to a second working mode, start a second heat pump unit less than or equal to a third preset number, and start a first heat pump unit greater than or equal to a fourth preset number; wherein the third preset number is less than the fourth preset number.

[0069] Optionally, the above-mentioned controller is also configured to start the second heat pump units less than or equal to the fifth preset number, and start the first heat pump units greater than the fifth preset number when receiving an instruction corresponding to the third working mode; the sum of the number of the second heat pump units and the first heat pump units is less than or equal to the total number of multiple heat pump units.

[0070] Optionally, the above-mentioned controller is also configured to execute, when receiving an instruction corresponding to the third working mode, turning on the second heat pump units less than or equal to the fifth preset number, and turning on the first heat pump units greater than the fifth preset number, and is specifically configured to: obtain the temperature difference and temperature change value of the domestic hot water, the temperature difference value represents the difference between the target temperature and the current actual temperature of the domestic hot water, and the temperature change value represents the temperature change value of the domestic hot water within the preset time after receiving the instruction corresponding to the third working mode; if the temperature difference is less than or equal to the temperature change value, then turn off all the second heat pump units.

[0071] Optionally, the controller is further configured to control the number of heat pump units for heating domestic hot water to be a sixth preset number if the temperature difference is greater than the temperature change value, and the sixth preset number is a positive integer.

[0072] Optionally, the above-mentioned controller is also configured to determine the working mode corresponding to the heat pump unit in the current time period based on the correspondence between the working mode of the heat pump unit and the time period; use the working mode corresponding to the heat pump unit in the current time period as the working mode of the current heat pump system; and obtain instructions corresponding to the working mode of the current heat pump system.

[0073] The space heating mode, space cooling mode and domestic hot water heating mode are introduced below in conjunction with the drawings in the specification.

[0074] 1. Space heating mode

[0075] The low-temperature, low-pressure liquid refrigerant vaporizes in the outdoor heat exchanger 201 (evaporator), absorbing heat from the air and becoming a low-pressure, low-temperature gaseous refrigerant. It is then compressed by compressor 201 into a high-pressure, high-temperature gaseous refrigerant. This is then piped to the indoor heat exchanger (condenser) 202, where it exchanges heat with chilled water and becomes a low-temperature, high-pressure liquid refrigerant. After being throttled by throttling device 203, it becomes a low-temperature, low-pressure liquid refrigerant and then re-enters the outdoor heat exchanger (evaporator) 201 for heat exchange. While the high-pressure, high-temperature gaseous refrigerant exchanges heat with chilled water in the indoor heat exchanger (condenser) 202, the heat can be transferred to the space through the terminal equipment, thereby achieving space heating.

[0076] 2. Space cooling mode

[0077] The low-temperature, low-pressure liquid refrigerant vaporizes in the indoor heat exchanger (evaporator) 101, lowering the water temperature. The low-temperature, low-pressure gaseous refrigerant is compressed by the compressor 201 and becomes a high-temperature, high-pressure gas and enters the outdoor heat exchanger (condenser) 202. Since the refrigerant temperature is higher than the air temperature, the refrigerant dissipates heat into the air and condenses into a high-pressure, low-temperature liquid refrigerant. The high-pressure, low-temperature liquid refrigerant enters the indoor heat exchanger (evaporator) 101 after being throttled by the throttling device 203. Since the temperature of the refrigerant is lower than the temperature of the water, the refrigerant absorbs the temperature of the water, and the water becomes cold water and flows to the terminal equipment, thereby realizing space cooling.

[0078] 3. Domestic hot water heating mode

[0079] The principle is the same as that of space heating mode and will not be repeated here.

[0080] It should be understood that the structures illustrated in the embodiments of the present invention do not constitute specific limitations on the heat pump system. In other embodiments of the present application, the heat pump system may include more or fewer components than shown, or may combine or separate certain components, or have different component arrangements. The illustrated components may be implemented in hardware, software, or a combination of software and hardware.

[0081] The following is a detailed introduction to the embodiments of the present application in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0082] like Figure 7 As shown, an embodiment of the present application provides a control method for a heat pump system, which is applied to a controller of the heat pump system. The method includes the following steps:

[0083] S101. Obtain instructions corresponding to the current working mode of the heat pump system.

[0084] The working mode includes a first working mode and a second working mode.

[0085] Optionally, instructions corresponding to the first operating mode and the second operating mode are obtained from a memory of the heat pump system.

[0086] For example, the first operating mode may be a user-set operating mode that prioritizes using multiple heat pump units to heat domestic hot water. The second operating mode may be a user-set operating mode that prioritizes using multiple heat pump units to heat or cool a space.

[0087] When receiving an instruction corresponding to the first working mode, the controller executes the following step S102; when receiving an instruction corresponding to the second working mode, the controller executes the following step S103; when receiving an instruction corresponding to the third working mode, the controller executes the following step S104.

[0088] S102: Start a number of first heat pump units that is less than or equal to a first preset number, and start a number of second heat pump units that is greater than or equal to a second preset number.

[0089] Among them, the first heat pump unit represents a heat pump unit for heating or cooling a space among multiple heat pump units, and the second heat pump unit represents a heat pump unit for heating domestic hot water among multiple heat pump units. The first preset number is less than the second preset number.

[0090] Optionally, the first preset number may be 1, and the second preset number may be a positive integer greater than 1 and less than the total number of the plurality of heat pump units.

[0091] For example, when receiving the instruction corresponding to the first working mode, the number of heat pump units for heating or cooling the space is controlled to be 1, and all other heat pump units are controlled to heat domestic hot water.

[0092] S103: Start a number of second heat pump units that is less than or equal to a third preset number, and start a number of first heat pump units that is greater than or equal to a fourth preset number.

[0093] The third preset number is smaller than the fourth preset number.

[0094] Optionally, the third preset number may be 1, and the fourth preset number may be a positive integer greater than 1 and less than the total number of the plurality of heat pump units.

[0095] For example, when receiving the instruction corresponding to the second working mode, the number of heat pump units for heating domestic hot water is controlled to be 1, and all other heat pump units are controlled to heat or cool the space.

[0096] Figure 7The illustrated embodiment provides at least the following beneficial effects: Users may have different requirements for heat pump systems in different situations. For example, users typically require space heating or cooling over domestic hot water heating. When users need to use domestic hot water in a centralized manner, the need for domestic hot water heating is greater than the need for space heating or cooling. However, in related art, the number of heat pump units allocated for space heating or cooling and domestic hot water heating in a heat pump system is fixed, which not only fails to meet the diverse needs of users but also results in a certain amount of resource waste. In response to this, the embodiment of the present application allocates the number of heat pump units for space heating or cooling and domestic hot water heating based on received instructions corresponding to different operating modes. This allows multiple heat pump units to be prioritized for domestic hot water heating when users need centralized domestic hot water, and prioritized for space heating or cooling when users need to quickly heat or cool a space. This not only quickly meets user needs but also avoids resource waste.

[0097] In some embodiments, as Figure 8 As shown, the above step S101 can be specifically implemented as the following steps S1011-S1013.

[0098] S1011. Determine the operating mode of the heat pump unit corresponding to the current time period based on the correspondence between the operating mode of the heat pump unit and the time period.

[0099] Optionally, the heat pump system may determine the working mode commonly used by the user in each time period according to the user's usage habits, thereby establishing a corresponding relationship between the working mode and each time period.

[0100] For example, the heat pump system determines based on the user's usage habits that the user has a greater demand for domestic hot water during the time periods of 6:00-9:00 and 18:00-21:00. Therefore, the operating mode during the time periods of 6:00-9:00 and 18:00-21:00 can be determined as the first operating mode.

[0101] S1012: The operating mode corresponding to the heat pump unit in the current time period is used as the current operating mode of the heat pump system.

[0102] Exemplarily, when the current time period is 6:00-9:00 or 18:00-21:00, the first operating mode is determined as the current operating mode of the heat pump system.

[0103] S1013: Obtain instructions corresponding to the current working mode of the heat pump system.

[0104] It can be seen from the above embodiments that the heat pump system provided in the embodiments of the present application can store the working modes corresponding to each time period, so that when the user does not set a specific working mode, the working mode corresponding to the heat pump unit in the current time period is used as the working mode of the current heat pump system, thereby improving the user experience.

[0105] In some embodiments, continuing as Figure 8 As shown, the control method of the heat pump system provided by the present application further includes the following steps:

[0106] S104: Start a number of second heat pump units that is less than or equal to a fifth preset number, and start a number of first heat pump units that is greater than the fifth preset number.

[0107] The sum of the number of the second heat pump units and the number of the first heat pump units is less than or equal to the total number of the plurality of heat pump units.

[0108] Optionally, the fifth preset number may be half of the total number of the plurality of heat pump units.

[0109] It can be seen from the above embodiments that when the user needs to heat domestic hot water and heat or cool the space at the same time, since the heating of domestic hot water does not require a long-term operation of the heat pump unit, the number of heat pump units required for heating or cooling the space is relatively large, and the number of heat pump units required for domestic hot water is relatively small. In this regard, the present application controls the number of heat pump units for heating or cooling the space to be greater than the number of heat pump units for heating domestic hot water, so that more heat pump units can be used to cool or heat the space, which not only improves the user's comfort but also saves resources.

[0110] In some embodiments, the above step S104 can be specifically implemented as the following steps S1041-S1043.

[0111] S1041. Obtain the temperature difference and temperature change of domestic hot water.

[0112] The temperature difference represents the difference between the target temperature and the current actual temperature of the domestic hot water, and the temperature change value represents the temperature change value of the domestic hot water within a preset time after receiving the instruction corresponding to the third working mode.

[0113] Optionally, the heat pump system's memory stores periodically acquired water tank temperature values and user-set target temperature values. The heat pump system's controller can obtain the current water tank temperature and target temperature value stored in the memory, thereby obtaining the temperature difference and temperature change value between water and hot water.

[0114] Exemplarily, the preset duration may be 3 minutes.

[0115] S1042: If the temperature difference is less than or equal to the temperature change value, shut down all the second heat pump units.

[0116] For example, X represents the temperature change value and Y represents the temperature difference. When X ≥ 10°C and Y > 10°C, when 6°C ≤ X < 10°C and Y > 10°C, when 3°C ≤ X < 6°C and Y > 6°C, or when X < 3°C and Y > 3°C, all heat pump units heating domestic hot water are shut down.

[0117] It can be seen from the above embodiment that when the temperature difference between the target temperature value and the current actual temperature is less than or equal to the temperature change value of the domestic hot water, it means that the speed at which the current number of heat pump units heats the domestic hot water can reach the target temperature value within the preset time. In this regard, all heat pump units heating the domestic hot water are turned off to avoid continuing to heat the domestic hot water with the current number of heat pump units to a temperature higher than the target temperature, which can also save resources.

[0118] In some embodiments, the above step S104 may further include the following step S1043.

[0119] S1043. If the temperature difference is greater than the temperature change value, control the number of heat pump units for heating domestic hot water to be a sixth preset number, where the sixth preset number is a positive integer.

[0120] Exemplarily, when X ≥ 10°C and 6°C ≤ Y < 9°C, when 6°C ≤ X < 10°C and 6°C ≤ Y < 9°C, when 3°C ≤ X < 6°C and 3°C ≤ Y < 5°C, or when X < 3°C and 0°C ≤ Y < 2°C, the number of heat pump units used to heat domestic hot water is controlled to be 1.

[0121] For another example, when X ≥ 10°C and 3°C ≤ Y < 6°C, when 6°C ≤ X < 10°C and 3°C ≤ Y < 6°C, when 3°C ≤ X < 6°C and 1°C ≤ Y < 3°C, or when X < 3°C and 0°C < Y, the number of heat pump units used to heat domestic hot water is controlled to be N-2, where N is the total number of the multiple heat pump units.

[0122] For another example, when X ≥ 10°C and Y < 3°C, when 6°C ≤ X < 10°C and Y < 3°C, or when 3°C ≤ X < 6°C and Y < 1°C, the number of heat pump units used to heat domestic hot water is controlled to be N-1.

[0123] Optionally, if the temperature change value is less than a preset temperature change value, an alarm message is issued to indicate that a heat pump unit failure has occurred.

[0124] For example, the preset temperature change value may be 1°C.

[0125] As can be seen from the above embodiment, when the temperature difference between the target temperature and the current actual temperature is greater than the temperature change of the domestic hot water, it indicates that the current number of heat pump units cannot heat the domestic hot water to the target temperature within the preset time. Therefore, further heating of the domestic hot water is necessary. Furthermore, because users need to heat domestic hot water and heat or cool the space simultaneously, not all heat pump units can be used to heat domestic hot water. Therefore, when the temperature change of the domestic hot water is less than the temperature difference between the target temperature and the current actual temperature of the domestic hot water, the number of heat pump units heating the domestic hot water is controlled to be at least one.

[0126] In some embodiments, the above step S104 may also be specifically implemented as the following steps S1044-S1045.

[0127] S1044: Obtain the temperature difference value and the temperature change value of the indoor space.

[0128] The temperature difference of the indoor space represents the difference between the target space temperature and the current actual space temperature, and the temperature change value of the indoor space represents the temperature change value of the indoor space within a preset time after receiving the instruction corresponding to the third working mode.

[0129] S1045: If the temperature difference of the indoor space is less than or equal to the temperature change value of the indoor space, turn off all heat pump units that heat or cool the space.

[0130] It can be seen from the above embodiment that when the temperature difference in the space is less than or equal to the temperature change value of the indoor space, it means that within the preset time, the temperature value in the space can reach the target temperature value set by the user. In this case, all heat pump units that heat or cool the space can be connected. In this way, not only can the space temperature value be guaranteed to meet the needs of the user, but also resources can be saved.

[0131] In some embodiments, as Figure 9As shown, the control method of the heat pump system provided in the embodiment of the present application may further include: when the operating mode of the heat pump system is the first operating mode, the number of heat pump units activated for heating or cooling the space is 1, and the number of heat pump units activated for heating domestic hot water is N-1, determining whether the temperature of the domestic hot water is greater than the target hot water temperature; if so, exiting the first operating mode and entering the third operating mode; if not, continuing to activate the number of heat pump units for heating or cooling the space is 1, and the number of heat pump units activated for heating domestic hot water is N-1. Alternatively, when the operating mode of the heat pump system is the second operating mode, the number of heat pump units activated for heating domestic hot water is 1, and the number of heat pump units activated for heating or cooling the space is N-1, determining whether the indoor temperature is greater than the target space temperature; if so, exiting the second operating mode and entering the third operating mode; if not, continuing to activate the number of heat pump units for heating domestic hot water is 1, and the number of heat pump units activated for heating or cooling the space is N-1.

[0132] It can be seen that the above mainly introduces the solution provided by the embodiment of the present application from the perspective of the method. In order to realize the above functions, the embodiment of the present application provides hardware structures and / or software modules corresponding to the execution of each function. It should be easily appreciated by those skilled in the art that, in combination with the modules and algorithm steps of each example described in the embodiment disclosed herein, the embodiment of the present application can be implemented in the form of hardware or a combination of hardware and computer software. Whether a function is executed in the form of hardware or computer software driving hardware depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Professional and technical personnel can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered to exceed the scope of the present invention.

[0133] In the embodiment of the present application, the controller can be divided into functional modules according to the above method example. For example, each functional module can be divided according to each function, or two or more functions can be integrated into one processing module. The above integrated modules can be implemented in the form of hardware or in the form of software functional modules. Optionally, the division of modules in the embodiment of the present application is schematic and is only a logical function division. In actual implementation, there may be other division methods.

[0134] The present application also provides a hardware structure diagram of a controller, such as Figure 10 As shown, the controller 20 further includes a processor 21, and optionally, a memory 22 and a communication interface 23 connected to the processor 21. The processor 21, the memory 22 and the communication interface 23 are connected via a bus 24.

[0135] The processor 21 may be a central processing unit (CPU), a general-purpose processor, a network processor (NP), a digital signal processor (DSP), a microprocessor, a microcontroller, a programmable logic device (PLD), or any combination thereof. The processor 21 may also be any other device having a processing function, such as a circuit, a device, or a software module. The processor 21 may also include multiple CPUs, and the processor 21 may be a single-core (single-CPU) processor or a multi-core (multi-CPU) processor. The processor here may refer to one or more devices, circuits, or processing cores for processing data (such as computer program instructions).

[0136] The memory 22 may be a read-only memory (ROM) or other types of static storage devices that can store static information and instructions, a random access memory (RAM) or other types of dynamic storage devices that can store information and instructions, or an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), a compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) or other optical disc storage, optical disc storage (including compressed optical discs, laser discs, optical discs, digital versatile discs, Blu-ray discs, etc.), a magnetic disk storage medium or other magnetic storage device, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store desired program codes in the form of instructions or data structures and can be accessed by a computer, and the present embodiment of the application does not impose any restrictions on this. The memory 22 may exist independently or be integrated with the processor 21. Among them, the memory 22 may contain computer program code. The processor 21 is used to execute the computer program code stored in the memory 22, thereby realizing the control method provided in the embodiment of the present application.

[0137] The communication interface 23 can be used to communicate with other devices or communication networks (such as Ethernet, radio access network (RAN), wireless local area network (WLAN), etc.). The communication interface 23 can be a module, a circuit, a transceiver or any device that can achieve communication.

[0138] The bus 24 may be a peripheral component interconnect (PCI) bus or an extended industry standard architecture (EISA) bus. The bus 24 may be divided into an address bus, a data bus, a control bus, etc. For ease of representation, Figure 10 Only one thick line is used in the diagram, but this does not mean that there is only one bus or one type of bus.

[0139] An embodiment of the present application further provides a computer-readable storage medium comprising computer-executable instructions, which, when executed on a computer, enables the computer to execute any one of the heat pump system control methods provided in the above embodiments.

[0140] An embodiment of the present application further provides a computer program product comprising computer-executable instructions, which, when executed on a computer, enables the computer to execute any one of the heat pump system control methods provided in the above embodiments.

[0141] In the above embodiments, all or part of the embodiments can be implemented by software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented using a software program, all or part of the embodiments can be implemented in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer-executable instructions. When the computer-executable instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, all or part of the processes or functions according to the embodiments of the present application are generated. The computer can be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable device. The computer-executable instructions can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another computer-readable storage medium. For example, the computer-executable instructions can be transmitted from one website, computer, server, or data center to another website, computer, server, or data center via a wired (e.g., coaxial cable, optical fiber, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) method. The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer or a data storage device such as a server or data center that includes one or more media integrated therein. The available medium may be a magnetic medium (eg, a floppy disk, a hard disk, a magnetic tape), an optical medium (eg, a DVD), or a semiconductor medium (eg, a solid state disk (SSD)).

[0142] Although the present application is described herein in conjunction with various embodiments, in the process of implementing the claimed application, those skilled in the art can understand and implement other changes to the disclosed embodiments by reviewing the drawings, the disclosure, and the appended claims. In the claims, the word "comprising" does not exclude other components or steps, and "a" or "an" does not exclude multiple situations. A single processor or other unit can implement several functions listed in the claims. Certain measures are recorded in different dependent claims, but this does not mean that these measures cannot be combined to produce good results.

[0143] Although the present application has been described with reference to specific features and embodiments thereof, it will be apparent that various modifications and combinations may be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the present application. Accordingly, this specification and the drawings are merely illustrative of the present application as defined by the appended claims and are deemed to cover any and all modifications, variations, combinations or equivalents within the scope of the present application. Obviously, those skilled in the art may make various modifications and variations to the present application without departing from the spirit and scope of the present application. Thus, the present application is intended to include such modifications and variations as fall within the scope of the claims of the present application and their equivalents.

[0144] The above is only a specific embodiment of the present application, but the scope of protection of the present application is not limited thereto. Any changes or replacements within the technical scope disclosed in the present application should be included in the scope of protection of the present application. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present application should be based on the scope of protection of the claims.

Claims

1. A heat pump system, characterized in that: include: A plurality of heat pump units, each of which is used to heat or cool a space or to heat domestic hot water; A controller is electrically connected to the plurality of heat pump units, and the controller is configured to: Upon receiving an instruction corresponding to a first operating mode, starting a first heat pump unit that is less than or equal to a first preset number, and starting a second heat pump unit that is greater than or equal to a second preset number; the first heat pump unit represents a heat pump unit for heating or cooling a space among the plurality of heat pump units, and the second heat pump unit represents a heat pump unit for heating domestic hot water among the plurality of heat pump units, and the first preset number is less than the second preset number; When receiving the instruction corresponding to the second working mode, the second heat pump units less than or equal to the third preset number are turned on, and the first heat pump units greater than or equal to the fourth preset number are turned on; wherein the third preset number is less than the fourth preset number.

2. The heat pump system according to claim 1, characterized in that The controller is further configured to: When receiving the instruction corresponding to the third working mode, the second heat pump units less than or equal to the fifth preset number are turned on, and the first heat pump units greater than the fifth preset number are turned on; the sum of the number of the second heat pump units and the first heat pump units is less than or equal to the total number of the multiple heat pump units.

3. The heat pump system according to claim 2, characterized in that Also included is a temperature sensor to monitor the temperature of domestic hot water; The controller executes, upon receiving the instruction corresponding to the third working mode, starting the second heat pump units that are less than or equal to the fifth preset number, and starting the first heat pump units that are greater than the fifth preset number, and is specifically configured as follows: Obtaining a temperature difference value and a temperature change value of the domestic hot water, wherein the temperature difference value represents a difference between a target temperature and a current actual temperature of the domestic hot water, and the temperature change value represents a temperature change value of the domestic hot water within a preset time period after receiving an instruction corresponding to the third operating mode; If the temperature difference is less than or equal to the temperature change value, all the second heat pump units are turned off.

4. The heat pump system according to claim 3, characterized in that The controller is further configured to: If the temperature difference is greater than the temperature change value, the number of heat pump units for heating the domestic hot water is controlled to be a sixth preset number, and the sixth preset number is a positive integer.

5. The heat pump system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: The controller is further configured to: Determine the operating mode of the heat pump unit corresponding to the current time period according to the corresponding relationship between the operating mode of the heat pump unit and the time period; The working mode corresponding to the heat pump unit in the current time period is used as the working mode of the current heat pump system; Obtain instructions corresponding to the current operating mode of the heat pump system.

6. A control method for a heat pump system, characterized in that: The heat pump system includes a plurality of heat pump units, each of which is used to heat or cool a space or heat domestic hot water; The method comprises: Upon receiving an instruction corresponding to a first operating mode, starting a first heat pump unit that is less than or equal to a first preset number, and starting a second heat pump unit that is greater than or equal to a second preset number; the first heat pump unit represents a heat pump unit for heating or cooling a space among the plurality of heat pump units, and the second heat pump unit represents a heat pump unit for heating domestic hot water among the plurality of heat pump units, and the first preset number is less than the second preset number; When receiving the instruction corresponding to the second working mode, the second heat pump units less than or equal to the third preset number are turned on, and the first heat pump units greater than or equal to the fourth preset number are turned on; wherein the third preset number is less than the fourth preset number.

7. The control method of the heat pump system according to claim 6, characterized in that: The method further comprises: When receiving the instruction corresponding to the third working mode, the second heat pump units less than or equal to the fifth preset number are turned on, and the first heat pump units greater than the fifth preset number are turned on; the sum of the number of the second heat pump units and the first heat pump units is less than or equal to the total number of the multiple heat pump units.

8. The control method of the heat pump system according to claim 7, characterized in that: The method further comprises: Obtaining a temperature difference value and a temperature change value of the domestic hot water, wherein the temperature difference value represents a difference between a target temperature and a current actual temperature of the domestic hot water, and the temperature change value represents a temperature change value of the domestic hot water within a preset time period after receiving an instruction corresponding to the third operating mode; If the temperature difference is less than or equal to the temperature change value, all the second heat pump units are turned off.

9. The control method of the heat pump system according to claim 8, characterized in that: The method further comprises: If the temperature difference is greater than the temperature change value, the number of heat pump units for heating the domestic hot water is controlled to be a sixth preset number, and the sixth preset number is a positive integer.

10. The control method of a heat pump system according to any one of claims 6 to 9, characterized in that: The method further comprises: Determine the operating mode of the heat pump unit corresponding to the current time period according to the corresponding relationship between the operating mode of the heat pump unit and the time period; The working mode corresponding to the heat pump unit in the current time period is used as the working mode of the current heat pump system; Obtain instructions corresponding to the current operating mode of the heat pump system.

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