Central air conditioning system and control method thereof

Abstract

The embodiment of the invention provides a central air conditioning system and a control method thereof, relates to the technical field of air conditioners, and aims to reduce the communication load of a communication bus. The central air-conditioning system comprises at least one repeater including a first repeater; wherein the first repeater comprises a first communication port and a second communication port; the at least one first air conditioning device is connected with the first communication port of the first repeater; the at least one second air conditioning device is connected with the second communication port of the first repeater; a first repeater configured to: acquire control information through the first communication port; wherein the control information comprises an identifier of the target air conditioning equipment; under the condition that the type of the control information is a centralized control type and the identifier of the target air conditioning equipment exists in a routing table corresponding to the second communication port, the control information is sent to the target air conditioning equipment through the second communication port; wherein the routing table is used for recording an identifier of at least one second air conditioning device.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of central air conditioning, and in particular to a central air conditioning system and a control method thereof. Background Art

[0002] As the size of buildings continues to increase, the scale of central air-conditioning systems is also increasing.

[0003] When deploying multiple air-conditioning devices in a central air-conditioning system, the communication buses between the multiple air-conditioning devices are mostly RS-485 communication buses, Homebus communication buses, etc. The maximum communication distance of these communication buses is about 1,000 meters, which cannot support long-distance communication. In addition, the number of air-conditioning devices that can be set on these communication buses is also limited, which makes large-scale deployment of central air-conditioning systems difficult.

[0004] At present, when facing the large-scale deployment of central air-conditioning systems, central air-conditioning system manufacturers usually divide the central air-conditioning system into multiple subsystems so that each subsystem meets the maximum communication distance of the communication bus, and the number of air-conditioning devices in each subsystem meets the maximum number of air-conditioning devices that can be set on the communication bus, and then the control device of each subsystem realizes centralized control of the air-conditioning devices in each subsystem. However, this method cannot meet the real large-scale deployment needs of central air-conditioning systems. Summary of the invention

[0005] The present application provides a central air-conditioning system and a control method thereof, which are used to reduce the communication load of a communication bus.

[0006] In order to achieve the above objectives, this application adopts the following technical solutions.

[0007] In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a central air-conditioning system, which includes: at least one repeater, including a first repeater; wherein the first repeater includes a first communication port and a second communication port; at least one first air-conditioning device, connected to the first communication port of the first repeater; at least one second air-conditioning device, connected to the second communication port of the first repeater; the first repeater is configured to: obtain control information through the first communication port; wherein the control information includes an identifier of the destination air-conditioning device; when the type of the control information is a centralized control type and the identifier of the destination air-conditioning device exists in the routing table corresponding to the second communication port, the control information is sent to the destination air-conditioning device through the second communication port; wherein the routing table is used to record the identifier of at least one second air-conditioning device.

[0008] The technical solution provided by the embodiment of the present application brings at least the following beneficial effects: the embodiment of the present application provides a central air-conditioning system, including at least one repeater, and the first repeater of the at least one repeater can be connected to at least one second air-conditioning device, so as to increase the number of air-conditioning devices in the central air-conditioning system, and, when the type of the control information is a centralized control type and the identifier of the destination air-conditioning device exists in the routing table corresponding to the second communication port, the control information can be sent to the destination air-conditioning device through the second communication port, thereby filtering out information that is not related to the control information of the centralized control type and control information whose identifier of the destination air-conditioning device is not in the routing table. In this way, selectively forwarding the control information can reduce the transmission of invalid information, thereby reducing the communication load of the communication bus, and then the central air-conditioning system can be equipped with a larger number of air-conditioning devices to expand the deployment scale of the central air-conditioning system.

[0009] In some embodiments, at least one repeater further includes at least one second repeater, and the at least one second repeater is connected in series between the second communication port of the first repeater and at least one second air-conditioning device; the first repeater is configured to send the control information to the destination air-conditioning device through the second communication port when the type of the control information is a centralized control type and the identifier of the destination air-conditioning device exists in the routing table corresponding to the second communication port. Specifically, the control information is sent to the at least one second repeater through the second communication port, so that the at least one second repeater sends the control information to the destination air-conditioning device.

[0010] In some embodiments, the first repeater is further configured to: verify the control information to obtain a verification result; the verification result includes a normal verification result or an abnormal verification result; if the verification result is an abnormal verification result, discard the control information.

[0011] In some embodiments, at least one first air-conditioning device is connected to the first communication port of the target first repeater through a first communication bus; the second air-conditioning device is connected to the second communication port of the target first repeater through a second communication bus; before the first repeater is configured to send control information to the destination air-conditioning device through the second communication port, the first repeater is also configured to: obtain the communication status of the second communication bus; the communication status includes an idle state or an occupied state; when the communication status is an occupied state, cache the control information.

[0012] In some embodiments, the control information is recorded in a message header of a communication message received by the first repeater, and the first repeater is further configured to send the message body of the communication message to the destination air-conditioning device through the second communication port based on a synchronous transmission method.

[0013] In some embodiments, the central air-conditioning system also includes: a centralized controller; the first repeater is also configured to: obtain operating status information of the central air-conditioning system through the second communication port; the operating status information includes an identifier of a destination device; when the type of the operating status information is a centralized control type and the identifier of the destination air-conditioning device exists in the routing table corresponding to the first communication port, the operating status information is sent to the destination device through the first communication port; wherein the routing table corresponding to the first communication port is used to record the identifiers of at least one first air-conditioning device and a centralized controller.

[0014] In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a control method for a central air-conditioning system, which is applied to a central air-conditioning system, and the method includes: obtaining control information through a first communication port; wherein the control information includes an identifier of a destination air-conditioning device; when the type of the control information is a centralized control type and the identifier of the destination air-conditioning device exists in a routing table corresponding to a second communication port, the control information is sent to the destination air-conditioning device through the second communication port; wherein the routing table is used to record the identifier of at least one second air-conditioning device.

[0015] In some embodiments, when the type of control information is a centralized control type and the identification of the destination air-conditioning device exists in the routing table corresponding to the second communication port, the control information is sent to the destination air-conditioning device through the second communication port, including: sending the control information to at least one second repeater through the second communication port, so that the at least one second repeater sends the control information to the destination air-conditioning device.

[0016] In some embodiments, the method further includes: verifying the control information to obtain a verification result; the verification result includes a normal verification result or an abnormal verification result; if the verification result is an abnormal verification result, discarding the control information.

[0017] In some embodiments, the method further includes: acquiring a communication state of the second communication bus; the communication state includes an idle state or an occupied state; and when the communication state is an occupied state, caching control information.

[0018] In some embodiments, the method further includes: sending the message body of the communication message to the destination air-conditioning device through the second communication port based on a synchronous transmission mode.

[0019] In some embodiments, the method also includes: obtaining operating status information of the central air-conditioning system through a second communication port; the operating status information includes an identifier of a destination device; when the type of the operating status information is a centralized control type and the identifier of the destination air-conditioning device exists in the routing table corresponding to the first communication port, the operating status information is sent to the destination device through the first communication port; wherein the routing table corresponding to the first communication port is used to record the identifiers of at least one first air-conditioning device and a centralized controller.

[0020] 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 codes, the computer program codes include computer instructions, and when the one or more processors execute the computer instructions, the controller executes any one of the central air-conditioning system control methods provided in the second aspect.

[0021] 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 executed on a computer, the computer executes any one of the central air-conditioning system control methods provided in the second aspect.

[0022] 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 any central air-conditioning system control method provided in the second aspect.

[0023] It should be noted that the above computer instructions may be stored in whole or in part on a computer-readable storage medium, wherein the computer-readable storage medium may be packaged together with the processor of the controller, or may be packaged separately from the processor of the controller, which is not limited in this application.

[0024] The beneficial effects described in the second to fifth aspects of the present application can be referred to the beneficial effect analysis of the first aspect and will not be repeated here. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0025] 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.

[0026] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the composition of a central air-conditioning system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0027] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of the structure of a first repeater provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0028] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of another central air conditioning system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0029] Figure 4 A schematic diagram of another central air conditioning system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0030] Figure 5 A schematic diagram of another central air conditioning system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0031] Figure 6 A schematic diagram of another central air conditioning system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0032] Figure 7 A schematic diagram of another central air conditioning system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0033] Figure 8 A schematic diagram of the hardware configuration of a first repeater provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0034] Fig. 9 A schematic diagram of a connection of multiple repeaters provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0035] Fig.10 A flow chart of a control method for a central air-conditioning system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0036] Fig.11 A flow chart of another method for controlling a central air conditioning system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0037] Fig.12 A flow chart of another method for controlling a central air conditioning system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0038] Fig.13 A flow chart of another method for controlling a central air conditioning system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0039] Fig.14 A flow chart of another method for controlling a central air conditioning system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0040] Fig.15 A flowchart of another method for controlling a central air-conditioning system provided in an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

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

[0042] It should be noted that all directional indications in the embodiments of the present invention (such as up, down, left, right, front, back, etc.) are only used to explain the relative position relationship, movement status, etc. between the components under a certain specific posture (as shown in the accompanying drawings). If the specific posture changes, the directional indication will also change accordingly.

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

[0044] In the description of this application, it should be noted that, unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, the terms "connected" and "connection" should be understood in a broad sense, for example, it can be a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection. For ordinary technicians in this field, the specific meanings of the above terms in this application can be understood according to specific circumstances. In addition, when describing pipelines, the terms "connected" and "connection" used in this application have the meaning of conduction. The specific meaning needs to be understood in conjunction with the context.

[0045] In the embodiments of the present 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 the present application should not be interpreted as being more preferred or more advantageous than other embodiments or designs. Specifically, the use of words such as "exemplary" or "for example" is intended to present related concepts in a specific way.

[0046] The central air conditioning system in the embodiment of the present application performs a refrigeration cycle of the central air conditioning system by using a compressor, a condenser, an electronic expansion valve, an evaporator and a four-way valve as a refrigerant circulation loop. The refrigeration cycle includes a series of processes involving compression, condensation, expansion and evaporation, and supplies refrigerant to the conditioned and heat-exchanged air.

[0047] The compressor compresses the refrigerant gas in a high temperature and high pressure state and discharges the compressed refrigerant gas. The discharged refrigerant gas flows into the condenser. The condenser condenses the compressed refrigerant into a liquid phase, and the heat is released to the surrounding environment through the condensation process.

[0048] The electronic expansion valve expands the high-temperature and high-pressure liquid refrigerant condensed in the condenser into a low-pressure liquid refrigerant. The evaporator evaporates the refrigerant expanded in the electronic expansion valve and returns the refrigerant gas in a low-temperature and low-pressure state to the compressor. The evaporator can achieve a refrigeration effect by utilizing the latent heat of evaporation of the refrigerant to exchange heat with the material to be cooled. In the entire cycle, the air conditioning system can adjust the temperature of the indoor space.

[0049] The outdoor unit of the central air conditioning system refers to a part of a refrigeration cycle including a compressor and an outdoor heat exchanger, the indoor unit of the central air conditioning system includes an indoor heat exchanger, and the expansion valve may be provided in the indoor unit or the outdoor unit.

[0050] The indoor heat exchanger and the outdoor heat exchanger function as a condenser or an evaporator. When the indoor heat exchanger functions as a condenser, the central air conditioning system functions as a heater in a heating mode, and when the indoor heat exchanger functions as an evaporator, the central air conditioning system functions as a cooler in a cooling mode.

[0051] In order to expand the deployment scale of the central air-conditioning system, an embodiment of the present application provides a control method for the central air-conditioning system, which receives control information through a first repeater among at least one repeater, and when the type of the control information is a centralized control type and the identifier of the destination air-conditioning device exists in the routing table corresponding to the second communication port, the control information can be sent to the destination air-conditioning device through the second communication port, thereby filtering out information that is not related to the control information of the centralized control type and control information whose identifier of the destination air-conditioning device is not in the routing table. In this way, selectively forwarding control information can reduce the transmission of invalid information, thereby reducing the communication load of the communication bus, and then the central air-conditioning system can be equipped with a larger number of air-conditioning devices to expand the deployment scale of the central air-conditioning system.

[0052] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the composition of a central air conditioning system provided by the present application according to an exemplary embodiment. Figure 1 As shown, the central air-conditioning system 10 includes a centralized controller 11 , at least one first air-conditioning device 12 , at least one second air-conditioning device 13 and a first repeater 14 .

[0053] It should be noted that Figure 1 The number of the first air conditioning devices 12 and the number of the second air conditioning devices 13 shown are only examples, and the embodiment of the present application does not impose any specific limitation on this.

[0054] The first air conditioning device 12 includes at least one indoor unit 121 , at least one first wired controller 122 and an outdoor unit 123 , and the second air conditioning device 13 includes at least one indoor unit 131 , at least one second wired controller 132 and an outdoor unit 122 .

[0055] In some embodiments, the centralized controller 11 is connected to a plurality of air-conditioning devices via a communication bus, and is used to centrally manage and control the plurality of connected air-conditioning devices.

[0056] For example, Figure 1 As shown, the centralized controller 11 is connected to at least one first air conditioning device 12 and at least one second air conditioning device 13 through a communication bus, so that the centralized controller 11 can centrally manage and control the at least one first air conditioning device 12 and the at least one second air conditioning device 13 .

[0057] Optionally, the communication bus may be a Homebus bus, an RS-485 bus, or other buses that comply with standard communication protocols. The embodiments of the present application do not impose any special restrictions on the type of the communication bus.

[0058] In some embodiments, the first air conditioning device 12 and the second air conditioning device 13 are devices for adjusting indoor temperature, humidity and air quality. The centralized controller 11 can centrally manage and control the first air conditioning device 12 and the second air conditioning device 13 to adjust the indoor temperature, humidity and air quality.

[0059] In some embodiments, a first repeater 14 is disposed between at least one first air-conditioning device 12 and at least one second air-conditioning device 13, and is used to realize a communication connection between at least one second air-conditioning device 13 and a centralized controller 11, so that the control information sent by the centralized controller 11 is sent to at least one second air-conditioning device 13 through the first repeater 14, thereby realizing centralized management and control of at least one second air-conditioning device 13 by the centralized controller 11.

[0060] Figure 2 FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a first repeater according to an exemplary embodiment of the present application. Figure 2 As shown, the first repeater 14 includes a first communication port 141 , a second communication port 142 , a power port 143 and a controller 144 .

[0061] It should be noted that the first communication port 141 and the second communication port 142 are designed identically in terms of hardware and software functions, so the first communication port 141 can be used as the second communication port 142, and the second communication port 142 can also be used as the first communication port 141. This design facilitates the installation of the first repeater 14 and avoids the problem of the installer installing the first communication port 141 and the second communication port 142 in reverse.

[0062] In some embodiments, the first communication port 141 is connected to the first air conditioning device 12 via the first communication bus 151 , thereby realizing the connection between the first repeater 14 and the first air conditioning device 12 .

[0063] In some embodiments, the second communication port 142 is connected to the second air conditioning device 13 via the second communication bus 152 , thereby realizing the connection between the first repeater 14 and the second air conditioning device 13 .

[0064] In some embodiments, the power port 143 is used to connect to an external power source to provide power to the first repeater 14 .

[0065] In some embodiments, the controller 144 refers to a device that can generate an operation control signal according to the instruction operation code and the timing signal to instruct the first repeater 14 to execute the control instruction of data transmission and connection. Exemplarily, the controller can be a central processing unit (CPU), a general-purpose processor network processor (NP), a digital signal processor (DSP), a microprocessor, a microcontroller, a programmable logic device (PLD) or any combination thereof. The controller can 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 addition, the controller 144 can be used to control the operation of various components inside the first repeater 14 so that the various components of the first repeater 14 can operate to achieve various predetermined functions of the first repeater 14 .

[0067] In some embodiments, Figure 3 As shown, the central air-conditioning system 10 may further include at least one second repeater 21 and at least one third air-conditioning device 22 .

[0068] It should be noted that Figure 3 The number of the second repeaters 21 and the number of the third air-conditioning devices 22 shown are only examples, and the embodiments of the present application do not impose specific limitations on this.

[0069] The third air conditioning device 22 includes at least one indoor unit 221 and an outdoor unit 222 .

[0070] In some embodiments, at least one second repeater 21 is serially connected between the second communication port 142 of the first repeater 14 and at least one second air conditioning device 13. In addition, the second repeater 21 includes a third communication port and a fourth communication port, and the third communication port of each second repeater 21 can also be connected to at least one third air conditioning device 22.

[0071] In addition, reference may be made to the above-mentioned specific description of the first communication port 141 for the third communication port, and reference may be made to the above-mentioned specific description of the second communication port 142 for the fourth communication port, which will not be repeated here.

[0072] In some embodiments, Figure 4 As shown, the central air conditioning system 10 may further include at least one third repeater 31, at least one fourth air conditioning device 32 and at least one fifth air conditioning device 33. The third repeater 32 may be connected to the fourth air conditioning device 32 and the fifth air conditioning device 33, respectively.

[0073] It should be noted that Figure 4 The number of the third repeaters 31 , the number of the fourth air conditioning devices 32 , and the number of the fifth air conditioning devices 33 shown are only examples, and the embodiment of the present application does not impose any specific limitation on this.

[0074] In some embodiments, the third repeater 31 includes a fifth communication port and a sixth communication port. The fifth communication port of the third repeater 31 can be connected to the fourth air conditioning device 32 , and the sixth communication port can be connected to the fifth air conditioning device 33 .

[0075] In addition, reference may be made to the above-mentioned specific description of the first communication port 141 for the fifth communication port, and reference may be made to the above-mentioned specific description of the second communication port 142 for the sixth communication port, which will not be repeated here.

[0076] In some embodiments, the third repeater 31 may be connected in parallel and / or in series with the first repeater 14 .

[0077] For example, Figure 4 As shown, the third repeater 31 is connected in parallel with the first repeater 14 .

[0078] For example, Figure 5 As shown, the third repeater 31 is connected in series with the first repeater 14 .

[0079] It should be noted that when the third repeater 31 is connected in series with the first repeater 14 , the fourth communication port of the third repeater 31 can be connected to the first air conditioner 12 or to the fifth air conditioner 33 connected to another third repeater 31 .

[0080] For example, Figure 6 As shown, a portion of at least one third repeater 31 is connected in series with the first repeater 14 , and another portion is connected in parallel with the first repeater 14 .

[0081] In some embodiments, Figure 7 As shown, the central air conditioning system 10 may further include: at least one wire controller 41 .

[0082] It should be noted that Figure 7 The number of the first wire controllers 41 shown is only an example, and the embodiment of the present application does not impose any specific limitation on this.

[0083] Figure 8 FIG. 1 is a hardware configuration block diagram of a first repeater provided by the present application according to an exemplary embodiment. Figure 8 As shown, the first repeater 14 may further include one or more of the following: a communicator 43 and a memory 42 .

[0084] In some embodiments, the communicator 43 is used to establish a communication connection with other network entities, such as the centralized controller 11, at least one first air conditioning device 12, at least one second air conditioning device 13, etc. The communicator 43 may include a radio frequency (RF) module, a cellular module, a wireless fidelity (WIFI) module, and a GPS module. Taking the RF module as an example, the RF module can be used to receive and send signals, in particular, send the received information to the controller 144 for processing; in addition, send the signal generated by the controller 144. Generally, the RF circuit may include but is not limited to an antenna, at least one amplifier, a transceiver, a coupler, a low noise amplifier (LNA), a duplexer, etc.

[0085] In some embodiments, the memory 42 can be used to store software programs and data, such as a routing table corresponding to the first communication port 141 and a routing table corresponding to the second communication port 142. The controller 144 executes various functions and data processing of the air-conditioning system 10 by running the software programs or data stored in the memory 42. The memory 42 may include a high-speed random access memory, and may also include a non-volatile memory, such as at least one disk storage device, a flash memory device, or other volatile solid-state storage device. The memory 42 stores an operating system that enables the air-conditioning system 10 to run. In the present application, the memory 42 can store an operating system and various application programs, and can also store code for executing the control method of the air-conditioning system provided in the embodiment of the present application.

[0086] In some embodiments, the routing table corresponding to the first communication port 141 is used to record the identifiers of all air conditioning devices and the centralized controller 11 directly or indirectly connected to the first communication port 141. The routing table corresponding to the second communication port 142 is used to record the identifiers of all air conditioning devices directly or indirectly connected to the second communication port 142.

[0087] For example, Fig. 9 As shown, the centralized controller 11 and the air conditioner 1 are indirectly connected to the first communication port 141 of the first repeater 14 through the repeater M, and the air conditioner 2 is directly connected to the first communication port of the first repeater 14. The routing table A is used to record the identifications of the air conditioners 1, 2 and the centralized controller 11.

[0088] The air conditioner 3 is directly connected to the first communication port of the first repeater 14 , and the air conditioner 4 is indirectly connected to the first communication port 141 of the first repeater 14 via the repeater N. Therefore, the routing table B is used to record the identifications of the air conditioners 3 and 4 .

[0089] Those skilled in the art will understand that Figure 8 The hardware structure shown in the figure does not constitute a limitation on the first repeater. The first repeater may include more or fewer components than shown in the figure, or combine certain components, or arrange the components differently. In addition, the composition of the central air-conditioning system shown above does not constitute a limitation on the central air-conditioning system. The central air-conditioning system may include more or fewer components than shown in the figure, or combine certain components, or arrange the components differently.

[0090] The embodiments provided in this application are described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0091] like Fig.10 As shown, the embodiment of the present application provides a control method for a central air conditioning system, the method comprising the following steps:

[0092] S101: A first repeater obtains control information.

[0093] The control information includes the identifier of the destination air-conditioning device and the identifier of the sending air-conditioning device.

[0094] In some embodiments, the first repeater can determine a unique destination air-conditioning device according to the identification of the target air-conditioning device. Optionally, the identification of the destination air-conditioning device can be a serial number, MAC address, production batch number, etc. of the destination air-conditioning device.

[0095] In some embodiments, when a user needs to use the air-conditioning equipment of the central air-conditioning system for cooling or heating, the user can send control information to the target air-conditioning equipment through a centralized controller, a wire controller corresponding to the air-conditioning equipment, a terminal device connected to the air-conditioning equipment for communication, etc.

[0096] Furthermore, the first repeater located on the communication bus can receive the control information through the first communication port to send the control information to the destination air-conditioning device, thereby controlling the destination air-conditioning device.

[0097] In one example, based on Figure 1 In the central air conditioning system shown, when the first repeater does not need to be connected to the centralized controller through other repeaters, the user can select the target air conditioning device through the human-computer interaction device of the centralized controller, and send control information, such as temperature adjustment information, to the target air conditioning device through the centralized controller. Further, the first repeater will receive the control information.

[0098] In another example, based on Figure 4 In the central air-conditioning system shown, when the first repeater needs to be connected to the centralized controller through other repeaters, the user can also select the target air-conditioning equipment through the human-computer interaction device of the centralized controller and send control information, such as temperature adjustment information, to the target air-conditioning equipment through the centralized controller.

[0099] Furthermore, the above-mentioned other repeaters will receive the control information. When the type of the control information is a centralized control type and the identification of the destination air-conditioning equipment exists in the routing table corresponding to the second communication port (reference can be made to the specific description of the control information in the following step S102), the other repeaters will send the control information to the first repeater through the first communication port, so that the controller of the first repeater can receive the control information.

[0100] S102: When the type of the control information is a centralized control type and the identification of the destination air conditioner exists in the routing table corresponding to the second communication port, the first repeater sends the control information to the destination air conditioner through the second communication port.

[0101] The routing table corresponding to the second communication port is used to record the identification of at least one second air-conditioning device, and the routing table corresponding to the first communication port is used to record the identification of at least one first air-conditioning device.

[0102] It can be understood that the communication bus of the central air-conditioning system can transmit centralized control type control information sent by the centralized controller, and can also transmit non-centralized control type control information sent by other control devices (such as the wire controller corresponding to the air-conditioning equipment, and the terminal device connected to the air-conditioning equipment for communication), and can also transmit other communication information, such as sensor data, status information of the central air-conditioning system, etc.

[0103] Since the communication bus needs to carry multiple types of information, the communication load will increase, which may lead to congestion of the communication channel, increase of transmission delay and decrease of system response speed.

[0104] Therefore, by setting the type condition (that is, the type of control information is a centralized control type), when the user uses a centralized controller to control the air-conditioning equipment, other information that is not related to the control information of the centralized control type can be filtered out, thereby reducing the communication load of the communication bus and improving the system response speed.

[0105] In addition, by setting the identification condition (i.e., the condition that the identification of the destination air conditioner exists in the routing table corresponding to the second communication port), unnecessary control information transmission and resource waste can be avoided, and the transmission efficiency of the network can be improved. In this way, only the control information that meets the above type condition and identification condition can be forwarded to the destination air conditioner, thereby saving the resource usage of the central air conditioning system.

[0106] In some embodiments, after receiving the control information, the first repeater can directly send the control information to the destination air conditioning device through the second communication port, or send the control information to other repeaters through the second communication port, and then the other repeaters send the control information to the destination air conditioning device.

[0107] In one example, based on Figure 1 In the central air-conditioning system, the destination air-conditioning device is the indoor unit 131. When the destination air-conditioning device 131 is directly connected to the second communication port of the first repeater, the first repeater can directly send the control information to the destination air-conditioning device through the second communication port after receiving the control information.

[0108] In another example, based on Figure 3In the central air-conditioning system shown, the destination air-conditioning equipment is the indoor unit 131. When the destination air-conditioning equipment 131 is connected to the second communication port of the first repeater through the second repeater 21, the first repeater sends the control information to the second repeater 21 through the second communication port after receiving the control information. When the type of the control information is a centralized control type and the identifier of the destination air-conditioning equipment exists in the routing table corresponding to the fourth communication port, the second repeater 21 sends the control information to the destination air-conditioning equipment 131 through the fourth communication port.

[0109] In some embodiments, before the first repeater determines whether the type of control information is a centralized control type and whether there is an identifier of the destination air-conditioning device in the routing table corresponding to the second communication port, the first repeater also needs to determine whether there is a sending device identifier in the routing table corresponding to the first communication port.

[0110] Furthermore, when the first repeater has a sending device identifier in the routing table corresponding to the first communication port, it determines whether the type of control information is a centralized control type and whether there is an identifier of the destination air conditioner in the routing table corresponding to the second communication port.

[0111] Alternatively, when the sending device identifier does not exist in the routing table corresponding to the first communication port, the first repeater records the sending device identifier in the routing table corresponding to the first communication port, thereby dynamically updating the routing table corresponding to the first communication port.

[0112] The following is combined with Fig.11 The flowchart shown exemplarily introduces the complete process of the control method of the central air-conditioning system provided in the embodiment of the present application.

[0113] like Fig.11 As shown, the process starts.

[0114] S11. The first repeater obtains control information sent by the second repeater.

[0115] Determine whether the type of control information is a centralized control type.

[0116] If yes, execute the following step S12.

[0117] If not, execute the following step S14.

[0118] S12: Determine whether there is an identifier of the destination air-conditioning equipment in the routing table corresponding to the second communication port.

[0119] If yes, execute the following step S13.

[0120] If not, execute the following step S14.

[0121] S13. The first repeater sends control information to the third repeater.

[0122] S14. The first repeater discards the control information.

[0123] based on Fig.10 In the embodiment shown, the control method of the central air-conditioning system provided by the embodiment of the present application receives control information through a first repeater in at least one repeater, and when the type of the control information is a centralized control type and the identifier of the destination air-conditioning device exists in the routing table corresponding to the second communication port, the control information can be sent to the destination air-conditioning device through the second communication port, thereby filtering out information that is not related to the control information of the centralized control type and control information whose identifier of the destination air-conditioning device is not in the routing table. In this way, selectively forwarding control information can reduce the transmission of invalid information, thereby reducing the communication load of the communication bus, and then the central air-conditioning system can be equipped with a larger number of air-conditioning devices to expand the deployment scale of the central air-conditioning system.

[0124] In some embodiments, after receiving the control information, the destination air-conditioning device may discard or send the control information by checking the control information. Fig.12 Another control method of an air conditioning system provided in an embodiment of the present application is used to verify control information, such as Fig.12 As shown, the method comprises the following steps:

[0125] S201. The first repeater verifies control information and obtains a verification result.

[0126] The verification result includes a normal verification result or an abnormal verification result.

[0127] It is understandable that each air-conditioning device in the central air-conditioning system will be subject to various external interferences during operation, such as changes in environmental parameters such as electromagnetic waves and air humidity, so that the air-conditioning device may become abnormal. The abnormal air-conditioning device will send abnormal information to the communication bus, affecting the normal communication between other air-conditioning devices.

[0128] Therefore, in order to avoid communication abnormality problems caused by abnormalities in air-conditioning equipment, the control information needs to be verified before it is sent to the destination air-conditioner through the second communication bus.

[0129] In some embodiments, the first repeater may verify the control information based on a checksum method, a parity check method, a cyclic redundancy check method, etc. The embodiments of the present application do not impose any special restrictions on the method of verifying the control information.

[0130] S202: When the verification result is an abnormal verification result, the first repeater discards the control information.

[0131] It can be understood that the first repeater discards the control information with an abnormal verification result, which can prevent the spread of abnormal information and maintain normal communication between other air-conditioning devices.

[0132] In some embodiments, when the verification result is a normal verification result, the first repeater can send the control information to the destination air-conditioning equipment.

[0133] It should be noted that step S201 and step S202 may be performed before step S102, or after determining in step S102 that the control information meets the preset sending condition and before sending the control information to the third repeater through the second communication port.

[0134] In some embodiments, Fig.13 As shown, the control method also includes the following steps:

[0135] S301. The first repeater obtains the communication status of the second communication bus.

[0136] The communication state includes an idle state or an occupied state.

[0137] It can be understood that if the communication state is an idle state, it means that the communication transmission activity on the second communication bus has stopped or has not started. If the communication state is an occupied state, it means that the communication transmission activity on the second communication bus is in progress.

[0138] S302: When the communication state is an occupied state, the first repeater caches control information.

[0139] In some embodiments, when the communication state is an idle state, the first repeater immediately sends control information to the destination air-conditioning device.

[0140] In some embodiments, after caching the control information, the first repeater continues to obtain the communication status of the second communication bus until it obtains that the communication status of the second communication bus is an idle state, and then immediately sends the control information to the destination air-conditioning device.

[0141] In some embodiments, in order to improve the real-time performance of forwarding the control information, the control method further includes the following steps:

[0142] S401. The first repeater sends the message body of the communication message to the destination air-conditioning equipment through the second communication port based on the synchronous transmission mode.

[0143] In some embodiments, the control information may be recorded in the message body of the communication message received by the first repeater.

[0144] The communication message includes a message header and a message body.

[0145] In some embodiments, after the first repeater sends control information (i.e., the message header of the communication message) to the target air-conditioning device, the first repeater can, based on a synchronous transmission method, immediately send the message body of the communication message through the second communication port when receiving the message body of the communication message through the first communication port. In this way, the first repeater can send the communication message while receiving the communication message, thereby improving the real-time performance of the communication message forwarding.

[0146] It is understandable that the baud rate on the communication bus of the central air conditioning system is low, and it takes a long time for the destination air conditioning device to receive the complete control information. Through the above-mentioned synchronous transmission mode of receiving and sending at the same time, the delay of forwarding control information can be made only the time of transmitting the message header, rather than the time of the complete control information, thereby greatly improving the real-time forwarding of communication information.

[0147] In some embodiments, in order to establish a routing table corresponding to the first communication port and a routing table corresponding to the second communication port in the repeater, the control method of the central air conditioning system provided in the embodiment of the present application further includes the following steps:

[0148] S501: The first repeater sends a broadcast message to collect identifiers of air-conditioning devices connected to the first repeater.

[0149] In some embodiments, after the first repeater is powered on, a broadcast message may be sent through the first communication port to collect the identifiers of all devices connected to the first communication port of the first repeater, such as the identifier of at least one first air conditioning device, etc. A broadcast message may also be sent through the second communication port to collect the identifiers of all devices connected to the second communication port of the first repeater, such as the identifier of at least one second air conditioning device, etc.

[0150] S502: The first repeater receives a response message.

[0151] In some embodiments, in response to the broadcast message sent by the first repeater, at least one first air conditioning device connected to the first communication port of the first repeater sends a reply message to the first repeater. At the same time, at least one second air conditioning device connected to the second communication port of the first repeater also sends a reply message to the first repeater. The reply message includes a device type and a device identifier.

[0152] In some embodiments, when the first repeater receives a response message sent by at least one first air-conditioning device, it immediately sends the response message to the repeater connected to the second communication port of the first repeater through the second communication port, so that the routing table in the repeater connected to the second communication port also records the identification of at least one first air-conditioning device, so that each repeater in the central air-conditioning system can quickly establish a routing table.

[0153] At the same time, when the first repeater receives a response message sent by at least one second air-conditioning device, it immediately sends the response message to the repeater connected to the first communication port of the first repeater through the first communication port, so that the routing table in the repeater connected to the first communication port also records the identification of at least one second air-conditioning device, so that each repeater in the central air-conditioning system can quickly establish a routing table.

[0154] S503: The first repeater establishes a routing table corresponding to the first communication port and a routing table corresponding to the second communication port according to the response message.

[0155] In some embodiments, after receiving the response message, the first repeater binds the device type with the device identifier, and forms a routing table corresponding to the first communication port and a routing table corresponding to the second communication port.

[0156] The routing table corresponding to the first communication port is used to record the identification of at least one first air-conditioning device, and the routing table corresponding to the second communication port is used to record the identification of at least one second air-conditioning device.

[0157] In some embodiments, during the operation of the central air-conditioning system, if the first repeater receives certain information for the first time at the first communication port, it means that there is a new device in the central air-conditioning system, and then the first repeater records the sending device identification included in the certain information in the routing table corresponding to the first communication port, thereby dynamically updating the routing table corresponding to the first communication port.

[0158] At the same time, the first repeater immediately sends the information to the repeater connected to the second communication port through the second communication port to inform the repeater connected to the second communication port that there is a new device in the central air-conditioning system, so that each repeater in the central air-conditioning system can dynamically update the routing table.

[0159] Similarly, when the first repeater receives certain information at the second communication port for the first time, the specific execution process of the first repeater on the certain information can refer to the above description, which will not be repeated here.

[0160] In some embodiments, Fig.14 As shown, the control method of the central air-conditioning system provided in the embodiment of the present application also includes the following steps:

[0161] S601. The first repeater obtains operating status information of the central air-conditioning system through the second communication port.

[0162] The operation status information includes the identifier of the destination device.

[0163] In some embodiments, after the target air-conditioning device is controlled by the centralized controller, the target air-conditioning device will feed back the operating status information of the central air-conditioning system, such as the operating mode, indoor temperature, etc., to the centralized controller.

[0164] Furthermore, the first repeater located on the communication bus can obtain the operation status information of the central air-conditioning system through the second communication port to send the operation status information to the centralized controller.

[0165] S602: When the type of the running status information is a centralized control type and the identification of the destination air conditioner exists in the routing table corresponding to the first communication port, the first repeater sends the running status information to the destination device through the first communication port.

[0166] The routing table corresponding to the first communication port is used to record the identification of at least one first air-conditioning device and a centralized controller.

[0167] Among them, the operation status information of the central air-conditioning system after operating according to the control information of the centralized control type is the operation status information of the centralized control type.

[0168] In addition, regarding sending the operating status information to the destination device, reference may be made to the specific description of sending the control information to the destination air-conditioning device in the above step S102, which will not be repeated here.

[0169] It should be noted that, in the process of the first repeater sending the operation status information, the above steps S201, S202, S301, S302 and S401 may also be executed.

[0170] Combine the following Fig.15 The flowchart shown exemplarily introduces the complete process of the central air-conditioning system provided in the embodiment of the present application.

[0171] like Fig.15 As shown, the process starts.

[0172] S61. The first repeater obtains control information.

[0173] It is determined whether there is an identifier of the sending air conditioner in the routing table corresponding to the first communication port.

[0174] If yes, execute the following step S63.

[0175] If not, execute the following step S62 and the following step S63.

[0176] S62. The first repeater records the sending device identifier in a routing table corresponding to the first communication port.

[0177] S63: Determine whether the type of control information is a centralized control type.

[0178] If so, execute the following step S64.

[0179] If not, execute the following step S67.

[0180] S64: Determine whether there is an identifier of the destination air conditioner in the routing table corresponding to the second communication port.

[0181] If so, execute the following step S65.

[0182] If not, execute the following step S67.

[0183] S65. The first repeater verifies the control information and obtains a verification result.

[0184] Determine whether the verification result is a normal verification result.

[0185] If so, execute the following step S66.

[0186] If not, execute the following step S67.

[0187] S66. The first repeater sends the control information to the target air-conditioning device.

[0188] S67: The first repeater discards the control information.

[0189] An embodiment of the present application also provides a computer-readable storage medium, which includes computer-executable instructions. When the computer-executable instructions are executed on a computer, the computer executes the method provided in the above embodiment.

[0190] The embodiment of the present application also 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 above embodiment.

[0191] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that in one or more of the above examples, the functions described in the present invention may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented using software, the functions may be stored in a computer-readable medium or transmitted as one or more instructions or codes on a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media include computer storage media and communication media, wherein communication media include any media that facilitates the transmission of a computer program from one place to another. The storage medium may be any available medium that a general or special-purpose computer can access.

[0192] Through the description of the above implementation methods, technical personnel in the relevant field can clearly understand that for the convenience and simplicity of description, only the division of the above-mentioned functional modules is used as an example. In actual applications, the above-mentioned functions can be assigned to different functional modules as needed, that is, the internal structure of the device can be divided into different functional modules to complete all or part of the functions described above.

[0193] The above is only a specific implementation of the present application, but the protection scope of the present application is not limited thereto. Any changes or substitutions within the technical scope disclosed in the present application should be included in the protection scope of the present application. Therefore, the protection scope of the present application should be based on the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A central air conditioning system, characterized in that: include: At least one repeater, including a first repeater; wherein the first repeater includes a first communication port and a second communication port; at least one first air conditioning device connected to the first communication port of the first repeater; at least one second air conditioning device connected to the second communication port of the first repeater; The first repeater is configured as follows: Acquire control information through the first communication port; wherein the control information includes an identification of the target air-conditioning equipment; When the type of the control information is a centralized control type and the identifier of the destination air-conditioning device exists in the routing table corresponding to the second communication port, the control information is sent to the destination air-conditioning device through the second communication port; wherein the routing table corresponding to the second communication port is used to record the identifier of the at least one second air-conditioning device.

2. The central air conditioning system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The at least one repeater further comprises at least one second repeater, wherein the at least one second repeater is sequentially connected in series between the second communication port of the first repeater and the at least one second air conditioning device; The first repeater is configured to send the control information to the destination air conditioner through the second communication port when the type of the control information is the centralized control type and the identifier of the destination air conditioner exists in the routing table corresponding to the second communication port. Specifically, the first repeater is configured as follows: The control information is sent to the at least one second repeater through the second communication port, so that the at least one second repeater sends the control information to the destination air-conditioning device.

3. The central air conditioning system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The first repeater is further configured as: Verifying the control information to obtain a verification result; wherein the verification result includes a normal verification result or an abnormal verification result; In a case where the verification result is the abnormal verification result, the control information is discarded.

4. The central air conditioning system according to claim 1, characterized in that: at least one first air conditioning device connected to the first communication port of the first repeater via a first communication bus; A second air conditioning device is connected to the second communication port of the target first repeater via a second communication bus; Before the first repeater is configured to send the control information to the destination air-conditioning device through the second communication port, the first repeater is further configured to: Acquire the communication state of the second communication bus; wherein the communication state includes an idle state or an occupied state; When the communication state is the occupied state, the control information is buffered.

5. The central air conditioning system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: The control information is recorded in a message header of a communication message received by the first repeater, and the first repeater is further configured to: Based on the synchronous transmission mode, the message body of the communication message is sent to the destination air-conditioning equipment through the second communication port.

6. The central air conditioning system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The central air conditioning system further comprises: a centralized controller; The first repeater is further configured to: Acquire the operation status information of the central air conditioning system through the second communication port; the operation status information includes the identification of the destination device; When the type of the operating status information is a centralized control type and the identifier of the destination air-conditioning device exists in the routing table corresponding to the first communication port, the operating status information is sent to the destination device through the first communication port; wherein the routing table corresponding to the first communication port is used to record the identifiers of the at least one first air-conditioning device and the centralized controller.

7. A control method for a central air conditioning system, characterized in that: Applied to a central air conditioning system, the method comprises: Acquiring control information through the first communication port; wherein the control information includes an identification of the target air-conditioning equipment; When the type of the control information is the centralized control type and the identifier of the destination air-conditioning device exists in the routing table corresponding to the second communication port, the control information is sent to the destination air-conditioning device through the second communication port; wherein the routing table is used to record the identifier of the at least one second air-conditioning device.

8. The method according to claim 7, characterized in that When the type of the control information is the centralized control type and the identifier of the destination air conditioner exists in the routing table corresponding to the second communication port, sending the control information to the destination air conditioner through the second communication port includes: The control information is sent to the at least one second repeater through the second communication port, so that the at least one second repeater sends the control information to the destination air-conditioning device.

9. The method according to claim 7, characterized in that: The method further comprises: Verifying the control information to obtain a verification result; the verification result includes a normal verification result or an abnormal verification result; In a case where the verification result is the abnormal verification result, the control information is discarded.

10. The method according to claim 7, characterized in that The method further comprises: Acquiring the operation status information of the central air conditioning system through the second communication port; the operation status information includes the identification of the destination device; When the type of the operating status information is a centralized control type and the identifier of the destination air-conditioning device exists in the routing table corresponding to the first communication port, the operating status information is sent to the destination device through the first communication port; wherein the routing table corresponding to the first communication port is used to record the identifiers of the at least one first air-conditioning device and the centralized controller.

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