Outdoor unit automatic identification method and device and storage medium thereof

Abstract

The embodiment of the invention discloses an outdoor unit automatic identification method and device and a storage medium, the method and device are applied to outdoor units of a multi-split system, the multi-split system comprises indoor equipment and multiple outdoor units, the outdoor units are configured as slave units in a default mode after initialization, and the method comprises the steps that when a second input signal is detected, the outdoor units are switched to host unit configuration, addressing the other outdoor units based on the first communication protocol, and configuring addresses of the other outdoor units; and addressing the indoor equipment based on the second communication protocol, and configuring the address of the indoor equipment. The automatic outdoor unit identification method provided by the embodiment of the invention at least has the following beneficial effects that by detecting the second input signal, master-slave unit identification and distribution are automatically carried out on the multiple outdoor units, address configuration is carried out on the slave units, and the operation stability and use convenience of an air conditioning system are guaranteed.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of multi-connected air conditioner systems, and particularly to an outdoor unit automatic identification method, device and storage medium thereof. Background Art

[0002] Generally, a household air conditioner has one outdoor unit for one indoor device or multiple indoor devices. In a water-to-water system, there are multiple indoor devices, and due to the output capacity of the outdoor unit, a situation of parallel connection of multiple outdoor units may occur. Among them, the refrigeration principle of the water-to-water system is that the main unit first performs water-fluorine heat exchange, cools the water and sends it to the indoor unit through a water pipe for refrigeration, which belongs to secondary heat exchange. In the case of initializing the water-to-water system or connecting a new outdoor unit, it is necessary to identify and match the outdoor unit. However, the existing air conditioner system can only automatically identify the outdoor unit when a single outdoor unit is connected to multiple indoor devices. When multiple outdoor units are connected simultaneously, the main and slave outdoor units cannot be automatically identified and allocated, which affects the convenience of using the air conditioner system. Summary of the Invention

[0003] An object of the present invention is to at least solve one of the technical problems existing in the prior art, and provide an outdoor unit automatic identification method, device and storage medium thereof, which can effectively perform automatic identification and allocation of the main and slave outdoor units for multiple outdoor units, and improve the convenience of using the air conditioner system.

[0004] In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides an outdoor unit automatic identification method, which is applied to an outdoor unit of a multi-connected air conditioner system. The multi-connected air conditioner system includes indoor devices and multiple outdoor units. After initialization, the outdoor unit is default configured as a slave unit. The method includes:

[0005] When a second input signal is detected, switch to the master unit configuration, and address other outdoor units based on a first communication protocol to configure the addresses of other outdoor units. Wherein, the second input signal is an address broadcast signal sent by the indoor device to the outdoor unit based on a second communication protocol, and the first communication protocol is a communication protocol based on which any outdoor unit sends an address broadcast signal to other outdoor units;

[0006] Address the indoor device based on the second communication protocol to configure the address of the indoor device.

[0007] According to the outdoor unit automatic identification method provided by the embodiment of the present invention, it has at least the following beneficial effects: By detecting the second input signal, the main and slave outdoor units are automatically identified and allocated for multiple outdoor units, and the addresses of the slave units are configured, ensuring the operation stability and use convenience of the air conditioner system.

[0008] In the above outdoor unit automatic recognition method, when only one outdoor unit among multiple outdoor units in the multi-connected air conditioner system starts, the method further includes:

[0009] When the second input signal is detected, switch to the host configuration, address the indoor devices based on the second communication protocol, and configure the addresses of the indoor devices;

[0010] When the second input signal is not detected, issue a fault warning and detect the fault after restart.

[0011] In the above outdoor unit automatic recognition method, the method further includes:

[0012] When the second input signal is not detected, maintain the slave configuration and wait for the addressing instruction from the host.

[0013] In the above outdoor unit automatic recognition method, when the second input signal is detected, switch to the host configuration, address other outdoor units based on the first communication protocol, and configure the addresses of other outdoor units, including:

[0014] When the second input signal is detected, switch to the host configuration and send a signal to stop the address broadcast to the slave;

[0015] Send a first addressing message based on the first communication protocol to the slave and receive a first reply message, where the first reply message is a response message determined for addressing by the slave after receiving the first addressing message based on the first communication protocol;

[0016] Configure the address of the slave according to the first reply message and a preset slave address pool.

[0017] In the above outdoor unit automatic recognition method, configuring the address of the slave according to the first reply message and a preset slave address pool includes:

[0018] Sort the slaves according to the first reply message;

[0019] Sequentially determine the correspondence between the slave addresses in the slave address pool and each slave to obtain the configured addresses of the slaves;

[0020] Send the configured addresses of the slaves to the corresponding slaves.

[0021] In the above outdoor unit automatic recognition method, addressing the indoor devices through the second input signal and configuring the addresses of the indoor devices includes:

[0022] When the second input signal is detected, send a signal to stop the address broadcast to the indoor devices;

[0023] Send a second addressing message based on the second communication protocol to the indoor device, and receive a second response message, where the second response message is a response message determined by the indoor device for addressing based on the second communication protocol after receiving the second addressing message;

[0024] Configure the address of the indoor device according to the second response message and a preset indoor device address pool.

[0025] In the above outdoor unit automatic identification method, the configuring the address of the indoor device according to the second response message and the preset indoor device address pool includes:

[0026] Sort the indoor devices according to the second response message;

[0027] Sequentially determine the correspondence between the indoor device addresses in the indoor device address pool and each of the indoor devices to obtain the configured addresses of the indoor devices;

[0028] Send the configured addresses of the indoor devices to the corresponding indoor devices.

[0029] In the above outdoor unit automatic identification method, the outdoor unit receives the first input signal and the second input signal through an RS485 interface, where the first input signal is an address broadcast signal sent by any outdoor unit to other outdoor units based on the first communication protocol, and the first input signal is used to determine whether the multi-connected air conditioner system is a multi-outdoor unit connected system.

[0030] In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides an outdoor unit automatic identification device, which is characterized by including at least one control processor and a memory communicatively connected to the at least one control processor; the memory stores instructions executable by the at least one control processor, and the instructions are executed by the at least one control processor to enable the at least one control processor to execute the outdoor unit automatic identification method as described above.

[0031] According to the defrosting control device provided by the embodiment of the present invention, it has at least the following beneficial effects: by detecting the second input signal, automatically identify and allocate the master and slave units for multiple outdoor units, and configure the addresses of the slave units, ensuring the operation stability and use convenience of the air conditioner system.

[0032] In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a computer-readable storage medium, which is characterized in that the computer-readable storage medium stores computer-executable instructions, and the computer-executable instructions are used to cause a computer to execute the outdoor unit automatic identification as described above.

[0033] According to the computer-readable storage medium provided by the embodiments of the present invention, it has at least the following beneficial effects: By detecting the second input signal, the master-slave identification and allocation of multiple outdoor units are automatically performed, and the address configuration of the slave units is carried out, ensuring the operation stability and use convenience of the air-conditioning system.

[0034] Other features and advantages of the present invention will be described in the following specification, and, in part, will be obvious from the specification, or will be understood by implementing the present invention. The objectives and other advantages of the present invention can be achieved and obtained by the structures specifically pointed out in the specification, claims, and drawings. Brief Description of the Drawings

[0035] The drawings are used to provide a further understanding of the technical solutions of the present application, and constitute a part of the specification. Together with the embodiments of the present application, they are used to explain the technical solutions of the present application, and do not constitute a limitation to the technical solutions of the present application.

[0036] Figure 1 is a flowchart of an automatic identification method for an outdoor unit provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0037] Figure 2 is a flowchart of an automatic identification method for an outdoor unit provided by another embodiment of the present application;

[0038] Figure 3 is a flowchart of an automatic identification method for an outdoor unit provided by another embodiment of the present application;

[0039] Figure 4 is Figure 1 a flowchart of step S1000 in

[0040] Figure 5 is Figure 4 a flowchart of step S1700 in

[0041] Figure 6 is Figure 1 a flowchart of step S2000 in

[0042] Figure 7 is Figure 6 a flowchart of step S2300 in

[0043] Figure 8 is a schematic diagram of an automatic identification device for an outdoor unit provided by an embodiment of the present application. Detailed Embodiments

[0044] Embodiments of the present application will be described in detail below. Examples of the embodiments are shown in the accompanying drawings, where the same or similar reference numerals denote the same or similar elements or elements having the same or similar functions throughout. The embodiments described below with reference to the accompanying drawings are exemplary and are only used to explain the present application, and should not be construed as a limitation to the present application.

[0045] In the description of the present application, it should be understood that for the orientation description, such as the orientation or positional relationship indicated by up, down, front, back, left, right, etc. is the orientation or positional relationship shown in the accompanying drawings. It is only for the convenience of describing the present application 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 should not be construed as a limitation to the present application.

[0046] In the description of the present application, the meaning of "several" is one or more, the meaning of "multiple" is more than two, and understandings such as "greater than", "less than", "exceeding", etc. do not include the present number, and understandings such as "above", "below", "within", etc. include the present number. If there is a description of "first" and "second", it is only for the purpose of distinguishing technical features, and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the quantity of the indicated technical features or implicitly indicating the sequence relationship of the indicated technical features.

[0047] In the description of the present application, unless otherwise clearly defined, words such as "set", "installed", "connected", etc. should be understood in a broad sense, and those skilled in the art can reasonably determine the specific meanings of the above words in the present application in combination with the specific content of the technical solution.

[0048] The embodiments of the present application provide an automatic identification method, device and storage medium for an outdoor unit, which can automatically identify and allocate the master and slave units for multiple outdoor units by detecting the first input signal and the second input signal, and configure the addresses of the slave units to ensure the operation stability and use convenience of the air conditioning system.

[0049] The multi-connected air conditioner system involved in the embodiments of the present application includes indoor equipment and at least one outdoor unit. After initialization, the outdoor unit is default configured as a slave unit. Specifically, the multi-connected air conditioner system belongs to the water-to-water system. It is a combined system of central air conditioning for heat exchange through water by indoor equipment and air-source water floor heating. The working principle of the water-to-water system is that the outdoor unit first exchanges heat between water and refrigerant, cools the water and then sends it to the indoor equipment through a water pipe for refrigeration, or heats the water and then transmits it to the indoor equipment through a water pipe for heating, which belongs to secondary heat exchange. For the water-to-water system with secondary heat exchange for refrigeration, the outlet air temperature of the indoor equipment during refrigeration is between 15°C and 20°C, and the outlet air is soft and the body feeling is comfortable. In addition, the water system does not limit the connection ratio of the indoor and outdoor units. In application scenarios with a relatively low simultaneous opening rate, the matching ratio of the indoor and outdoor units is relatively low, resulting in a relatively low cost of the indoor equipment, which creates the high cost performance of the water-to-water system and is widely used in various refrigeration and heating scenarios.

[0050] Currently, in a water-to-water system, there are multiple indoor devices, and there may also be a situation where multiple outdoor units are connected in parallel due to the output capacity of the outdoor unit. When initializing the water-to-water system or connecting a new outdoor unit, it is necessary to identify and match the outdoor units. However, the existing air-conditioning system can only automatically identify the outdoor unit when a single outdoor unit is connected to multiple indoor devices. When multiple outdoor units are connected simultaneously, it is impossible to automatically identify and allocate the master and slave outdoor units, which affects the convenience of using the air-conditioning system. During the actual installation and commissioning process, it is often necessary to manually configure according to the on-site installation environment, resulting in problems such as long commissioning time and easy occurrence of incorrect allocation of the master and slave outdoor units, increasing the installation cost of the water-to-water system and bringing potential safety hazards to the air-conditioning system.

[0051] The following further elaborates on the embodiments of the present application in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0052] Please refer to Figure 1 , Figure 1 which shows a flowchart of a method for automatically identifying an outdoor unit provided by an embodiment of the first aspect of the present application. As Figure 1 shown, the method for automatically identifying an outdoor unit includes the following steps:

[0053] Step S1000: When a second input signal is detected, switch to the master configuration and address other outdoor units based on the first communication protocol to configure the addresses of other outdoor units, where the second input signal is an address broadcast signal sent by the indoor device to the outdoor unit based on the second communication protocol, and the first communication protocol is the communication protocol based on which any outdoor unit sends an address broadcast signal to other outdoor units.

[0054] It can be understood that in a multi-connected system, the master unit serves as the control center of the outdoor units, and realizes functions such as refrigeration, heating, and controlling the power output of the outdoor units by connecting multiple slave units. The master unit and the slave units are connected through communication cables, enabling different outdoor units to independently control the power output, improving the comfort and energy-saving effect of the multi-connected system.

[0055] In practical applications, the outdoor unit receives the first input signal and the second input signal through the RS485 interface. The first input signal is an address broadcast signal sent by any outdoor unit to other outdoor units based on the first communication protocol, and the first input signal is used to determine whether the multi-connected air conditioner system is a multi-outdoor unit connection system. Specifically, the main outdoor unit is connected to indoor devices and other outdoor units through the RS485 interface. The outdoor unit receives the first input signal and the second input signal through the RS485 interface because the RS485 interface has the following advantages: The RS-485 interface has stable electrical characteristics. Specifically, logic "1" is represented by a voltage difference of +(2 - 6)V between the two wires; logic "0" is represented by a voltage difference of -(2 - 6)V between the two wires. The interface signal level is lower than that of RS-232-C, so it is not easy to damage the chips of the interface circuit, and this level is compatible with the level of Transistor-Transistor-Logic (TTL) circuits, which can facilitate connection with TTL circuits. Secondly, the transmission speed of the RS-485 interface is relatively fast, and its maximum data transmission rate is 10 Mbps; then, the RS-485 interface has strong stability and good anti-noise interference; furthermore, the signal transmission distance of the RS-485 interface is long. The standard value of the maximum transmission distance of the RS-485 interface is 4000 feet, and it can actually reach 3000 meters. In addition, up to 128 transceivers are allowed to be connected to the RS-485 interface on the bus, that is, it has the multi-station ability. In this way, users can conveniently establish a device network using a single RS-485 interface.

[0056] Due to the above advantages of the RS-485 interface, such as good anti-noise interference, long transmission distance, and multi-station ability, it has become the preferred serial interface. Since a half-duplex network composed of RS485 interfaces generally only requires two wires, shielded twisted pair cables are used for RS485 interfaces. The RS485 interface connector uses a 9-pin plug and socket of a D-type data interface connector (DB-9). The RS485 interface of the intelligent terminal uses a DB-9 socket, and the RS485 of the keyboard interface connected to the keyboard uses a DB-9 pin.

[0057] However, the RS-485 bus standard does not make clear provisions for the relevant application layer communication protocols in the communication network. Therefore, users or relevant developers can establish the applicable high-level communication protocol standards for their own communication network devices. At the same time, in the field of industrial control applications of the RS-485 bus communication network, there are often a large number of decentralized industrial network control units and the distribution of various industrial devices is relatively far apart. This will lead to various interferences in the fieldbus communication network, resulting in low communication efficiency and reliability of the entire communication network. The reliability of data transmission in the entire network will directly affect the reliability of the entire fieldbus communication system. Therefore, studying the communication reliability of the RS-485 bus communication system has practical significance.

[0058] At present, the RS485 communication protocol is based on differential signal transmission in terms of electrical characteristics and uses two lines for two-way communication. One line is the transmission line (Line A), and the other line is the receiving line (Line B). Such an architecture reduces the problem of crosstalk and improves the transmission stability. In the RS485 communication protocol, data communication is determined by the baud rate. Commonly used baud rates include 9600, 19200, 38400, etc. The transmission format of data is usually in bytes, and each byte contains a start bit, data bits, a parity bit, and a stop bit. Among them, the start bit, the starting identification bit of a byte, is used to identify the start of the data frame; the data bits contain the data information to be transmitted, which can be one or more bytes; the parity bit is used to detect errors in data transmission and can choose odd parity, even parity, or no parity; the stop bit, the stopping identification bit of a byte, is used to identify the end of the data frame. The communication process of RS485 communication includes: the master device sends a request frame, the slave device receives and parses the request, the slave device executes the request operation, and the slave device sends a response and the master device receives and parses the response frame. Therefore, the RS485 protocol is a serial port protocol that only defines the transmission voltage, impedance, etc., and does not define the software protocol. In actual applications, for devices designed with different types and at different times, communication between outdoor units and between outdoor units and indoor devices often requires different communication protocols. In a multi-connected air conditioner system, outdoor units include components such as compressors, condensers, fans, throttling components, gas-liquid separators, and reversing valves, and indoor devices include components such as fresh air fans, humidity control devices, heating pipes, and water heaters. Due to the different types of components of outdoor units and indoor devices, in order to ensure the communication stability and timeliness of each component in the multi-connected air conditioner system, different communication protocols are used for communication between outdoor units and between outdoor units and indoor devices, so that the outdoor unit can quickly and accurately exchange information with other outdoor units and indoor devices.

[0059] In this embodiment, the multi-connected air-conditioning system includes indoor devices and multiple outdoor units. After initialization, the outdoor units are defaulted to the slave configuration. In the case of multiple outdoor units, the multiple outdoor units are connected in parallel through the RS485 interface, that is, the multiple outdoor units are connected in parallel to the RS485 bus. At the same time, the indoor devices are also connected to the master outdoor unit through the RS485 interface to ensure smooth communication between outdoor units and between outdoor units and indoor devices. The master outdoor unit of the multi-connected air-conditioning system can quickly and accurately send commands to the slave outdoor units and indoor devices. Specifically, information interaction between outdoor units is carried out through the RS485 interface and based on the first communication protocol, and information interaction between outdoor units and indoor devices is carried out through the RS485 interface and based on the second communication protocol. In practical applications, the first communication protocol and the second communication protocol can be existing RS485 communication protocols, such as the Modbus communication protocol, or communication protocols developed and defined by each manufacturer according to the specific configurations of outdoor units and indoor devices, which are not limited herein.

[0060] It can be understood that during the initialization process of the multi-connected air-conditioning system, any outdoor unit sends an address broadcast signal to other outdoor units based on the first communication protocol, that is, any outdoor unit sends a first input signal to other outdoor units through the RS485 interface. When the outdoor unit itself detects the first input signal based on the first communication protocol, it can determine that there are two connected outdoor units in the current system, that is, the current system is a system with multiple outdoor units connected in parallel. At this time, due to the existence of multiple parallel outdoor units, in order to ensure the unified operation of the multi-connected air-conditioning system, it is necessary to select a master unit from multiple outdoor units to control other outdoor units and indoor devices, so that the outdoor units and indoor devices can operate according to the requirements of the multi-connected air-conditioning system, and the operation stability of the multi-connected air-conditioning system is ensured.

[0061] It can be understood that during the initialization process of the multi-connected air-conditioning system, the indoor device sends an address broadcast signal to the outdoor unit based on the second communication protocol, that is, the indoor device sends a second input signal to the outdoor unit through the RS485 interface. When the outdoor unit itself detects the second input signal based on the second communication protocol, it can determine that the outdoor unit itself is directly connected to the indoor device through the RS485 interface. In order to ensure the communication stability between the outdoor unit and the indoor device, the outdoor unit itself is selected as the master unit. Therefore, the outdoor unit itself is switched to the master configuration. In the case where the master unit is determined, in order to facilitate the master unit to communicate with and control the slave outdoor units, the master unit addresses other outdoor units based on the first communication protocol and configures the addresses of other outdoor units.

[0062] Please refer to Figure 4 , Figure 4 which shows a schematic diagram of a specific implementation process of the above step S1000. As Figure 4 shown, step S1000 at least includes the following steps:

[0063] Step S1600: When the second input signal is detected, switch to the host configuration and send a signal to stop the address broadcast to the slave.

[0064] It can be understood that before the host is determined, any outdoor unit will send an address broadcast signal to other outdoor units based on the first communication protocol. The broadcast address is an address specifically used to send data to all outdoor units in the multi-connected system simultaneously, and is used to send data packets between hosts connected to each other in the same link. All hosts within this subnet can receive the information of this broadcast address, achieving one-to-many communication. Therefore, after a certain outdoor unit is determined as the host, the outdoor unit does not need to determine the host through address broadcast. To avoid wasting resources and improve communication efficiency, the outdoor unit needs to stop sending the stop address broadcast. At this time, the host needs to send a signal to stop the address broadcast to the slave, and after receiving the corresponding signal, the slave stops sending the first input signal externally.

[0065] Step S1700: Send a first addressing message based on the first communication protocol to the slave and receive a first reply message, where the first reply message is a response message determined for addressing by the slave after receiving the first addressing message based on the first communication protocol.

[0066] It can be understood that the communication principle of RS485 is based on the master-slave mode. In the communication, the host is responsible for sending commands and requests, and the slave responds and returns data. To establish a master-slave relationship in the communication, the devices need to be connected to the shared bus, and the host addresses the slave. During the communication process, the host sends control frames and data frames by controlling the level on the transmission line, and the slave parses and responds to the host's commands by detecting the level change on the transmission line. After the outdoor unit is determined as the host, in order for the host to obtain and determine the address information of the slave, the host needs to send a first addressing message to the slave. Similarly, since the first addressing message is sent from the host to the slave, the first addressing message is based on the first communication protocol. After the slave receives the first addressing message, that is, after receiving the addressing command from the host, it replies with the first reply message according to the format agreed upon by the first communication protocol, determines that the communication with the host is normal, and responds to the host's addressing command. The first reply message includes information such as the bus address and running duration of the slave.

[0067] Step S1800: Configure the address of the slave according to the first reply message and the preset slave address pool.

[0068] It can be understood that when the host receives the first reply message from the slave, it determines to perform an addressing operation on the slave. The host sorts each slave according to a certain rule based on the first reply message, and after corresponding one by one with the preset slave address pool, it allocates the device addresses in the slave address pool to each slave, so as to facilitate the host to better interact with the slave and send control commands to the slave.

[0069] Please refer to Figure 5 , Figure 5 which shows a schematic diagram of a specific implementation process of the above step S1800. As Figure 5 shown, step S1800 at least includes the following steps:

[0070] Step S1810: Sort the slaves according to the first reply message.

[0071] It can be understood that from the above step S1700, the first reply message obtained by the host includes information such as the bus address and running duration of the slave. The bus address of the slave is unique in the multi-connected air-conditioning system. Therefore, the slaves can be sorted according to the bus address of the slave to obtain a sorted list of slaves. Of course, in other embodiments, the sorted list of slaves can also be obtained according to the running duration of the slave, which is not limited here.

[0072] Step S1820: Sequentially determine the correspondence between the slave addresses in the slave address pool and each slave to obtain the configured addresses of the slaves.

[0073] It can be understood that by corresponding the sorted list of slaves one by one with the slave addresses in the preset slave address pool, the configured addresses corresponding to each slave are obtained. Since the sorted list of slaves corresponds to the slave address pool, it can ensure that the configured addresses of the slaves are also unique, which is convenient for the host to send control instructions to the slaves through the configured addresses and improves the running stability of the multi-connected air-conditioning system.

[0074] Step S1830: Send the configured addresses of the slaves to the corresponding slaves.

[0075] It can be understood that after obtaining the configured addresses of the slaves, it is necessary to send the configured addresses of the slaves to the corresponding slaves, so that the slaves can save the corresponding configured addresses and establish a communication relationship with the host.

[0076] Step S2000: Address the indoor devices based on the second communication protocol and configure the addresses of the indoor devices.

[0077] It can be understood that when the host completes the addressing operation of the outdoor unit and configures the addresses of the slaves, in order to better communicate with and control the indoor devices, the host addresses the indoor devices based on the second communication protocol and configures the addresses of the indoor devices.

[0078] Please refer to Figure 6 , Figure 6 which shows a schematic diagram of a specific implementation process of the above-mentioned step S2000. As Figure 6 shown, step S2000 at least includes the following steps:

[0079] Step S2100: When detecting the second input signal, send a signal to stop the address broadcast to the indoor device.

[0080] It can be understood that before determining the host, any indoor device sends an address broadcast signal to the outdoor unit based on the second communication protocol. The broadcast address is an address specifically used to send to all indoor devices in the multi-connected system at the same time, and is used to send data packets between the hosts connected to each other in the same link. Therefore, after determining a certain outdoor unit as the host, the indoor device does not need to determine the host through address broadcast. Consistent with the above step S1600, in order to avoid resource waste and improve communication efficiency, the indoor device needs to stop sending the stop address broadcast. At this time, the host needs to send a signal to stop the address broadcast to the indoor device, and the indoor device stops sending the second input signal after receiving the corresponding signal.

[0081] Step S2200: Send a second addressing message based on the second communication protocol to the indoor device and receive a second reply message, where the second reply message is a response message determined by the indoor device for addressing after receiving the second addressing message.

[0082] It can be understood that from the above steps, the indoor devices include indoor temperature control devices such as fan coil units, fresh air units, and radiant panels. After determining the reduction value of the total energy demand of the indoor devices, it is necessary to adjust the operating parameters of the indoor devices, such as the opening degree of the air damper, the rotation speed of the fan, and the shutdown temperature of the indoor devices, etc., to reduce the total value of the total energy demand of the indoor devices.

[0083] It can be understood that the communication principle of RS485 is based on the master-slave mode. In communication, the host is responsible for sending commands and requests, and the slave responds and returns data. To establish a master-slave relationship in communication, devices need to be connected to a shared bus, and the host addresses the indoor devices. During the communication process, the host sends control frames and data frames by controlling the level on the transmission line, and the indoor devices parse and respond to the host's commands by detecting the level changes on the transmission line. When the outdoor unit is determined to be the host, in order for the host to obtain and determine the address information of the indoor devices, the host needs to send a second addressing message to the indoor devices. Similarly, since the second addressing message is sent from the host to the indoor devices, the second addressing message is based on the second communication protocol. After the indoor devices receive the second addressing message, that is, after the indoor devices receive the host's addressing command, they reply with a second reply message in the format agreed upon by the second communication protocol to confirm normal communication with the host and respond to the host's addressing command. Among them, the second reply message includes information such as the bus address and running duration of the indoor devices.

[0084] Step S2300: Configure the addresses of the indoor devices according to the second reply message and the preset indoor device address pool.

[0085] It can be understood that when the host receives the second reply message from the indoor devices, it determines to perform an addressing operation on the indoor devices. The host sorts the indoor devices according to certain rules based on the second reply message, and after corresponding them one by one with the preset indoor device address pool, it assigns the configured addresses in the indoor device address pool to each indoor device, so as to facilitate the host to better interact with the indoor devices and send control commands to the indoor devices.

[0086] Please refer to Figure 7 , Figure 7 which shows a schematic diagram of a specific implementation process of the above step S2300. As Figure 7 shown, step S2300 at least includes the following steps:

[0087] Step S2310: Sort the indoor devices according to the second reply message.

[0088] It can be understood that from the above step S2200, the second reply message obtained by the host includes information such as the bus address and running duration of the indoor devices. The bus address of the indoor devices is unique in the multi-connected system. Therefore, the indoor devices can be sorted according to the bus address of the indoor devices to obtain a sorted list of indoor devices. Of course, in other embodiments, the sorted list of indoor devices can also be obtained according to the running duration of the indoor devices, which is not limited here.

[0089] Step S2320: Sequentially determine the correspondence between the indoor device addresses in the indoor device address pool and each indoor device to obtain the configured addresses of the indoor devices.

[0090] It can be understood that by corresponding the sorted list of indoor devices one by one with the indoor device addresses in the preset indoor device address pool, the configuration addresses corresponding to each indoor device are obtained. Since the sorted list of indoor devices corresponds to the indoor device address pool, it can ensure the uniqueness of the configuration addresses of the indoor devices, which is convenient for the host to send control instructions to the indoor devices through the configuration addresses, improving the operation stability of the multi-connected air conditioner system.

[0091] Step S2330: Send the configuration address of the indoor device to the corresponding indoor device.

[0092] It can be understood that after obtaining the configuration address of the indoor device, it is necessary to send the configuration address of the indoor device to the corresponding indoor device, so that the indoor device can save the corresponding configuration address and establish a communication relationship with the host.

[0093] Please refer to Figure 2 , Figure 2 which shows a flowchart of an outdoor unit automatic recognition method provided by another embodiment of the first aspect of the present application. As Figure 2 shown, the outdoor unit automatic recognition method further includes the following steps::

[0094] Step S1100: When the first input signal is not detected, determine that the current system is a system with a single outdoor unit.

[0095] It can be understood that when the first input signal is not detected by the current outdoor unit, that is, no other outdoor unit in the multi-connected air conditioner system sends the first input signal to this unit. At this time, there is only one outdoor unit, this unit, in the multi-connected air conditioner system, that is, a single outdoor unit's chilled water and ground water system.

[0096] Step S1200: When the second input signal is detected, switch to the host configuration, and address the indoor devices based on the second communication protocol to configure the addresses of the indoor devices.

[0097] It can be understood that if only one outdoor unit in the multi-connected air conditioner system starts, and the other outdoor units are in a fault state and cannot work properly. At this time, after the outdoor unit that can start and work detects the second input signal, this unit switches to the host configuration. Since there is only the host as the outdoor unit in the chilled water and ground water system, therefore, there is no need to perform the addressing operation of the outdoor unit. Consistent with the above step S2000, the host can directly address the indoor devices to establish a communication relationship between the host and the indoor devices. The process is the same as the above steps S2100 - S2300 and will not be elaborated here.

[0098] Step S1300: When the second input signal is not detected, issue a fault warning and detect the fault after restarting.

[0099] It is understandable that since there is only one outdoor unit, the indoor device is surely connected to this unit under normal circumstances. Therefore, when the second input signal is not detected, that is, when this unit cannot communicate with the indoor device, the system of a single outdoor unit cannot communicate with and control the indoor device. At this time, the outdoor unit needs to send out a fault warning. In practical applications, after restarting the outdoor unit, the second input signal can be detected again, and maintenance personnel can be reminded to detect the communication fault of the current system to determine whether the connection between the indoor device and the outdoor unit is normal.

[0100] Please refer to Figure 3 , Figure 3 which shows a flowchart of an outdoor unit automatic identification method provided by another embodiment of the first aspect of the present application. As Figure 3 shown, the outdoor unit automatic identification method further includes the following steps:

[0101] Step S1400: When the second input signal is not detected, maintain the slave configuration and wait for the addressing instruction from the master.

[0102] It is understandable that in a system where multiple outdoor units are connected in parallel, when an outdoor unit does not detect the second input signal, that is, the current outdoor unit is not connected to the indoor device through the RS485 interface, so the current outdoor unit cannot become the master. It needs to maintain the slave configuration and wait for the addressing instruction from the master. That is, the current outdoor unit needs to maintain the slave configuration and wait until the master is determined. As described in the above step S1700, it accepts the first addressing message sent by the master and responds.

[0103] Referring to Figure 8 , an embodiment of the second aspect of the present application further provides an outdoor unit automatic identification device 500, including at least one control processor 510 and a memory 520 communicatively connected to at least one control processor 510; the memory 520 stores instructions executable by at least one control processor 510, and the instructions are executed by at least one control processor 510 to enable at least one control processor 510 to execute the outdoor unit automatic identification method as described above.

[0104] According to the outdoor unit automatic identification device provided by the embodiment of the present application, it has at least the following beneficial effects: By detecting the first input signal and the second input signal, it automatically identifies and allocates the master and slave of multiple outdoor units, and configures the addresses of the slaves, ensuring the operation stability and use convenience of the air conditioning system.

[0105] In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that the computer-readable storage medium stores computer-executable instructions for causing a computer to execute the control method as in the embodiment of the first aspect.

[0106] According to the computer-readable storage medium provided by the embodiments of the present application, it has at least the following beneficial effects: By detecting the first input signal and the second input signal, the master-slave identification and allocation of multiple outdoor units are automatically performed, and the addresses of the slave units are configured, ensuring the operation stability and usage convenience of the air-conditioning system.

[0107] Those of ordinary skill in the art can understand that all or some of the steps and systems disclosed in the above methods can be implemented as software, firmware, hardware, and their appropriate combinations. Some physical components or all physical components can be implemented as software executed by a processor, such as a central processing unit, a digital signal processor, or a microprocessor, or implemented as hardware, or implemented as an integrated circuit, such as an application-specific integrated circuit. Such software can be distributed on a computer-readable medium, which can include a computer storage medium (or non-transitory medium) and a communication medium (or transitory medium). As is well known to those of ordinary skill in the art, the term computer storage medium includes volatile and non-volatile, removable and non-removable media implemented in any method or technology for storing information, such as computer-readable instructions, data structures, program modules, or other data. Computer storage media includes, but is not limited to, RAM, ROM, EEPROM, flash memory or other memory technologies, CD-ROM, digital versatile disk (DVD) or other optical disk storage, magnetic cassette, tape, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used to store the desired information and can be accessed by a computer. In addition, as is well known to those of ordinary skill in the art, communication media typically includes computer-readable instructions, data structures, program modules, or other data in a modulated data signal such as a carrier wave or other transmission mechanism, and can include any information delivery medium.

[0108] In the description of this specification, the descriptions with reference to the terms "one embodiment", "some embodiments", "schematic embodiments", "examples", "specific examples", or "some examples", etc. mean that the specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics described in connection with the embodiment or example are included in at least one embodiment or example of the present application. In this specification, the schematic representations of the above terms do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example. Moreover, the specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics described can be combined in a suitable manner in any one or more embodiments or examples.

[0109] Although the embodiments of the present application have been shown and described, those of ordinary skill in the art can understand that various changes, modifications, substitutions, and variations can be made to these embodiments without departing from the principles and purposes of the present application, and the scope of the present application is defined by the claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. An automatic identification method for an outdoor unit, characterized in that, it is applied to the outdoor unit of a multi-connected air conditioner system. The multi-connected air conditioner system includes indoor devices and multiple outdoor units. After initialization, the outdoor units are defaulted to slave configurations. The method includes: When a second input signal is detected, switch to the master configuration, and address other outdoor units based on the first communication protocol, and configure the addresses of other outdoor units. Wherein, the second input signal is an address broadcast signal sent by the indoor device to the outdoor unit based on the second communication protocol, and the first communication protocol is the communication protocol based on which any outdoor unit sends an address broadcast signal to other outdoor units; Address the indoor device based on the second communication protocol and configure the address of the indoor device.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, when only one outdoor unit starts among multiple outdoor units in the multi-connected air conditioner system, the method further includes: When the second input signal is detected, switch to the master configuration, and address the indoor device based on the second communication protocol and configure the address of the indoor device; When the second input signal is not detected, issue a fault warning and detect the fault after restart.

3. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, the method further includes: When the second input signal is not detected, maintain the slave configuration and wait for the addressing instruction from the master.

4. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, the step of when the second input signal is detected, switch to the master configuration, and address other outdoor units based on the first communication protocol, and configure the addresses of other outdoor units, includes: When the second input signal is detected, switch to the master configuration, and send a signal to stop the address broadcast to the slave; Send a first addressing message based on the first communication protocol to the slave and receive a first reply message. Wherein, the first reply message is a response message determined by the slave for addressing after receiving the first addressing message based on the first communication protocol; Configure the address of the slave according to the first reply message and a preset slave address pool.

5. The method according to claim 4, characterized in that, the step of configuring the address of the slave according to the first reply message and a preset slave address pool includes: Sort the slaves according to the first reply message; Sequentially determine the correspondence between the slave addresses in the slave address pool and each slave to obtain the configured addresses of the slaves; Send the configured addresses of the slaves to the corresponding slaves.

6. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, the step of addressing the indoor device through the second input signal and configuring the address of the indoor device includes: When the second input signal is detected, send a signal to stop the address broadcast to the indoor device; Send a second addressing message based on the second communication protocol to the indoor device, and receive a second reply message, where the second reply message is a response message determined by the indoor device for addressing after receiving the second addressing message; Configure the address of the indoor device according to the second reply message and a preset indoor device address pool.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein, the configuring the address of the indoor device according to the second reply message and a preset indoor device address pool includes: Sort the indoor devices according to the second reply message; Sequentially determine the correspondence between the indoor device addresses in the indoor device address pool and each of the indoor devices to obtain the configured addresses of the indoor devices; Send the configured addresses of the indoor devices to the corresponding indoor devices.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein, the outdoor unit receives a first input signal and the second input signal through an RS485 interface, the first input signal is an address broadcast signal sent by any outdoor unit to other outdoor units based on the first communication protocol, and the first input signal is used to determine whether the multi-connected air conditioner system is a multi-outdoor-unit connected system.

9. An outdoor unit automatic identification device, wherein, it includes at least one control processor and a memory for communicating with the at least one control processor; the memory stores instructions executable by the at least one control processor, and when the instructions are executed by the at least one control processor, the at least one control processor can execute the outdoor unit automatic identification method according to any one of claims 1 to 8.

10. A computer-readable storage medium, wherein, the computer-readable storage medium stores computer-executable instructions for causing a computer to execute the outdoor unit automatic identification method according to any one of claims 1 to 8.

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