A control method for a silent mode of an air source heat pump

Abstract

The application relates to the technical field of heat pump mute mode control methods, and discloses a control method for an air source heat pump mute mode, which comprises a receiving unit configured to collect sound signals of an indoor environment; the receiving unit comprises a main receiving unit and one or more auxiliary receiving units, and the main receiving unit and the auxiliary receiving units work cooperatively to form a distributed sound pickup network; a processing unit is coupled with the receiving unit and is configured to analyze the received sound signals and calculate an equivalent continuous A sound level noise value. Through dynamic judgment based on a personnel activity state, the application realizes the intelligentization of an operation strategy; in a period without people, through a multi-stage progressive entering logic, the operation power is gradually reduced, energy waste and noise emission are significantly reduced, and when personnel return, the heat supply capacity can be rapidly restored through a faster exiting logic, so that the contradiction between the silence and the performance of a traditional air conditioner cannot be reconciled is solved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the technical field of heat pump silent mode control methods, specifically a control method for the silent mode of an air source heat pump. Background Technology

[0002] Most existing air source heat pumps are used for home heating. Users typically set an inlet or outlet water temperature and don't change it. The units themselves do not have automatic adjustment functions. As living standards improve, users' requirements for home comfort are increasing. Among these requirements, the noise level of heat pump operation has become a key indicator. To meet this demand, the heating industry has generally introduced "silent mode" technology. However, existing noise control methods have significant limitations and cannot achieve an intelligent dynamic balance between energy saving, noise reduction, and comfort.

[0003] Current mainstream solutions mostly rely on fixed silent operation settings. Once manually turned on by the user via remote, the air conditioner operates at a preset, low fan speed and compressor frequency. This simple mode ignores the dynamic changes in the actual environment: First, it cannot distinguish between the acoustic differences between day and night. During the day, background noise is higher, making the air conditioner's operation sound easily masked; however, at night, the environment is extremely quiet, and the fixed operating noise may still seem abrupt, especially due to the refraction of sound waves at night, making the noise travel further and be more clearly perceived. Second, this mode cannot intelligently determine whether there are people in the room or whether they are resting. If it continues to operate in the regular mode during periods when no one is around or when people are sleeping, it not only wastes energy, but its operating sound, lacking a "masking effect," will create significant noise interference, affecting rest.

[0004] Furthermore, while some advanced models have attempted to introduce timer functions, these are essentially mechanical switching based on preset times, failing to respond to the randomness of human activity in real-world environments. Existing technologies generally lack the ability to perceive and judge environmental noise in real time, and even more so, they fail to achieve smooth, gradual mode switching based on "duration thresholds," resulting in a jarring user experience and a tendency to misjudge and frequently switch modes during brief fluctuations in noise.

[0005] Therefore, there is an urgent need in this field for an air conditioning control system that can intelligently sense the state of the environment and human activities, and can automatically and smoothly adjust the operating noise, in order to overcome the inherent defects of the prior art. Summary of the Invention

[0006] In view of the shortcomings of the existing air source heat pump silent mode control method proposed in the background art, the present invention provides an air source heat pump silent mode control method with the advantages of automatic and smooth noise adjustment, thus solving the technical problems proposed in the background art.

[0007] This invention provides the following technical solution: a control method for a silent mode of an air source heat pump, characterized in that: it includes a receiving unit configured to collect sound signals from the indoor environment; the receiving unit includes a main receiving unit and one or more auxiliary receiving units, the main receiving unit and the auxiliary receiving units working together to form a distributed sound pickup network; A processing unit, coupled to the receiving unit, is configured to analyze the received sound signal and calculate an equivalent continuous A-weighted sound level noise value. A storage unit for storing at least one preset noise threshold; A judgment unit, coupled to the processing unit and the storage unit, is configured to compare the equivalent continuous A-weighted sound level noise value with the preset noise threshold to determine whether there is human activity indoors; wherein, when the noise value is higher than the threshold, it is determined that there is human activity, and when the noise value is lower than the threshold, it is determined that there is no human activity. A control unit, coupled to the judgment unit, is configured to control the air conditioning unit to switch between a normal operating mode, a single-level or multi-level silent mode, and a powerful mode based on the judgment result of the judgment unit.

[0008] Preferably, the preset noise threshold includes a daytime threshold and a nighttime threshold, and the threshold is set with an error band of ±2dB.

[0009] Preferably, the control unit is further configured to: when it is determined that there is no human activity in the room for a continuous period of time that reaches a first preset duration, the control unit enters a micro-quiet mode.

[0010] Preferably, the control unit is further configured to: when it is determined that there is no human activity in the room for a continuous period of time that reaches a second preset duration, the control unit enters a silent mode, wherein the second preset duration is longer than the first preset duration.

[0011] Preferably, the control unit is further configured to: when the continuous duration of no human activity in the room reaches a third preset duration, the control unit enters an ultra-quiet mode, wherein the third preset duration is longer than the second preset duration.

[0012] Preferably, the control unit is further configured to: when the unit is in the micro-quiet mode, quiet mode, or ultra-quiet mode, if it is determined that the continuous duration of personnel activity in the room reaches the first noise duration, then control the unit to exit the current mode and return to the previous lower-level operating mode; wherein, the previous lower-level operating mode includes normal operation, micro-quiet mode, or quiet mode.

[0013] Preferably, the control unit is further configured to: when the unit is in the ultra-quiet mode, if it is determined that the continuous duration of human activity in the room reaches the first noise duration but is less than the second noise duration, the control unit is controlled to enter the quiet mode, the first noise duration is less than the second noise duration, and when it is determined that the continuous duration of human activity in the room reaches the second noise duration, the control unit is controlled to enter the strong heating mode.

[0014] Preferably, the first preset duration is 10 minutes, the second preset duration is 20 minutes, the third preset duration is 30 minutes, the specific heating capacity percentages of the micro-quiet, quiet, and ultra-quiet modes are 90%, 75%, and 50%, respectively, the first noise duration is 5 minutes, and the second noise duration is 10 minutes.

[0015] Preferably, the control unit is further configured to: when the control unit enters the strong heating mode, intermittently detect and compare the temperature difference between the actual temperature and the set temperature; when the temperature difference is less than or equal to the set temperature difference, the unit enters normal operating condition; otherwise, it maintains the strong heating mode.

[0016] Preferably, the receiving unit is configured to acquire sound signals in an intermittent manner; the intermittent manner is periodic operation with an acquisition period of T, wherein the duration of one sound acquisition operation is t, and t < T.

[0017] The present invention has the following beneficial effects: 1. This invention achieves intelligent operation strategy by dynamically judging the activity status of personnel. During unattended periods, the system gradually reduces operating power through a multi-level progressive entry logic of "micro-quiet → quiet → ultra-quiet," significantly reducing energy waste and noise emissions. Once personnel are detected returning, the system can quickly restore heating capacity through a faster exit logic. This asymmetrical "slow in, fast out" design fundamentally solves the contradiction between quietness and performance in traditional air conditioning, achieving a dynamic optimal solution for energy saving, noise reduction, and comfort.

[0018] 2. This invention introduces a dual anti-shake mechanism at both the "signal level" and the "state level." A ±2dB threshold error band effectively filters out minute fluctuations in the audio signal, while continuous duration thresholds of "5 / 10 / 20 / 30 minutes" provide secondary confirmation of the state judgment. Together, these mechanisms ensure that the system only responds to definitively identified environmental changes, perfectly immune to interference from isolated noise events such as telephone rings and brief door openings / closings, fundamentally eliminating the "ping-pong effect" of frequent mode switching, and improving device lifespan and user experience.

[0019] 3. This invention applies the principles of "auditory masking effect" and "sound refraction at night," transforming them into specific technical features. By setting time-divided day and night noise thresholds, the system's judgment aligns with the actual perception patterns of the human ear. Furthermore, by designing a more profound silent mode at night, it specifically addresses the problem of noise traveling further and being perceived more clearly at night. This makes the system's judgment of "human activity" more scientific and accurate, ensuring the accuracy and advancement of the entire intelligent control decision-making process from a fundamental perspective. Attached Figure Description

[0020] Figure 1 This is a diagram of the silent mode control component of the present invention; Figure 2 This is a flowchart illustrating the entry and exit of silent mode according to the first embodiment of the present invention; Figure 3 This is a flowchart illustrating the entry and exit of silent mode according to the second embodiment of the present invention. Detailed Implementation

[0021] The technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present invention, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0022] Please see Figure 1 A control method for a silent mode of an air source heat pump includes a receiving unit configured to collect sound signals from the indoor environment. The receiving unit includes a main receiving unit and one or more auxiliary receiving units. The receiving unit is typically a microphone, which is divided into a main microphone and auxiliary microphones. The main microphone plays the primary role in collecting sound signals and is installed in the controller, usually in the living room or master bedroom, or other main activity areas. The auxiliary microphones are installed in other bedrooms to assist in receiving sound signals. The auxiliary microphones work together with the main microphone to transmit the collected sound signals to the processing unit. The main receiving unit and the auxiliary receiving units work together to form a distributed sound pickup network. This method is superior to a single microphone and achieves three-dimensional coverage of the main activity areas (living room, master bedroom) and other areas (secondary bedrooms, study), which can more comprehensively and accurately reflect the true state of the entire residence and avoid misjudging that no one is home due to the quietness of a single area.

[0023] The receiving unit is configured to acquire sound signals in an intermittent manner; the intermittent working mode is periodic operation with an acquisition period of T, where the duration of one sound acquisition operation is t, and t < T. In this embodiment, the receiving unit performs data acquisition once every 1 minute, acquiring 10 seconds of sound data each time. The 10-second sampling duration is sufficient to capture a representative sound segment such as conversation or footsteps, avoiding instantaneous noise interference while greatly reducing the system's own energy consumption. Similarly, the non-continuous "snapshot" acquisition avoids the risk of continuous eavesdropping from a technical perspective, and its design is more in line with the trend of privacy protection and is easily accepted by users.

[0024] The processing unit, coupled to the receiving unit, is configured to analyze the received sound signal and calculate the equivalent continuous A-weighted sound level noise value. The calculation of the equivalent continuous A-weighted sound level follows a well-defined international standard formula, averaging the fluctuating noise energy into a stable noise level with equal energy over the same time period. Within each sampling time period (10 seconds), the processing unit performs high-speed sampling of the A-weighted filtered sound signal, calculates the average of the squared sound pressure levels over that time period, and then converts it to a sound pressure level in decibels using the aforementioned formula. Finally, it outputs a single numerical value representing the average noise energy level over those 10 seconds. This noise value is not merely a simple numerical average but is based on the characteristics of human hearing, particularly its sensitivity to high frequencies. The system uses a weighted average of high and low frequencies to reflect the cumulative energy of sound over time, which is more in line with the subjective perception of the human ear rather than simply physical amplitude. The storage unit stores at least one preset noise threshold, which includes a daytime threshold and a nighttime threshold. A higher first threshold is used during the day to effectively avoid misjudgments caused by high ambient noise, ensuring that the system can accurately identify the sounds of real human activity even in noisy environments. A lower second threshold is used at night, making the system more sensitive to weak sounds that represent human activity in quiet environments, enabling it to respond promptly. The thresholds are set with an error band of ±2dB to eliminate system jitter, stabilize state judgment, and prevent the system from fluctuating frequently around the threshold.

[0025] The judgment unit, coupled to the processing unit and the storage unit, is configured to compare the equivalent continuous A-weighted sound level noise value with a preset noise threshold to determine whether there is human activity indoors. When the noise value is higher than the threshold, human activity is determined to exist; when the noise value is lower than the threshold, human activity is determined to not exist. This simplifies complex and variable environmental sound signals into "yes" or "no" decision commands that the control unit can directly understand and process, laying the foundation for subsequent complex multi-level mode control. The control unit, coupled to the judgment unit, is configured to control the air conditioning unit to switch between normal operation mode, single-level or multi-level silent mode, and powerful mode based on the judgment result of the judgment unit. By judging "human activity," the system can directly infer the user's indoor status and comfort needs, automatically seeking quiet and energy saving when no one is present, and responding quickly when someone is present to ensure heating effect, achieving multi-level automatic control.

[0026] First embodiment: Please see Figure 2 The control unit is configured as follows: when the continuous duration of no human activity in the room reaches a first preset duration of 10 minutes, the control unit enters a micro-quiet mode; when the unit is in micro-quiet mode, if the continuous duration of human activity in the room reaches a first noise duration of 5 minutes, the control unit exits the current mode and enters a normal operation mode; when the continuous duration of no human activity in the room reaches a second preset duration of 20 minutes, the control unit enters a quiet mode; when the unit is in quiet mode, if the continuous duration of human activity in the room reaches a first noise duration of 5 minutes, the control unit exits the current mode and enters a micro-quiet mode; when the continuous duration of no human activity in the room reaches a third preset duration of 30 minutes, the control unit enters an ultra-quiet mode; when the unit is in ultra-quiet mode, if the continuous duration of human activity in the room reaches a certain threshold... If the noise level reaches 5 minutes, the control unit exits the current mode and enters silent mode. When the environmental conditions change, the system always switches between adjacent modes to avoid impacting the unit. The smooth mode transition avoids drastic fluctuations in fan and compressor power, which helps extend equipment life. At the same time, it improves the user experience. The changes in operating noise and heating capacity are gradual and almost imperceptible to the user, avoiding the discomfort caused by sudden increases or decreases in noise. It achieves a dynamic optimal solution between energy saving and comfort, rather than blindly pursuing extreme quietness or extreme performance. Instead, it dynamically adjusts according to the actual needs of the environment (duration of time unoccupied). The longer the time unoccupied, the more significant the energy saving effect. Once someone returns, comfort is prioritized. A sufficiently long confirmation time is set, and isolated noise events such as telephone rings or brief door opening and closing sounds are not enough to trigger mode degradation or exit, improving anti-interference and fault tolerance.

[0027] Second embodiment: Please see Figure 3 The control unit is configured as follows: when the unit is in micro-quiet mode and quiet mode, it is consistent with the first embodiment; when the unit is in ultra-quiet mode, if the continuous duration of indoor human activity reaches the first noise duration of 5 minutes but is less than the second noise duration of 10 minutes, the unit is controlled to enter quiet mode; when the continuous duration of indoor human activity reaches the second noise duration of 10 minutes, the unit is controlled to enter strong heating mode. In strong heating mode, the temperature difference between the actual temperature and the set temperature is intermittently detected and compared. When the temperature difference is less than or equal to the set temperature difference, the unit enters normal operation; otherwise, it maintains strong heating mode. This achieves a perfect unity of the two core requirements of "quietness" and "rapid heating," quickly compensating for the possible drop in indoor temperature due to the low power operation of the unit during ultra-quiet operation. This ensures that users can quickly feel warmth when they resume activity after a long period of quiet. For example, if it is unusually quiet at night, the room temperature can quickly rise again when the user gets up and moves around in the morning. It intelligently completes the entire process from "deep hibernation" to "rapid preheating," making the user experience smooth and comfortable.

[0028] The method of using (working principle) of this invention is as follows: In use, the silent control system of the air conditioning unit of this invention starts working. Its complete workflow is a closed-loop control process based on intelligent environmental sound perception, judgment of human activity status, and dynamic switching of multi-level operating modes. When the unit is in normal heating mode, the main and auxiliary microphones distributed in different areas of the room (such as the living room, master bedroom, and other bedrooms) start working together. They transmit the collected sound signals to the processing unit in an intermittent sampling manner (for example, collecting 10 seconds of environmental sound every 1 minute). The processing unit analyzes the signal and calculates the equivalent continuous A-weighted sound level noise value that scientifically reflects the subjective perception of the human ear. The judgment unit compares the real-time noise value transmitted from the processing unit with the preset threshold in the storage unit. The threshold takes into account the difference between day and night (the threshold is higher during the day and lower at night) and sets an error band of ±2dB to prevent misjudgment. When the noise value is continuously higher than the upper limit of the threshold, it is determined that "there is human activity in the room". When the noise value is continuously lower than the lower limit of the threshold, it is determined that "there is no human activity in the room". The control unit commands the unit to gradually enter a deeper level of silent mode according to the duration of the "no human activity" state, so as to achieve refined energy saving and noise reduction.

[0029] If the time for which the collected sound intensity is less than or equal to the set threshold is less than 10 minutes, the unit continues its current operating mode. If the time for which the collected sound intensity is less than or equal to the set threshold is greater than or equal to 10 minutes, the control unit controls the unit to enter a micro-quiet mode. After entering micro-quiet mode, data acquisition continues. If the time for which the collected sound intensity is less than or equal to the set threshold is greater than or equal to 20 minutes, the control unit controls the unit to enter a quiet mode. If a sound intensity greater than the threshold occurs during this period, and the continuous duration does not exceed 5 minutes, the micro-quiet mode is maintained. If the continuous duration exceeds 5 minutes, the unit enters normal operating condition. After entering quiet mode, data acquisition continues. If the time for which the collected sound intensity is less than or equal to the set threshold is greater than or equal to 30 minutes, the control unit controls the unit to enter an ultra-quiet mode. If a sound intensity greater than the threshold occurs during this period, and the continuous duration does not exceed 5 minutes, the quiet mode is maintained. If the continuous duration exceeds 5 minutes, the unit enters micro-quiet mode. After the unit enters the ultra-quiet mode, it continues to collect data. If the collected sound intensity is less than or equal to the set threshold, the unit remains in ultra-quiet mode. If a sound intensity exceeds the threshold for no more than 5 minutes, the unit also maintains ultra-quiet mode. If the intensity exceeds 5 minutes but does not exceed 10 minutes, the unit enters silent mode. If the intensity exceeds 10 minutes, the unit enters powerful heating mode, rapidly increasing the outlet water temperature. When the difference between the actual outlet water temperature and the set outlet water temperature is less than or equal to 2°C, the unit enters normal operating conditions.

[0030] It should be noted that, in this document, relational terms such as "first" and "second" are used only to distinguish one entity or operation from another, and do not necessarily require or imply any such actual relationship or order between these entities or operations. Furthermore, the terms "comprising," "including," or any other variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements includes not only those elements but also other elements not expressly listed, or elements inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus.

[0031] Although embodiments of the invention have been shown and described, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes, modifications, substitutions and alterations can be made to these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the invention, the scope of which is defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A control method for a silent mode of an air source heat pump, characterized in that: It includes a receiving unit configured to collect sound signals from an indoor environment; the receiving unit includes a main receiving unit and one or more auxiliary receiving units, which work together to form a distributed sound pickup network. A processing unit, coupled to the receiving unit, is configured to analyze the received sound signal and calculate an equivalent continuous A-weighted sound level noise value. A storage unit for storing at least one preset noise threshold; A judgment unit, coupled to the processing unit and the storage unit, is configured to compare the equivalent continuous A-weighted sound level noise value with the preset noise threshold to determine whether there is human activity indoors; wherein, when the noise value is higher than the threshold, it is determined that there is human activity, and when the noise value is lower than the threshold, it is determined that there is no human activity. A control unit, coupled to the judgment unit, is configured to control the air conditioning unit to switch between normal operation mode, micro-quiet mode, quiet mode, ultra-quiet mode, and powerful heating mode based on the judgment result of the judgment unit; the control unit is configured to: When the continuous duration of no human activity in the room reaches the first preset duration, the control unit enters the micro-quiet mode. When the continuous duration of no human activity in the room reaches the second preset duration, the control unit enters silent mode. The second preset duration is longer than the first preset duration. When the continuous duration of no human activity in the room reaches the third preset duration, the control unit enters the ultra-quiet mode. The third preset duration is longer than the second preset duration. When the unit is in the ultra-quiet mode, if it is determined that the continuous duration of personnel activity indoors reaches the first noise duration, the unit will exit the current mode and return to the quiet mode; when the unit is in the quiet mode, if it is determined that the continuous duration of personnel activity indoors reaches the first noise duration, the unit will exit the current mode and return to the micro-quiet mode; when the unit is in the micro-quiet mode, if it is determined that the continuous duration of personnel activity indoors reaches the first noise duration, the unit will exit the current mode and return to the normal operation mode.

2. The control method for a silent mode of an air source heat pump according to claim 1, characterized in that: The preset noise threshold includes a daytime threshold and a nighttime threshold, and the threshold is set with an error band of ±2dB.

3. The control method for a silent mode of an air source heat pump according to claim 1, characterized in that: The control unit is further configured to: when the unit is in the ultra-quiet mode, if it is determined that the continuous duration of human activity in the room reaches the first noise duration but is lower than the second noise duration, control the unit to enter the quiet mode. The first noise duration is lower than the second noise duration. When it is determined that the continuous duration of human activity in the room reaches the second noise duration, control the unit to enter the strong heating mode.

4. The control method for a silent mode of an air source heat pump according to claim 3, characterized in that: The first preset duration is 10 minutes, the second preset duration is 20 minutes, and the third preset duration is 30 minutes. The specific heating capacity percentages for the micro-quiet, quiet, and ultra-quiet modes are 90%, 75%, and 50%, respectively. The first noise duration is 5 minutes, and the second noise duration is 10 minutes.

5. The control method for a silent mode of an air source heat pump according to claim 3, characterized in that: The control unit is further configured to: when the control unit enters the strong heating mode, intermittently detect and compare the temperature difference between the actual temperature and the set temperature; when the temperature difference is less than or equal to the set temperature difference, the unit enters normal operating condition; otherwise, it maintains the strong heating mode.

6. The control method for a silent mode of an air source heat pump according to claim 1, characterized in that: The receiving unit is configured to acquire sound signals in an intermittent manner; the intermittent manner is periodic operation with an acquisition period of T, wherein the duration of one sound acquisition operation is t, and t < T.

Images