METHOD FOR CONTROLLING THE CLOSING OF A GROUP OF MOTORIZED VALVES

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a method for controlling the closing of a group of motorized shutters on a building, enabling the automated movement of all shutters in the group based on external conditions such as light and temperature. The objective is to automate the closing of shutters within the same group, for example, according to a twilight mode, which is therefore dependent on light levels, or a heatwave mode, which is based on temperature. The ability to automate the total or partial closing of several shutters simultaneously can increase the building's energy efficiency, but it also aims to improve living comfort, particularly in light of the increasingly relevant prospect of heatwaves.Proper management of shutter positioning can indeed lead to energy savings by reducing the need for air conditioning in the summer or heating in the winter, and also promote better management of natural light for increased comfort in the home.

[0002] As disclosed in document EP2927413 A1, in many private homes equipped with motorized shutters, the shutters include some that operate on solar power, and others that are conventional motorized shutters, dependent on mains voltage. The former are equipped with what can be described as solar-powered motors, connected to a battery that stores solar energy collected via solar panels installed near each shutter. This coexistence can be linked to the building's location and the nature of its surroundings; some windows may also be in more or less permanent shade. The region and its natural sunlight are also factors that can influence the choice and distribution of motorized shutters in a single dwelling.

[0003] The movement of all these shutters can be controlled individually by remote controls. Each shutter then has its own individual remote control. In addition, the shutters often also have a wired control that the user can operate via a button panel mounted on the wall near the opening that the shutter can close. It is also possible to control the simultaneous movement of several shutters grouped together. In this case, it is common practice to associate each group with an additional remote control that manages the movement of the shutters in its assigned group. All these remote controls can be programmed to be used in manual mode, when a user operates them at the precise moment they decide on an individual or group movement of shutter(s), or in automated mode.In this case, the movement of the shutter(s) depends on predetermined conditions that trigger it automatically. The motor of each shutter, linked to the shutter movement mechanism, is always controlled by an electronic control unit that processes radio frequency signals from remote controls or wired signals from, for example, push buttons or sensors.

[0004] In automated mode, the solar-powered electric motor is controlled based on signals from various sensors that reflect external conditions. For example, an irradiance sensor measures the amount of solar energy received per unit area of ​​the connected solar panels per unit of time. These sensors are connected to the motor's control unit, which processes the signals and commands the shutter to move according to the measured conditions, following a pre-defined protocol. Solar-powered motorized shutters, which benefit from efficient real-time information, are therefore considered more effective than conventional shutters and can be easily automated individually.

[0005] Non-solar shutters, to be controlled by automated procedures, must have their control units connected to an external module, such as a more or less sophisticated home automation hub, which may be programmable via applications available on individual devices like smartphones. The home automation hub operates at the building level and collects data from indoor and outdoor sensors that periodically measure, in particular, temperature or the amount of solar energy. It uses this data to determine the optimal time to open or close the motorized shutter. It can manage groups of shutters, which can be easily defined and selected through it, since it generally has a user interface or is controllable via an application running on a smartphone, which effectively serves as the user interface.On such an interface, generally equipped with graphical means, forming a group of flaps and assigning a master role to one flap in the group to control other slave flaps in the same group is easy and quick.

[0006] The present invention proposes a method for managing the control of groups of shutters, comprising a solar-powered shutter and non-solar shutters, using automated procedures that do not require a home automation system or equivalent. No additional installation beyond the individual shutter installation is required. In other words, even non-solar shutters, whose drive motor control units are "blind" because they lack sensors or a dedicated network providing them with information, can be managed according to automated protocols using the invention. In particular, according to the present innovation, there is no need for a dedicated system responsible for centrally collecting data to then feed into the decision-making stages of said protocols for the shutters in the group.

[0007] In fact, more precisely defined, the invention relates to a method for controlling a group of motorized shutters on a building, said group comprising at least one solar-powered shutter driven by a motor connected to at least one solar panel supplying power to the motor, said group also comprising non-solar-powered shutters, each driven by a motor powered by the mains electricity supply, each motor being controllable by means of an individual remote control programmable by the user between an automated or non-automated operating mode of the shutter and equipped with telecommunication means linking it to a shutter control unit comprising transmitting / receiving means. In the invention, an additional remote control is conventionally associated with the group of shutters, said additional remote control having an identification code stored in the motor control units of the shutters in the group.The process of the invention is such that it comprises: . the transmission / reception means of the solar motor control unit of a control frame, said frame including the identification code of the additional remote control of the group; the verification by each non-solar shutter that received the frame of its belonging to the group of the solar shutter whose control unit broadcast the frame, by comparison between the identification code of the additional remote control broadcast and the identification code of the additional remote control stored by its control unit; and the subsequent control of the motors of the non-solar shutters belonging to the group of the solar shutter whose control unit broadcast the frame.

[0008] In the method of the invention, frame diffusion refers to a type of transmission designated as broadcast transmission. This type of transmission sends data by radio to all potential recipients within a certain radius, without any particular characterization of the recipients, unlike unicast or multicast transmission methods, which target one or more recipients by defining their characteristics. In the scenario of the invention, all non-solar shutters in the vicinity are potential targets of the message sent by the solar shutter. The solar shutters, which are controlled by control units that themselves benefit from real-time sensors measuring the conditions likely to be taken into account when deciding on an action, are not targets.

[0009] The message encoded in this frame contains a key common to all the shutters in the group, namely the identification code of the additional remote control. Therefore, only after the entire transmitted frame has been decoded and compared with the stored code can the relevant non-solar shutter control units accept the received message as pertaining to them and implement it by decoding the functional data block. In this invention, there is thus no need for a graphical interface to select the group members concerned by the instruction encapsulated in the frame. The solution enables the selection of targets without requiring a display providing information on which shutters are potentially concerned and offering a way to select them, but rather through a simple common key, in a manner completely transparent to the user.

[0010] The solution of the invention is also particularly interesting in that the additional remote control is not used as a relay for the information to be transmitted and is therefore not active. In the invention, it is not called upon and does not actively participate in the message transmission chain. It merely represents, by its identifier, the common point among the shutters of the group formed, and it is the simple recognition of this common point that triggers the action.

[0011] This is an additional advantage, given the energy challenges associated with this shutter control architecture involving two levels of remote control: the solution of the invention is particularly elegant and efficient in this respect, as it has little to no impact on the battery consumption of the remote controls. The energy consumption for implementing the method of the invention actually occurs primarily at the solar shutter level, which benefits from an inexhaustible natural energy source, allowing for frequent recharging of the energy storage devices used.This is even more true because the invention's process is specifically designed for managing heat waves, with the aim of automatically closing a group of shutters during heatwave conditions, which are ideally energy-efficient, as they contribute to recharging the solar battery. Furthermore, in a twilight-dependent operating mode, this only occurs once a day, which is not detrimental in terms of energy consumption.

[0012] To control a predetermined grouped operation of all the shutters in the group, the frame emitted by the solar shutter can include a block of data corresponding to at least one functional instruction for the shutters in the group.

[0013] The group control method of the invention is in practice mainly oriented towards a grouped and automated instruction to close a group of shutters, in a heatwave or twilight context, and the frame broadcast by the control unit of the solar shutter of the group therefore includes in this case a block of data giving instructions to close the shutters of the group.

[0014] The frame transmitted by the solar shutter control unit can also be used to initialize the operating mode of the shutter control system, enabling simultaneous automated operation of several shutters. In this case, according to the method of the invention, the initialization of the control of the non-solar shutters by the solar shutter(s) is achieved by sending a frame transmitted by the transmission / reception means of the solar shutter control unit. This transmission is triggered by a user action that switches the operating mode of the individual solar shutter remote control. Once the individual remote control of this solar shutter is switched to automated operating mode, the transmitted frame switches the non-solar shutters in the group to automated operating mode.

[0015] Again, everything is controlled from the solar shutter's control unit, which is the least expensive in terms of energy bills. The remote controls and control units for the non-solar shutters are not individually operated by the user. In fact, as mentioned, activating the automated mode allows the shutters to operate as a group, while deactivating this automated mode reverts to individual manual operation. Each shutter is then controlled only by its own individual remote control, by the user, at the user's discretion.

[0016] It should be noted that, after the user has switched the operating mode of the individual solar shutter remote control to a non-automated operating mode, the latter can continue to emit command frames corresponding to the closing in automated mode to the shutters of the group which would still be in an operating mode of their individual remote control in automated operating mode.

[0017] In the method of the invention, according to one possibility, the identification code of the additional remote control, which allows each of the shutters in the group to have the group operating key and thus to be part of said group for automated operation, can be recorded and stored individually in the control units of each shutter in the group.

[0018] Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent in the following description, relating to embodiments given by way of example only. Understanding this description will be particularly facilitated by reference to the diagrams attached hereto, in which: [ Fig.1 ] shows a synoptic diagram of the overall operation of the automated control method for a group of shutters according to the invention, for a group closing command; and [ Fig. 2 ] represents a synoptic diagram of the initialization phase of the automated control mode by a solar shutter of the group.

[0019] With reference to the figures, the method for controlling a group of shutters according to the present invention is based on a hardware configuration comprising a solar shutter and non-solar shutters that are grouped together so that they can benefit from the information available to the solar shutter. The movements of the latter are achieved by means of an electric drive motor powered by at least one solar panel and its battery for storing electrical energy. A control unit manages this hardware system, in particular to couple the control, whether manual via a remote control specific to the shutter or automated, with the shutter movements.During automated operation, the control unit collects several signals, for example signals from at least one irradiance sensor equipping the solar panel and possibly a temperature sensor, as well as limit switch sensors for the shutter, said signals being processed to implement pre-programmed actions.

[0020] The movement of non-solar shutters, whose drive motors rely on mains electricity, is also controlled by its own remote control. As mentioned previously, group operation requires an additional group remote control, to which all the shutters in the group are connected. The idea behind the invention is that the shutters in the entire group are controlled using the more efficient information available from the solar shutter, which acts as the entry point for the parameters to be managed to ensure automated, coordinated operation.

[0021] According to the figure 1To achieve the primary objective of the invention—automating the closing of the shutters (for implementing a heatwave or twilight operating mode)—a control frame is first transmitted by a transmitter on the solar motor's control unit. This frame includes the identification code for the additional remote control and a command data block instructing the shutters to close. Since the message is sent via broadcast, it is received by the building's shutters within the radio wave transmission range. Each non-solar shutter control unit that receives the frame compares the frame's identification code with the stored identification code of the additional remote control.

[0022] If the comparison shows that the received and stored identification codes are identical for a control unit attached to a non-solar shutter, this means that the shutter belongs to the group and must therefore execute the functional part of the frame, the part that sends it an action instruction. Since the automation is implemented for closing the group's shutters, which must occur if parameters reflecting specific conditions are measured at the solar shutter, the data block constituting the instruction contained in the frame aims to close all the group's shutters.

[0023] The closing instruction itself can take several options depending on the programmed scenario. For example, the automated twilight closing leads to the complete closure of the shutters in the group. Conversely, the heatwave closing results in an almost complete closure, but leaves a portion of the window open that the shutter is designed to cover, in order to allow for ventilation.

[0024] If the result of comparing the identification codes respectively encapsulated in the frame and stored in the memory of each control unit attached to a non-solar shutter is negative, this means that the shutter is not in the group and no action is to be taken at the level of this particular shutter.

[0025] With reference to the figure 2The message exchange process between shutters within the same geographical area is identical, but the message sent to the non-solar shutters in the same group is different. Here, the goal is to initialize the automated operating mode triggered by a solar shutter in the group. This is done by the individual remote control of a solar shutter in the group, which is switched by the user to automated operating mode. This switch triggers the transmission / reception of a frame by the control unit of a solar shutter, instructing the non-solar shutters in the group to switch to automated mode, grouped with the solar shutter that initiated the change in operating mode.

[0026] The message is always broadcast openly, and it is always the key, consisting of the identification code of the additional remote control, that identifies the target shutters. Nearby solar shutters within the radio wave transmission range receive the information but are not actually targets because their operating mode, benefiting directly from efficient information processed by their own control unit, makes it unnecessary to control them with another solar shutter. Only non-solar shutters, which are essentially blind due to the lack of connection to a home automation system or equivalent, are likely to join the group. The target shutters are, in any case, prepared prior to the implementation of the invention's method by recording the identification code of the additional remote control in the memory of their control unit.

[0027] The configuration examples shown in the figures should not be considered exhaustive of the invention, which includes, for example, variants of the functional message in the frames broadcast by the solar shutter to instruct the non-solar shutters of the group to take action, said variants falling within the scope of the attached claims. List of reference signs :

[0028] (1): Transmission by a solar shutter of a frame containing the identification code of the additional remote control and an instruction to close the shutter. (2): Reception of said frame by the surrounding shutters. (3): In each control unit of a non-solar shutter that received the frame, comparison between the identification code of the sent frame and the stored identification code of the additional remote control. (4): Identification code of the additional remote control in the memory of the control unit identical to that of the frame. (5): Yes. (6): The non-solar shutter belongs to the group. (7): Shutter closes. (8): No. (9): The non-solar shutter does not belong to the group. (10): Shutter does not close. (11): Initialization of the control of the non-solar shutters by the solar shutter(s). (12): User action that switches the operating mode of the individual solar shutter remote control? (13): No. (14): No mode change.Operating mode (15): Yes (16): Is the additional remote control identification code in the control unit's memory identical to the frame code? (17): Yes (18): The non-solar shutter belongs to the group (19): The non-solar shutter switches to automated operating mode (20): No (21): The non-solar shutter does not belong to the group (22): No change in operating mode

Claims

1. A method for controlling a group of motorised shutters of a building, said group comprising at least one solar shutter driven by a motor connected to at least one solar panel for supplying the motor with power, said group also comprising non-solar shutters, of which each drive is controlled by a motor powered by the mains, each motor being controllable by means of an individual remote control capable of being programmed by the user between an automated operating mode and a non-automated operating mode of the shutter and being provided with telecommunication means connecting it to a control unit of the shutter including transmission / reception means, an additional remote control being associated with said group of shutters, said additional remote control including an identification code stored in memory in the control units of the motors of the shutters of the group, characterised in that it includes: - broadcasting, by the transmission / reception means of the control unit of the solar motor, a control frame, said frame including the identification code of the additional remote control of the group; - verifying, by each non-solar shutter having received the frame, that it belongs to the group of the solar shutter of which the control unit broadcast the frame, by comparing the additional remote control identification code broadcast and the additional remote control identification code stored in memory by its control unit; and - subsequently controlling the motors of the non-solar shutters belonging to the group of the solar shutter of which the control unit broadcast the frame.

2. The method for controlling a group of motorised shutters according to the preceding claim, characterised in that said frame comprises a data block corresponding to at least one functional instruction intended for the shutters of the group.

3. The method for controlling a group of motorised shutters according to the preceding claim, characterised in that the frame includes a data block instructing closing of the shutters of the group.

4. The method for controlling a group of motorised shutters according to one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the initialisation of the control of the non-solar shutters by the solar shutter(s) is performed by sending a frame broadcast by the transmission / reception means of the control unit of a solar shutter triggered by an action of the user who switches the operating mode of the individual remote control of the solar shutter.