Hot water system

Abstract

To provide a hot water system capable of improving the certainty that a user confirms distribution information from a server.SOLUTION: According to one example of the present invention, a hot water system includes a remote control outside bathroom 2 and a bathroom remote control 3 and bather detection means, the remote control outside bathroom 2 performs first communication with a server 6 through an external communication network 5, the bathroom remote control 3 is configured so as to perform second communication having a communication speed slower than in the first communication with the remote control outside bathroom 2, the remote control outside bathroom 2 transmits received distribution information to the bathroom remote control 3 by the second communication during a predetermined specific time zone when receiving the distribution information for the user from server 6 by the first communication, and the bathroom remote control 3 notifies that an own notification part 34 receives the distribution information when the bather detection means detects a bather after completing the reception of the distribution information transmitted from the remote control outside bathroom 2, and notifies contents of the distribution information by the own notification part 34 when prescribe operation is performed after that.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a hot water supply system. [Background technology]

[0002] Typically, a water heater is equipped with a water heater installed outdoors, an outside bathroom remote control installed in the kitchen or elsewhere for remotely controlling the water heater, and a bathroom remote control installed in the bathroom. Some water heater systems are configured so that the outside bathroom remote control can communicate with a management server via an external communications network, allowing the server to remotely manage the water heater and distribute information to the water heater.

[0003] For example, in the hot water supply system described in Patent Document 1, advertising data distributed from a server is received and stored by a kitchen remote control (remote control outside the bathroom), and an advertisement can be displayed on the display unit of the kitchen remote control when the kitchen remote control is operated. Patent Document 1 also describes a configuration in which advertising data is sent from the kitchen remote control to a bathroom remote control, and an advertisement is displayed on the display unit of the bathroom remote control when the bathroom remote control is operated. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2020-34187 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] In the configuration of Patent Document 1, distributed information such as advertisements is displayed when the user operates the remote control, allowing the user to check the distributed information. However, users do not necessarily operate the remote control frequently, and unless the user operates the remote control, the user will not know that distributed information has arrived from the server. Furthermore, if the communication speed between the kitchen remote control and the bathroom remote control is slower than the communication speed between the server and the kitchen remote control, it is difficult to immediately transmit the distributed information received by the kitchen remote control to the bathroom remote control. This is not mentioned in Patent Document 1, and there is room for improvement in terms of increasing the reliability with which users (bathers) can check the distributed information on the bathroom remote control.

[0006] The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide a hot water supply system that allows users to improve the reliability of checking information distributed from a server on the bathroom remote control. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, a hot water supply system according to one embodiment of the present invention comprises an outside-bathroom remote control having an alarm unit that is installed in a location other than a bathroom to remotely control a water heater, a bathroom remote control having an alarm unit that is installed in the bathroom to remotely control the water heater, and a bather detection means that detects bathers in the bathroom, wherein the outside-bathroom remote control is configured to perform a first communication with a server via an external communication network, and the bathroom remote control is configured to perform a second communication with the outside-bathroom remote control at a slower communication speed than the first communication, and when the outside-bathroom remote control receives distribution information for a user from the server via the first communication, it transmits this received distribution information to the bathroom remote control via the second communication during a predetermined specific time period, and when a bather is detected by the bather detection means after completion of reception of the distribution information transmitted from the outside-bathroom remote control, the bathroom remote control uses its own alarm unit to notify that the distribution information has been received, and when a predetermined operation is subsequently performed to notify the contents of the distribution information, it notifies the contents of the distribution information via its own alarm unit.

[0008] With this configuration, when the bather detection means detects a bather after receiving the distributed information, the bathroom remote control notifies the bather that the distributed information has been received using the notification unit, so the bather knows that distributed information is available without having to operate the bathroom remote control, thereby improving the reliability with which the user (bather) can check the distributed information from the server. Also, even if the communication speed between the remote control outside the bathroom and the bathroom remote control is slow, the user (bather) can smoothly check the distributed information by sending the distributed information from the remote control outside the bathroom to the bathroom remote control in advance during a specific time period.

[0009] The distribution information may include final distribution destination information in which at least one of the outside bathroom remote control and the bathroom remote control is set as the final distribution destination, and the outside bathroom remote control may transmit the distribution information to the bathroom remote control if the bathroom remote control is included in the final distribution destination set in the final distribution destination information included in the distribution information received from the server.

[0010] When both the remote control outside the bathroom and the bathroom remote control are included in the final distribution destination set in the final distribution destination information contained in the distribution information received by the remote control outside the bathroom from the server, the remote control outside the bathroom and the bathroom remote control each receive the distribution information and notify their respective notification units that they have received the distribution information, and then begin notifying their respective notification units of unopened status information indicating that the distribution information is unopened; when the notification unit of either the remote control outside the bathroom or the bathroom remote control notifies the contents of the distribution information, the one remote control may end notifying their own notification unit of the unopened status information and send an opening notification of the distribution information to the other remote control; and when the other remote control receives the opening notification from the one remote control, it may end notifying their own notification unit of the unopened status information.

[0011] According to this configuration, when both the remote control outside the bathroom and the bathroom remote control are included as final destinations of the distribution information, if the content of the distribution information is notified on either remote control, the notification of the unopened status information on both remote controls is terminated. When the final destinations are set to both the remote control outside the bathroom and the bathroom remote control, it may be sufficient to notify the content of the distribution information on either remote control, and in such cases, unnecessary notification of the unopened status information can be prevented.

[0012] The bather detection means may include an entry detection sensor that detects a person entering the bathroom, or a bathing detection means that detects the water level in a bathtub in the bathroom and detects a person bathing in the bathtub based on fluctuations in the detected water level. [Effects of the Invention]

[0013] The present invention has the above-described configuration and has an effect of providing a hot water supply system that can improve the reliability with which a user can check information distributed from a server. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0014] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a hot water supply system according to the present embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing an outline of the processing in the water heating apparatus when distribution information for a user is transmitted from the server to the water heating apparatus. [Figure 3] FIG. 3(A) is a diagram showing an example of the appearance of the remote control outside the bathroom, and FIGS. 3(B) to 3(E) are diagrams showing examples of what is displayed on the screen of the display unit of the remote control outside the bathroom. [Figure 4] FIG. 4(A) is a diagram showing an example of the appearance of the bathroom remote control, and FIG. 4(B) is a diagram showing an example of the display on the screen of the display unit of the bathroom remote control. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of delivery information displayed on the bathroom remote control. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of delivery information displayed on the bathroom remote control. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of delivery information displayed on the bathroom remote control. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0015] Preferred embodiments will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the following, identical or corresponding elements will be designated by the same reference numerals throughout the drawings, and redundant description will be omitted. Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments.

[0016] (Embodiment) FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a hot water supply system according to this embodiment. The hot water supply system according to this embodiment includes a water heating apparatus 10 and a server 6 connected to an external communication network 5, such as the Internet. This hot water supply system utilizes the external communication network 5 and a router 4. The router 4 is a wireless LAN router connected to the external communication network 5 and owned by a resident (user) of the residence 100 in which the water heating apparatus 10 is installed. The router 4 communicates wirelessly with a wireless communication unit 27 of the outside-bathroom remote control 2 of the water heating apparatus 10, but may also be connected to the outside-bathroom remote control 2 via a wired connection for communication. The server 6 can communicate with the outside-bathroom remote control 2 via the external communication network 5 and the router 4. The server 6 manages the status of the water heating apparatus 10 and transmits user-oriented information to the outside-bathroom remote control 2, and may be composed of multiple servers.

[0017] Water heating apparatus 10 has water heater 1, and outside bathroom remote control 2 and bathroom remote control 3, which are remote controllers for remotely operating water heater 1. Such water heating apparatus 10 may be installed in just one home, but typically many homes are installed. Here, only water heating apparatus 10 in one home is shown as a representative, and router 4 corresponding to only that water heating apparatus 10 is shown. The illustrated configuration will be described below.

[0018] Water heater 1 is, for example, a combustion-heating water heater, and is often installed outdoors in house 100, but may also be installed in a predetermined location indoors. Water heater 1 has a hot water supply function that supplies hot water to hot water supply terminals such as bathroom 101 and the kitchen, and is connected to circulation fitting 73 attached to bathtub 7 in bathroom 101 via external pipes 71 and 72, and has a bath water supply function that supplies hot water to bathtub 7 via external pipes 71 and 72, and a reheating function that circulates and heats the hot water in bathtub 7.

[0019] Water heater 1 has a built-in control device 11. Control device 11 is configured using, for example, a microcontroller, and controls the operation of the entire water heater 1 according to a predetermined control program and commands from outside bathroom remote control 2 and bathroom remote control 3. Control device 11 may be configured as a single control device for centralized control, or may be configured as multiple control devices that cooperate with each other for distributed control. Water heater 1 is also equipped with various sensors, including water level sensor 12. Water level sensor 12 is configured as a pressure sensor and detects the water level of bathtub 7 based on the water pressure in the piping connected to bathtub 7. Control device 11 can detect when someone has taken a bath in bathtub 7 based on fluctuations in the water level detected by water level sensor 12; in this case, water level sensor 12 and control device 11 constitute a bathing detection means.

[0020] In addition, the control device 11 of the water heater 1, the wired communication unit 28 of the outside bathroom remote control 2, and the wired communication unit 38 of the bathroom remote control 3 are connected by a two-core communication line CL and can communicate with each other.

[0021] The outside-bathroom remote control 2 is installed in a location other than the bathroom 101, such as the kitchen, within the house 100, and has an operation unit 21, a display unit 22, an audio output unit 23, a control unit 25, a memory unit 26, a wireless communication unit 27, and a wired communication unit 28. The display unit 22 and the audio output unit 23 function as an alarm unit 24. Note that although an example is shown here in which the outside-bathroom remote control 2 is installed indoors, other than the bathroom 101, the outside-bathroom remote control 2 may also be installed on the exterior wall of a building such as a house.

[0022] The operation unit 21 has various operation buttons. In this embodiment, the display unit 22 is configured, for example, by a liquid crystal panel, and the operation unit 21 is configured by a touch panel laminated on the liquid crystal panel, so that the operation unit 21 and the display unit 22 are integrally configured. The audio output unit 23 has a speaker for outputting buzzer sounds, voices, etc.

[0023] The control unit 25 has a CPU and controls the overall operation of the outside bathroom remote control 2 according to a control program stored in the storage unit 26. The storage unit 26 has memory and stores the control program as well as other necessary information. The wireless communication unit 27 is a wireless communication module capable of wireless communication with the router 4. The wireless communication unit 27 performs communication processing with the router 4 to communicate with the server 6 via the router 4 and the external communication network 5. The wired communication unit 28 performs communication processing to communicate with the water heater 1 and the bathroom remote control 3 via the two-core communication line CL.

[0024] Bathroom remote control 3 is installed in bathroom 101 to remotely control water heater 1, and includes operation unit 31, display unit 32, audio output unit 33, control unit 35, memory unit 36, entry sensor 37, and wired communication unit 38. Display unit 32 and audio output unit 33 function as notification unit 34.

[0025] The operation unit 31 has various operation buttons. The display unit 32 is configured with, for example, a liquid crystal panel. The audio output unit 33 has a speaker for outputting buzzer sounds, voices, and the like.

[0026] The control unit 35 has a CPU and controls the overall operation of the bathroom remote control 3 according to a control program stored in the memory unit 36. The memory unit 36 ​​has memory and stores the control program as well as other necessary information. The wired communication unit 38 performs communication processing to communicate with the water heater 1 and the outside bathroom remote control 2 via the two-core communication line CL. The entry sensor 37 is a human presence sensor, such as an infrared sensor, that detects people entering the bathroom 101. The entry sensor 37 is a bather detection means that detects people bathing in the bathroom 101.

[0027] The user can operate the water heater 1 and set the hot water temperature or bath temperature by operating the operation unit 21, 31 of the outside bathroom remote control 2 or the bathroom remote control 3. The outside bathroom remote control 2 or the bathroom remote control 3 can also display the operating status of the water heater 1, the hot water temperature or bath temperature, etc. on the display unit 22, 32.

[0028] In the hot water supply system of this embodiment, the control device 11 of the water heater 1 can communicate with the server 6 via the outside-bathroom remote control 2, the router 4, and the external communication network 5. For example, the control device 11 of the water heater 1 transmits device information of the water heater 10 to the server 6. The server 6 stores the device information transmitted from the control device 11 of the water heater 1 for each water heater 10. Here, the device information transmitted from the control device 11 of the water heater 1 to the server 6 includes, for example, operating status information indicating the operating status of the water heater 1 transmitted periodically (for example, every hour), error information indicating an abnormality in the water heater 1, etc.

[0029] Furthermore, if a user of the water heating device 10 installs an application program dedicated to the water heating system on a mobile device such as a smartphone that the user owns, the user can use the mobile device to remotely control the water heater 1 and check its status via the server 6 or the like.

[0030] In this embodiment, the outside bathroom remote control 2 and the bathroom remote control 3 are connected by a two-core communication line CL, enabling reliable, low-speed communication. Furthermore, compared to the outside bathroom remote control 2, the control unit 35 and memory unit 36 ​​of the bathroom remote control 3 are configured using a low-spec microcontroller, and the communication speed between the outside bathroom remote control 2 and the bathroom remote control 3 is much slower than the communication speed between the server 6 and the outside bathroom remote control 2.

[0031] Server 6 also transmits distribution information for the user to remote control 2 outside the bathroom of water heating apparatus 10 via external communication network 5 and router 4. Figure 2 is a flowchart showing an outline of the processing in water heating apparatus 10 when distribution information for the user is transmitted from server 6 to water heating apparatus 10. The distribution information is stored in server 6 by an administrator or the like, and is transmitted from server 6 to remote control 2 outside the bathroom of water heating apparatus 10 at a predetermined timing.

[0032] Outside bathroom remote control 2 receives the distributed information from server 6 via wireless communication unit 27, stores it in storage unit 26 (step S1), and notifies via notification unit 24 that the distributed information has been received (step S2).

[0033] Then, when a predetermined specific time period arrives, outside bathroom remote control 2 transmits the distribution information stored in memory unit 26 in step S1 to bathroom remote control 3 via two-core communication line CL (step S3). The specific time period may be, for example, the time period from midnight to 4:00 AM.

[0034] Next, bathroom remote control 3 receives the distribution information transmitted from outside bathroom remote control 2 and stores it in memory unit 36 ​​(step S4).

[0035] When a bather is detected by entrance sensor 37, bathroom remote control 3 notifies notification unit 34 that the distributed information has been received (step S5). This notification is made after reception of the distributed information transmitted from outside bathroom remote control 2 has been completed in step S4.

[0036] Then, when the bather performs a specified operation on the operation unit 31 to notify the contents of the distributed information, the bathroom remote control 3 notifies the contents of the distributed information using the notification unit 34 (step S6) and sends a notification that the notified distributed information has been opened to the outside bathroom remote control 2 (step S7).

[0037] Then, when outside bathroom remote control 2 receives the opening notification of the distribution information transmitted from bathroom remote control 3, it transmits the opening notification of the distribution information to server 6 (step S8).

[0038] In the above, the procedure for notifying the contents of the distributed information from the server 6 by the bathroom remote control 3 has been explained, but when the contents of the distributed information are to be notified by the remote control outside the bathroom 2, in step S2 the notification unit 24 notifies that the remote control outside the bathroom 2 has received the distributed information, and then when the user performs a predetermined operation on the operation unit 21 to notify the contents of the distributed information, the notification unit 24 notifies the contents of the distributed information. After this, the remote control outside the bathroom 2 sends a notification to the server 6 that the distributed information has been opened.

[0039] Next, a specific example of the procedure for notifying the contents of information distributed from the server 6 in the remote controller 2 outside the bathroom will be described with reference to Fig. 3. Fig. 3(A) is a diagram showing an example of the appearance of the remote controller 2 outside the bathroom, and Figs. 3(B) to 3(E) are diagrams showing examples of the screen display of the display unit 22 of the remote controller 2 outside the bathroom.

[0040] 3(A), the operation button 210 is located in the lower right portion, and the audio output unit 23 is located in the lower left portion. Here, the operation unit 21 other than the operation button 210 is configured as a touch panel integrated with the display unit 22.

[0041] The display unit 22 in Figure 3(A) displays the top screen, which is the normal display screen, and displays the hot water setting temperature (40°C) and the current time (20:36), as well as the operation unit 21, which consists of operation buttons such as "Menu," "Favorites," "Notification," "Call," "Reheat," and "Automatic Bath."

[0042] When the outside bathroom remote control 2 receives distributed information from the server 6 while the top screen as shown in Fig. 3(A) is displayed on the display unit 22, the display screen of the display unit 22 changes for a few seconds to a screen as shown in Fig. 3(B) notifying the user that the distributed information has been received. At the same time, the audio output unit 23 may output a voice message indicating that the distributed information has been received, similar to the message displayed on the display unit 22.

[0043] The outside bathroom remote control 2 displays the screen shown in FIG. 3(B) for a few seconds and then returns to the top screen. At this time, a red dot D1, like a notification dot, appears on the "Notification" operation button B1 on the top screen, indicating the presence of unopened distribution information. When the user subsequently taps the "Notification" operation button B1, a notification screen like that shown in FIG. 3(C) is displayed on the display unit 22. On the screen shown in FIG. 3(C), a red dot D2 appears in the received message item B2, indicating the presence of unopened distribution information. When the user then taps the received message item B2, a list screen of received messages like that shown in FIG. 3(D) is displayed on the display unit 22. On the screen shown in FIG. 3(D), a red dot D3 appears next to the distribution information whose transmission date and time on the server 6 is 7:00 AM on December 9, 2024, indicating that the information is unopened. Next, when the user taps the unopened distribution information item B3, a screen like that shown in FIG. 3(E) is displayed on the display unit 22, displaying the contents of the distribution information. In FIG. 3(E), information on recommended water heater usage is displayed. If the distribution information includes audio data, the audio data is output as audio from the audio output unit 23. The red dots D1 to D3 indicate unopened status information. The color of the dots D1 to D3 may be a color other than red.

[0044] Next, a specific example of the procedure for notifying the contents of information distributed from the server 6 in the bathroom remote control 3 will be explained with reference to Figure 4. Figure 4(A) is a diagram showing an example of the appearance of the bathroom remote control 3, and Figure 4(B) is a diagram showing an example of the screen display of the display unit 32 of the bathroom remote control 3.

[0045] The front side of the bathroom remote control 3 shown in Figure 4(A) is provided with an operation unit 31, a display unit 32, an audio output unit 33, and an entry sensor 37. This bathroom remote control 3 is provided with the operation unit 31 and the display unit 32 separately. The operation unit 31 is provided with operation buttons such as an operation button 310, a menu button 311, a cross key 312, and a decision button 313.

[0046] The display unit 32 in FIG. 4(A) displays a top screen, which is a normal display screen, and displays the hot water supply setting temperature (shower 40°C), bath setting temperature (bath 40°C), the current time (20:57), etc. Here, when the user presses the menu button 311, the menu screen shown in FIG. 4(B) is displayed on the display unit 32. In FIG. 4(B), six menu items, such as hot water supply, bath, heating, and notifications, are displayed. Here, when one of the six items is selected by operating the cross key 312 and the decision button 313 is pressed, a screen related to the selected item is displayed. In FIG. 4(B), the "hot water supply" item is displayed in reverse video, indicating that the "hot water supply" item is selected.

[0047] The bathroom remote control 3 normally displays a top screen such as that shown in Fig. 4(A) on the display unit 32. After the bathroom remote control 3 completes receiving distribution information from the server 6 that was sent (transferred) from the outside-bathroom remote control 2 during a specific time period and stores the information in the memory unit 36, the first time a bather is detected by the entrance sensor 37, the display screen of the display unit 32 switches for several seconds to a screen announcing that distribution information similar to that shown in Fig. 3(B) has been received. At the same time, the audio output unit 33 may output a voice message indicating that distribution information similar to that displayed on the display unit 32 has been received.

[0048] The bathroom remote control 3 displays a screen similar to that shown in FIG. 3(B) for several seconds and then returns to the top screen. At this time, the top screen displays, for example, the text "You have a notice" (unopened status information) indicating the presence of unopened distribution information. After this, if the user presses the menu button 311 to display the menu items shown in FIG. 4(B) on the display unit 32, operates the cross key 312 to select the "Notification" item, and presses the decision button 313, a notification screen similar to that shown in FIG. 3(C) is displayed on the display unit 32. On this notification screen, a red dot D2 is displayed in the received message item B2, indicating the presence of unopened distribution information. If the user then operates the cross key 312 to select the received message item B2 and presses the decision button 313, a received message list screen similar to that shown in FIG. 3(D) is displayed on the display unit 32. On this received message list screen, a red dot D3 is displayed in the distribution information whose transmission date and time on the server 6 is 7:00 AM on December 9, 2024, indicating that the information is unopened. Next, when the user operates the cross key 312 to select item B3 of unopened distribution information and presses the decision button 313, a screen showing the contents of the distribution information similar to that shown in Fig. 3(E) is displayed on the display unit 32. Here, if the distribution information includes audio data, the audio data is output as audio from the audio output unit 33.

[0049] As shown in the notification list screen of Fig. 3(C), the information distributed from the server 6 includes not only received messages but also notifications about updates, etc. The received messages also include information such as recommended ways to use the water heater, recommended bathing methods, advertisements, and various other information as shown in Figs.

[0050] Figure 5 shows an example of information related to a survey displayed on the display unit 32 of the bathroom remote control 3. In the case of Figure 5, for example, the first display screen 32a, which displays the contents of the distribution information on the display unit 32, displays the message "Would you be willing to participate in our survey?", and if "Yes" is selected and confirmed, the contents of the survey are displayed on the next display screen 32b. Then, if one of "Relax," "Refresh," or "Promote Beauty and Health" is selected and "Send" is selected, the selected content is sent from the bathroom remote control 3 to the server 6 via the outside-bathroom remote control 2.

[0051] Figure 6 shows an example of information related to a quiz displayed on display unit 32 of bathroom remote control 3. In the case of Figure 6, for example, a quiz is displayed on first display screen 32c where the contents of the distribution information are displayed on display unit 32, and when one of "intestine," "shoulder blade," or "calf" is selected and "send" is selected, an answer such as "That's correct" or "The correct answer is calf" is displayed on the next screen, and the selected content is sent from bathroom remote control 3 to server 6 via outside-bathroom remote control 2.

[0052] Figure 7 shows an example of a suggestion for a question to the user that is displayed on the display unit 32 of the bathroom remote control 3. In the case of Figure 7, for example, the first display screen 32d, on which the contents of the delivered information are displayed on the display unit 32, displays the question "Are you experiencing symptoms such as fatigue?" If "Yes" is selected and confirmed, the next display screen 32e displays, for example, bath salts that have fatigue recovery effects. On the other hand, if "No" is selected and confirmed, the contents of the next display screen 32f are displayed.

[0053] In the explanation of Figures 5 to 7 above, selection and confirmation can be made by operating the cross key 312 and decision button 313 on the bathroom remote control 3. Note that Figures 5 to 7 show an example of the content of the distribution information displayed on the display unit 32 of the bathroom remote control 3, and are illustrated without regard to the aspect ratio of the display unit 32. Furthermore, when distribution information such as that shown in Figures 5 to 7 is displayed on the outside bathroom remote control 2, selection and confirmation in the explanation of Figures 5 to 7 above can be made by tapping "Yes," "No," "Send," etc. displayed on the screen.

[0054] In this embodiment, the communication speed between the outside bathroom remote control 2 and the bathroom remote control 3 is much slower than the communication speed between the server 6 and the outside bathroom remote control 2. Therefore, it is preferable that the data size of the distribution information sent from the server 6 to the outside bathroom remote control 2 be small to shorten the transfer time from the outside bathroom remote control 2 to the bathroom remote control 3. Furthermore, even if the distribution information is text information such as that shown in Figure 3(E) and Figures 5 to 7, it is sent from the server 6 as image data. Therefore, in the case of image data, the server 6 can divide a single image data into multiple parts in advance and transmit the part data and division position coordinates, thereby reducing the data size. Furthermore, for example, general-purpose parts such as switches and radio buttons for "Yes," "No," and "Send" shown in Figure 5 can be stored in the outside bathroom remote control 2 and the bathroom remote control 3 in advance and designated by predetermined numbers, thereby reducing the data size of the distribution information.

[0055] In addition, if the distributed information includes voice data, the data size of the distributed information can be reduced by storing voice synthesis software or equipping the bathroom remote control 2 and the bathroom remote control 3 with a voice synthesis IC in advance, and transmitting the voice data from the server 6 as text data in ASII code.

[0056] The specific time period during which information distributed from server 6 is transferred from outside bathroom remote control 2 to bathroom remote control 3 is preferably a time period during which the user is not expected to use water heater 1. For example, this may be a time period during which the user is not expected to operate outside bathroom remote control 2 or bathroom remote control 3, such as the time period from midnight to 4:00 PM, as described above. Alternatively, the control device 11 of water heater 1 or the control unit 25 of outside bathroom remote control 2 may learn the time periods during which water heater 1 is not operating and periodically set these time periods as specific time periods. Furthermore, since server 6 stores the operating status information of water heater 1 transmitted from outside bathroom remote control 2, server 6 may determine the time periods during which water heater 1 is not operating and periodically notify outside bathroom remote control 2 of these time periods as specific time periods.

[0057] In this embodiment, when the bathroom remote control 3 detects a bather by the entrance sensor 37 after receiving the distribution information, the bathroom remote control 3 notifies the user that the distribution information has been received using the notification unit 34, so that the bather knows that distribution information is available without having to operate the bathroom remote control 3, thereby improving the reliability with which the user (bather) can check the distribution information from the server 6. Furthermore, even if the communication speed between the outside bathroom remote control 2 and the bathroom remote control 3 is slow, the user (bather) can smoothly check the distribution information by sending (transferring) the distribution information from the outside bathroom remote control 2 to the bathroom remote control 3 in advance during a specific time period.

[0058] Although the above describes a case where the distribution information transmitted from server 6 does not include the final distribution destination information described below, the distribution information transmitted from server 6 may also include final distribution destination information in which at least one of outside bathroom remote control 2 and bathroom remote control 3 is set as the final distribution destination. In this case, outside bathroom remote control 2 transfers the distribution information to bathroom remote control 3 during a specific time period if bathroom remote control 3 is included in the final distribution destination set in the final distribution destination information included in the distribution information received from server 6, and does not transfer the distribution information to bathroom remote control 3 if bathroom remote control 3 is not included in the final distribution destination. In other words, the distribution information can be announced on the remote control set as the final distribution destination, and the distribution information is not announced on remote controls not set as the final distribution destination.

[0059] If the final destinations set in the final destination information include both the outside bathroom remote control 2 and the bathroom remote control 3, when the outside bathroom remote control 2 and the bathroom remote control 3 receive the delivery information, they will each notify the reception of the delivery information using their respective notification units 24, 34, and then begin notifying the delivery information of unopened status information indicating that the delivery information is unopened using their respective notification units 24, 34. After this, if the notification unit 24 of the outside bathroom remote control 2 notifies the contents of the delivery information before the bathroom remote control 3, the outside bathroom remote control 2 will stop notifying the unopened status information using its own notification unit 24 and send an opened notification of the delivery information to the bathroom remote control 3, and when the bathroom remote control 3 receives the opened notification from the outside bathroom remote control 2, it may stop notifying the unopened status information using its own notification unit 34. Furthermore, if the bathroom remote control 3's notification unit 34 notifies the contents of the distributed information before the outside bathroom remote control 2, the bathroom remote control 3 will stop notifying the unopened status information on its own notification unit 34 and send an opened notification of the distributed information to the outside bathroom remote control 2, and the outside bathroom remote control 2 will stop notifying the unopened status information on its own notification unit 24 upon receiving the opened notification from the bathroom remote control 3. In this way, if the contents of the distributed information are notified on either the outside bathroom remote control 2 or the bathroom remote control 3, both remote controls 2 and 3 may stop notifying the unopened status information. If the final distribution destination is set to both the outside bathroom remote control 2 and the bathroom remote control 3, there may be cases where it is sufficient for the contents of the distributed information to be notified on one of the remote controls, and in such cases, unnecessary notification of the unopened status information can be prevented.

[0060] In the above embodiment, the entrance sensor 37 is used as the bather detection means for detecting a bather in the bathroom 101, but instead, the bathing detection means described above, which is composed of the water level sensor 12 of the water heater 1 and the control device 11, may be used. In this case, when the control device 11 detects that a person has entered the bathtub 7 based on the fluctuation in the water level detected by the water level sensor 12, it can send bather detection information to the bathroom remote control 3.

[0061] From the above description, many modifications and other embodiments of the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Therefore, the above description should be construed as illustrative only and is provided for the purpose of teaching those skilled in the art the best mode for carrying out the present invention. Details of the structure and / or function thereof may be substantially changed without departing from the spirit of the present invention. [Industrial Applicability]

[0062] INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The present invention is useful as a hot water supply system or the like that can improve the reliability with which a user can check information distributed from a server. [Explanation of symbols]

[0063] 1 water heater, 2 remote control outside bathroom, 3 bathroom remote control, 5 external communication network, 6 server, 24 alarm unit, 34 alarm unit, 37 entry sensor

Claims

1. an outside-bathroom remote control that is installed in a place other than the bathroom to remotely control the water heater and has an alarm unit; a bathroom remote control that is installed in the bathroom to remotely control the water heater and has an alarm unit; bather detection means for detecting a bather in the bathroom; Equipped with the outside-bathroom remote control is configured to perform a first communication with a server via an external communication network; The bathroom remote controller is configured to perform second communication with the outside-bathroom remote controller at a communication speed slower than the first communication; When the outside-bathroom remote controller receives the distribution information for the user from the server through the first communication, the outside-bathroom remote controller transmits the received distribution information to the bathroom remote controller through the second communication during a predetermined specific time period; When the bather detection means detects a bather after completing reception of the distribution information transmitted from the remote controller outside the bathroom, the bathroom remote controller notifies the user by its own notification unit that the distribution information has been received, and when a predetermined operation is subsequently performed to notify the user of the contents of the distribution information, the bathroom remote controller notifies the user of the contents of the distribution information by its own notification unit. Hot water system.

2. the delivery information includes final delivery destination information in which at least one of the outside-bathroom remote control and the bathroom remote control is set as a final delivery destination; the outside-bathroom remote controller transmits the distribution information to the bathroom remote controller when the bathroom remote controller is included in the final distribution destination set in the final distribution destination information included in the distribution information received from the server; The hot water system according to claim 1 .

3. When both the remote controller outside the bathroom and the bathroom remote controller are included in the final destination set in the final destination information included in the delivery information received by the remote controller outside the bathroom from the server, Each of the outside-bathroom remote control and the bathroom remote control receives the distribution information and notifies the user by the notification unit that the distribution information has been received, and then starts notifying the user by the notification unit that the distribution information is unopened. When the notification unit of either the outside-bathroom remote control or the bathroom remote control notifies the contents of the distributed information, the one remote control stops notifying the unopened state information by its own notification unit and transmits an opened notification of the distributed information to the other remote control, When the other remote controller receives the opened notification from the one remote controller, the other remote controller ends the notification of the unopened state information by the notification unit of the other remote controller. The hot water supply system according to claim 2 .

4. The bather detection means includes an entry detection sensor that detects a person entering the bathroom, or a bathing detection means that detects the water level of a bathtub in the bathroom and detects a person entering the bathtub based on the detected water level fluctuation. The hot water supply system according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

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