Remote control device and air conditioning system

Abstract

To provide a remote controller and an air conditioning system capable of making many users in a room more comfortable.SOLUTION: The remote control device includes: a first communication control unit which transmits an operation signal to an air conditioner which air-conditions a room; a second communication control unit which performs wireless communication with a plurality of wireless communication devices in the room; and a main control unit which controls the first communication control unit and the second communication control unit, wherein the main control unit acquires, via the second communication control unit, information on the number of the plurality of wireless communication devices existing in the room and preferred operation setting information from each of the plurality of wireless communication devices, and, the operation setting of the air conditioner is determined based on the information on the number of air conditioners, the favorite operation setting information, and the preset information on the size of the room, and an operation signal based on the operation setting is transmitted to the air conditioner via the first communication control unit.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a remote control device and an air conditioning system. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a ventilation device. This ventilation device includes a ventilation unit that ventilates a space to be ventilated, a ventilation communication unit that automatically communicates wirelessly with wearable devices worn by each user, and a ventilation control unit. The ventilation control unit controls the operation of the ventilation unit based on the number of wearable devices that are connected to the ventilation communication unit via wireless communication in the space to be ventilated. The ventilation control unit also calculates an average value of user's preferred temperature data acquired from multiple wearable devices that are connected to the ventilation communication unit via wireless communication in the space to be ventilated, and transmits information about the average value of the preferred temperature data to an air conditioner that is connected to the ventilation device so that it can communicate with the ventilation device. This allows the average value of the user's preferred temperature data to be used as the set temperature for the air conditioner. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2020-200998 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, there is a problem in that simply setting the air conditioner temperature to the average value of users' preferred temperature data does not necessarily make many users in the room comfortable.

[0005] The present disclosure has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide a remote control device and an air conditioning system that can make many users in a room more comfortable. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The remote control device of the present disclosure comprises a first communication control unit that transmits an operation signal to an air conditioner that conditions the air in a room, a second communication control unit that communicates wirelessly with multiple wireless communication devices in the room, and a main control unit that controls the first communication control unit and the second communication control unit, wherein the main control unit obtains information on the number of the multiple wireless communication devices present in the room via the second communication control unit and obtains preferred operation setting information from each of the multiple wireless communication devices, determines operation settings for the air conditioner based on the number information, the preferred operation setting information, and information on the size of the room that has been set in advance, and transmits the operation signal based on the operation setting to the air conditioner via the first communication control unit.

[0007] An air conditioning system according to the present disclosure includes the remote control device according to the present disclosure and the air conditioner. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] The present disclosure can make many users in a room more comfortable. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an air conditioning system according to a first embodiment. [Figure 2] 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a remote control device according to a first embodiment. [Figure 3] 4 is a flowchart showing a flow of control executed in the remote control device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 4] 4 is a flowchart showing a flow of control executed in the remote control device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 5] 4 is a flowchart showing a flow of control executed in the remote control device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 6] 4 is a flowchart showing a flow of control executed in the remote control device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 7] 5 is a flowchart showing a learning operation in the remote control device according to the first embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] Embodiments of the present disclosure will be described below with reference to the drawings. The present disclosure is not limited to the following embodiments and can be modified in various ways without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. Furthermore, the present disclosure includes all possible combinations of the configurations shown in the following embodiments. In particular, the combinations of components are not limited to the combinations in each embodiment, and components described in one embodiment can be applied to another embodiment. In the following description, directional terms (e.g., "up," "down," "right," "left," "front," "rear," etc.) are used as appropriate to facilitate understanding, but these are for explanatory purposes and do not limit the present disclosure. In addition, in each drawing, components denoted with the same reference numerals are identical or equivalent, and this applies throughout the entire specification.

[0011] Embodiment 1 A remote control device and an air conditioning system according to a first embodiment will be described. Fig. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an air conditioning system according to the present embodiment. As shown in Fig. 1, the air conditioning system 100 has four air conditioners 1A, 1B, 1C, and 1D and two remote control devices 10A and 10B. The air conditioners 1A, 1B, 1C, and 1D and the remote control devices 10A and 10B are connected by wire so as to be able to communicate with each other. The number of air conditioners included in the air conditioning system 100 may be one to three, or five or more. The number of remote control devices included in the air conditioning system 100 may be one, or three or more.

[0012] Air conditioners 1A, 1B, 1C, and 1D and remote control devices 10A and 10B are installed in a room. The air conditioners 1A, 1B, 1C, and 1D are configured to air-condition the room. In this embodiment, the air conditioners 1A, 1B, 1C, and 1D are each a ceiling cassette type or ceiling embedded type indoor unit installed on the ceiling of the room. The remote control devices 10A and 10B are configured to control the air conditioners 1A, 1B, 1C, and 1D.

[0013] In the example shown in FIG. 1, two terminal devices 20A and 20B are present in a room. The terminal devices 20A and 20B are wireless communication devices. For example, the terminal devices 20A and 20B are tablets or smartphones with wireless communication functions. The terminal devices 20A and 20B may be permanently installed in the room or may be carried by people. The number of terminal devices in the room may be one or three or more.

[0014] Each of remote control devices 10A and 10B performs wireless communication with terminal devices 20A and 20B present in the room. Each of remote control devices 10A and 10B may also receive wireless communication from a terminal device present outside the room. However, the host remote control, which will be described later, can determine whether the terminal devices are located inside or outside the room based on the radio wave strength measured by each of remote control devices 10A and 10B. In particular, when the mesh function of Bluetooth (registered trademark) is used, it is easy to determine whether each terminal device is located inside or outside the room.

[0015] Fig. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a remote control device according to the present embodiment. Although Fig. 2 shows the configuration of remote control device 10A, remote control device 10B also has a similar configuration.

[0016] 2, remote control device 10A includes first communication control unit 11, second communication control unit 12, main control unit 13, display unit 14, and an operation unit (not shown). First communication control unit 11 includes first transmission / reception unit 11A and first communication unit 11B. Second communication control unit 12 includes second transmission / reception unit 12A, wireless device detection unit 12B, and second communication unit 12C.

[0017] The first communication control unit 11 transmits operation signals to the corresponding air conditioner among the air conditioners 1A to 1D. Communication between the first communication control unit 11 and the corresponding air conditioner may be either wireless communication or wired communication. The first transmission / reception unit 11A transmits and receives signals related to operation information and the like to the corresponding air conditioner via the first communication unit 11B.

[0018] The second communication control unit 12 performs wireless communication with the terminal devices 20A and 20B or other remote control devices. The second transmission / reception unit 12A wirelessly transmits and receives information to and from the terminal devices 20A and 20B via the second communication unit 12C. The second communication unit 12C can calculate the communication distance from the radio wave intensity. This technology can be realized by utilizing, for example, a direction detection function included in the core specifications of Bluetooth (registered trademark), a real-time location system (RTLS), and an indoor positioning system (IPS). Note that the wireless communication is not limited to a specific wireless communication method, and various wireless communication methods such as Bluetooth (registered trademark) and Wi-Fi (registered trademark) can be used.

[0019] The main control unit 13 controls the first communication control unit 11, the second communication control unit 12, the display unit 14, and the operation unit. The main control unit 13 includes a processor, a storage device, an input / output interface circuit, and the like as hardware components. The main control unit 13 includes a learning unit 13A. The learning unit 13A is a functional block realized by the processor executing a program stored in the storage device.

[0020] 3 to 6 are flowcharts showing the flow of control executed in the remote control device according to this embodiment. The controls shown in FIGS. 3 to 6 are repeatedly executed, for example, by main control unit 13 of each of remote control devices 10A and 10B. In the following description, the control executed by remote control device 10A is taken as an example.

[0021] 3 shows a control flow from collecting information about terminal devices to estimating the number of people in the room. Each of terminal devices 20A, 20B in the room periodically transmits a wireless signal. In step S101 of FIG. 3, remote control device 10A receives the wireless signal from each of terminal devices 20A, 20B and identifies the ID (MAC address, etc.) of each of terminal devices 20A, 20B based on the wireless signal. Remote control device 10A counts the number of terminal devices 20A, 20B in the room using wireless device detection unit 12B.

[0022] The determination of whether each of terminal devices 20A, 20B is inside or outside the room is made based on the intensity of the radio waves received by remote control device 10A from each of terminal devices 20A, 20B. That is, if the intensity of the radio waves received from terminal device 20A is higher than a certain value, remote control device 10A determines that terminal device 20A is inside the room. On the other hand, if the intensity of the radio waves received from terminal device 20A is equal to or lower than the certain value, remote control device 10A determines that terminal device 20A is outside the room. A similar determination is made for terminal device 20B.

[0023] When there are two or more remote control devices 10A, 10B, one remote control device is set in advance as the main remote control device. Information on terminal devices acquired by each remote control device 10A, 10B is aggregated in the main remote control device. Hereinafter, for the sake of distinction, the main remote control device may be referred to as the host remote control. In this embodiment, remote control device 10A serves as the host remote control.

[0024] When multiple remote control devices 10A and 10B receive wireless signals from the same terminal device, the information is aggregated in the host remote control, resulting in duplication of information about the same terminal device. The host remote control determines whether the aggregated information about the terminal device is duplicated (step S102). If there is duplication in the information about the terminal device, the host remote control deletes the information about the duplicated terminal device to eliminate the duplication (step S103).

[0025] The host remote controller then compares the previous wireless reception status with the latest wireless reception status, and classifies each of the terminal devices 20A, 20B into a permanent terminal or a brought-in terminal based on the increase or decrease in the number of terminal devices 20A, 20B, the duration of reception from each terminal device 20A, 20B, etc. Here, a permanent terminal is a terminal device that is permanently installed in the room, while a brought-in terminal is a wireless communication device that is carried by a person, i.e., a terminal device that a person has temporarily brought into the room.

[0026] Specifically, the host remote controller executes the processes of steps S104 to S107 for each of terminal devices 20A and 20B. In step S104, the host remote controller determines whether or not it has been receiving signals from the same terminal device for a predetermined period of time or longer. If it has been receiving signals from the same terminal device for a predetermined period of time or longer, it proceeds to step S105; otherwise, it proceeds to step S107.

[0027] In step S105, the host remote controller determines whether there has been a change in radio wave strength compared to the previous reception. If there has been a change in radio wave strength compared to the previous reception, the process proceeds to step S107, and if there has been no change in radio wave strength compared to the previous reception, the process proceeds to step S106.

[0028] In step S106, the host remote controller classifies the terminal device as a permanent terminal. That is, the increase or decrease in the number of terminal devices is determined not to affect the increase or decrease in the number of people in the room, and is not counted as the number of people entering or leaving the room.

[0029] In step S107, the host remote controller classifies the terminal device as a brought-in terminal. That is, the increase or decrease in the number of terminal devices is determined to affect the increase or decrease in the number of people in the room, and is counted as the number of people entering or leaving the room.

[0030] In step S108, the host remote controller determines whether or not there is an unclassified terminal device. If there is an unclassified terminal device, the process returns to step S104, and if there is no unclassified terminal device, the process proceeds to step S201 in FIG.

[0031] By performing the processes of steps S104 to S107 for all terminal devices, all terminal devices are classified into permanent terminals and brought-in terminals. That is, if a signal from the same terminal device has been received for a set period or more (YES in step S104) and there is no change in the radio wave strength compared to the previous reception (NO in step S105), the terminal device is classified as a permanent terminal. Some terminal devices may be registered in advance in the host remote control as permanent terminals. In this case, the processes of steps S104 to S107 may be omitted for those terminal devices.

[0032] On the other hand, if signals from the same terminal device have been received for a period shorter than the set period (NO in step S104), the terminal device is classified as a brought-in terminal. Also, even if signals from the same terminal device have been received for a period longer than the set period, if there is a change in the radio wave strength (RSSI, etc.) compared to the previous reception (YES in step S105), the terminal device is classified as a brought-in terminal. If there is no change in the radio wave strength of a terminal device that has once been classified as a brought-in terminal, the classification of the terminal device may be switched from a brought-in terminal to a permanent terminal. At this time, the user can set whether or not to switch the classification of the terminal device.

[0033] If the number of brought-in devices increases, it is determined that the same number of people have entered the room. If the number of brought-in devices decreases, it is determined that the same number of people have left the room. In this way, the number of brought-in devices in the room, i.e., the number of people in the room, is estimated each time. Taking into account the case where one person has multiple wireless devices, if multiple wireless devices are within a certain distance (for example, within 30 cm), they can be counted as one person.

[0034] Fig. 4 shows the control flow from estimating population density to collecting preferred operation setting information. In step S201 of Fig. 4, the host remote controller estimates the population density in the room based on the number of people in the room estimated from the wireless reception conditions and the size of the room (e.g., the floor area of ​​the room) that is set in advance in the host remote controller.

[0035] In step S202, the host remote controller acquires preferred operation setting information and location information of the brought-in terminal (i.e., location information of the user of the brought-in terminal) from the brought-in terminal in the room. The preferred operation setting information is set in advance by the user using an app on the terminal device. The user can register their preferred operation settings for cooling and heating in the terminal device as preferred operation setting information. Preferred operation settings include preferred temperature setting, preferred humidity setting, preferred airflow direction setting, preferred airflow volume setting, etc. Preferred airflow direction settings include "airflow OK" and "airflow NG", etc. The location of a person can also be identified more accurately by combining the acquired location information of the brought-in terminal with detection information from a human presence sensor installed in the room.

[0036] In this embodiment, unless preferred operation setting information is entered into the dedicated app, the preferred operation setting information of a person cannot be ascertained even if a wireless signal is received from a carry-on terminal. However, by linking the operation history of the remote control device with the wireless information, information close to the preferred operation setting information may be acquired. Examples of operation history information include the degree to which the set temperature was changed within a certain period of time and how frequently the set temperature was changed. In this way, the problem of being influenced by the preferences of a specific person due to the limited preferred operation setting information entered into the dedicated app can be addressed by increasing the number of samples.

[0037] In step S203, the host remote controller determines whether the population density in the room is equal to or less than a threshold value. The threshold value is preset in the host remote controller. If the population density in the room is equal to or less than the threshold value, the process proceeds to step S301 in FIG. 5. If the population density in the room is higher than the threshold value, the process proceeds to step S401 in FIG. 6.

[0038] In this way, the host remote control grasps the proximity of people and the differences in people's preferred operation settings from information such as the population density in the room, each person's location, and each person's preferred operation settings. When the population density in the room is below a threshold, the host remote control determines the temperature and humidity settings, air direction settings, and air volume settings for each air conditioner's air outlet based on information about each person's location, each person's preferred operation settings, and the air outlet type (4-way, 2-way, 1-way) of each air conditioner 1A-1D. Information about the air outlet type of each air conditioner 1A-1D is preset in the host remote control. On the other hand, when the population density in the room is higher than a threshold, the host remote control determines the operation state based on each person's preferred operation settings, regardless of the air outlet type of each air conditioner.

[0039] Fig. 5 shows a control flow for determining the operation settings of the air conditioner for each air outlet when the population density in the room is equal to or lower than a threshold. The processing of steps S301 to S306 in Fig. 5 is executed for each air outlet of each air conditioner.

[0040] In step S301, the host remote controller determines whether the preferred airflow direction setting of all people in the same airflow direction is “airflow OK.” If the preferred airflow direction setting of all people in the same airflow direction is “airflow OK,” the process proceeds to step S302. If the preferred airflow direction setting of at least one person in the same airflow direction is “airflow NG,” the process proceeds to step S303.

[0041] In step S302, the host remote controller sets the airflow direction of the air outlet to "air blowing" and applies the average value of the preferred airflow settings of all users in the same airflow direction as the airflow volume of the air outlet.

[0042] In step S303, the host remote controller sets the airflow direction of the air outlet to wind blocking, and applies the average value of the preferred airflow settings of all users in the same airflow direction as the airflow volume of the air outlet.

[0043] Next, in step S304, the host remote controller determines whether the distribution of preferred temperature and humidity for all people in the same air outlet direction is uniform. Whether the distribution of preferred temperature and humidity is uniform is determined, for example, using the standard deviation of the collected preferred temperature and humidity. If the distribution of preferred temperature and humidity for all people in the same air outlet direction is uniform, the process proceeds to step S305. If the distribution of preferred temperature and humidity for all people in the same air outlet direction is skewed and contains outliers, the process proceeds to step S306.

[0044] In step S305, the host remote controller applies the average value of the preferred temperature and humidity of all people in the same direction of airflow as the temperature and humidity of the air outlet.

[0045] In step S306, the host remote controller applies the median of the preferred temperature and humidity of all people in the same air outlet direction as the temperature and humidity of the air outlet.

[0046] In step S307, it is determined whether there is an air outlet for which the airflow direction has not been set. If there is an air outlet for which the airflow direction has not been set, the process returns to step S301, and the processes of steps S301 to S306 are repeated. If there is no air outlet for which the airflow direction has not been set, the process ends.

[0047] 6 shows a control flow for determining the operation settings of the air conditioners when the population density in the room is higher than a threshold value. When the population density in the room is higher than a threshold value, the operation settings of each of the air conditioners 1A to 1D are set uniformly, rather than for each air conditioner's air outlet. Note that the operation settings of all of the air conditioners 1A to 1D may also be set uniformly.

[0048] In step S401, the host remote controller determines whether the preferred airflow direction setting of everyone in the room is "airflow OK." If the preferred airflow direction setting of everyone in the room is "airflow OK," the process proceeds to step S402, and if the preferred airflow direction setting of at least one person in the room is "airflow NG," the process proceeds to step S403.

[0049] In step S402, the host remote controller sets the airflow direction of each of the air conditioners 1A to 1D to the air blowing setting. The host remote controller also applies the average value of the preferred airflow settings of all the people in the room as the airflow volume setting of each of the air conditioners 1A to 1D.

[0050] In step S403, the host remote controller sets the airflow direction of each of the air conditioners 1A to 1D to the wind blocking setting. The host remote controller also applies the average value of the preferred airflow settings of all the people in the room as the airflow volume setting of each of the air conditioners 1A to 1D.

[0051] Next, in step S404, the host remote controller determines whether the distribution of preferred temperature and humidity of everyone in the room is uniform. Whether the distribution of preferred temperature and humidity is uniform is determined, for example, using the standard deviation of the collected preferred temperatures and the standard deviation of the collected preferred humidity. If the distribution of preferred temperature and humidity of everyone in the room is uniform, the process proceeds to step S405. If the distribution of preferred temperature and humidity of everyone in the room is skewed and contains outliers, the process proceeds to step S406.

[0052] In step S405, the host remote controller applies the average values ​​of the preferred temperature and humidity of all the people in the room as the temperature and humidity settings for each of the air conditioners 1A to 1D, and then ends the process.

[0053] In step S406, the host remote controller applies the median of the preferred temperature and humidity of all the people in the room as the temperature and humidity settings for each of all the air conditioners 1A to 1D, and then ends the process.

[0054] The above control makes it possible to realize an air conditioning system that automatically adjusts the operation settings to make everyone in the room feel more comfortable, based on the preferred operation setting information obtained from the terminal devices 20A and 20B carried by each person.

[0055] 7 is a flowchart showing the learning operation of the remote control device according to this embodiment. In this embodiment, the user can input their level of satisfaction with air conditioning operation using an app on terminal devices 20A and 20B. Every time learning unit 13A of main control unit 13 acquires information on the user's level of satisfaction with air conditioning operation, it learns the relationship between the user's preferred operation setting information and the actual operation settings of the air conditioner.

[0056] First, in step S501, the learning unit 13A acquires, via the second communication control unit 12, information on the user's satisfaction with the air conditioning operation.

[0057] In step S502, the learning unit 13A acquires data from the storage device of the main control unit 13 that associates the user's preferred operating setting information with information on the actual operating settings of the air conditioner determined by the main control unit 13 based on the preferred operating setting information.

[0058] In step S503, the learning unit 13A uses information about the user's satisfaction with air conditioning operation as training data to learn the operation settings of the air conditioner based on the user's preferred operation setting information. A known algorithm is used as the learning algorithm. When user satisfaction is high, it can be determined that the operation settings of the air conditioner based on each user's preferred operation setting information are appropriate. On the other hand, when user satisfaction is low, it can be determined that the operation settings of the air conditioner based on each user's preferred operation setting information are inappropriate.

[0059] The learning results of the learning unit 13A are subsequently used by the main control unit 13 when determining the operation settings of the air conditioner based on the user's preferred operation setting information. By repeating learning in the learning unit 13A, more appropriate operation settings of the air conditioner can be determined based on the user's preferred operation setting information.

[0060] As described above, the remote control device according to this embodiment includes a first communication control unit 11, a second communication control unit 12, and a main control unit 13. The first communication control unit 11 transmits an operation signal to an air conditioner that conditions the air in a room. The second communication control unit 12 performs wireless communication with multiple terminal devices 20A, 20B in the room. Here, the terminal devices 20A, 20B are examples of wireless communication devices. The main control unit 13 controls the first communication control unit 11 and the second communication control unit 12.

[0061] The main control unit 13 acquires information about the number of terminal devices 20A, 20B present in the room, and acquires preferred operation setting information from each of the terminal devices 20A, 20B, via the second communication control unit 12. The main control unit 13 determines the operation settings of the air conditioner based on the information about the number of terminal devices, the preferred operation setting information, and preset information about the size of the room. The main control unit 13 transmits an operation signal based on the operation setting to the air conditioner via the first communication control unit 11.

[0062] With this configuration, the operation settings of the air conditioner can be determined based not only on the preferred operation setting information, but also on the number of terminal devices and the room size. Since the population density in the room can be estimated from the number of terminal devices and the room size, the operation settings of the air conditioner can be determined taking the population density in the room into consideration. This makes it possible to make the many users in the room more comfortable.

[0063] In the remote control device according to this embodiment, if the distribution of the preferred operation setting information acquired from each of the multiple terminal devices 20A and 20B is uniform, the main control unit 13 determines the operation settings based on the average value of the preferred operation setting information. If the distribution of the preferred operation setting information is not uniform, the main control unit 13 determines the operation settings based on the median value of the preferred operation setting information.

[0064] This configuration allows more users to feel comfortable even if there are outliers in the preferred driving setting information.

[0065] In the remote control device according to this embodiment, the air conditioner has multiple air outlets with different orientations. The operation settings include airflow direction settings for the multiple air outlets. The main control unit 13 estimates the population density in the room based on information about the number of terminal devices and information about the size of the room. If the population density is equal to or less than a threshold, the main control unit 13 determines the airflow direction settings for each of the multiple air outlets. If the population density is higher than the threshold, the main control unit 13 uniformly determines the airflow direction settings for the multiple air outlets.

[0066] According to this configuration, when the population density is low, the wind direction can be set in detail, and when the population density is high, the wind direction can be set so that many people can feel comfortable.

[0067] In the remote control device according to this embodiment, the air conditioner has a plurality of air outlets facing different directions. The operation settings include airflow direction settings for the plurality of air outlets. The main control unit 13 acquires preferred operation setting information from terminal devices located in the respective air outlet directions of the plurality of air outlets based on the position information of the plurality of terminal devices 20A, 20B. The main control unit 13 determines the airflow direction setting for each of the plurality of air outlets based on the preferred operation setting information acquired from the terminal devices located in the respective air outlet directions of the plurality of air outlets.

[0068] According to this configuration, the airflow direction setting for each air outlet can be determined according to the preferences of the user who is in the actual air outlet direction.

[0069] In the remote control device according to the present embodiment, the main control unit 13 classifies each of the plurality of terminal devices 20A, 20B into a terminal device permanently installed in the room and a terminal device carried by a person, based on the duration of reception and the intensity of the received radio wave from each of the plurality of terminal devices 20A, 20B. The main control unit 13 estimates the number of people in the room based on the number of terminal devices carried by the people.

[0070] According to this configuration, the number of people present in the room can be estimated based on the number of terminal devices excluding terminal devices permanently installed in the room, so that the number of people present in the room can be estimated more accurately.

[0071] In the remote control device according to this embodiment, the main control unit 13 has a learning unit 13A. The learning unit 13A learns the operation settings of the air conditioner based on the preferred operation setting information, using the satisfaction levels with the air conditioning operation input by the users to each of the multiple terminal devices 20A, 20B as training data.

[0072] According to this configuration, the learning unit 13A repeats learning, thereby making it possible to more appropriately determine the operation settings of the air conditioner.

[0073] The air conditioning system according to this embodiment includes the remote control device according to this embodiment and air conditioners 1A to 1D.

[0074] According to this configuration, the same effects as those described above can be obtained in the air conditioning system.

[0075] Various aspects of the present disclosure are described below.

[0076] (Appendix 1) a first communication control unit that transmits an operation signal to an air conditioner that conditions the air in the room; a second communication control unit that performs wireless communication with the plurality of wireless communication devices in the room; a main control unit that controls the first communication control unit and the second communication control unit; Equipped with The main control unit acquires information on the number of the plurality of wireless communication devices present in the room via the second communication control unit, and acquires preferred operation setting information from each of the plurality of wireless communication devices; determining operation settings of the air conditioners based on the information on the number of units, the preferred operation setting information, and the information on the size of the room that has been set in advance; A remote control device that transmits the operation signal based on the operation setting to the air conditioner via the first communication control unit. (Appendix 2) The remote control device described in Appendix 1, wherein the main control unit determines the operation settings based on the average value of the preferred operation setting information when the distribution of the preferred operation setting information acquired from each of the multiple wireless communication devices is uniform, and determines the operation settings based on the median value of the preferred operation setting information when the distribution of the preferred operation setting information is not uniform. (Appendix 3) The air conditioner has a plurality of air outlets facing in different directions, The operation setting includes a setting of an airflow direction from the plurality of air outlets, The main control unit estimating a population density in the room based on the information on the number of devices and the information on the size of the room; A remote control device as described in Appendix 1 or Appendix 2, wherein when the population density is below a threshold, the wind direction setting is determined for each of the multiple air outlets, and when the population density is higher than the threshold, the wind direction setting for all of the multiple air outlets is determined uniformly. (Appendix 4) The air conditioner has a plurality of air outlets facing in different directions, The operation setting includes a setting of an airflow direction from the plurality of air outlets, The main control unit Based on the position information of the plurality of wireless communication devices, the preferred operation setting information is acquired from the wireless communication devices present in the air outlet directions of the plurality of air outlets; A remote control device described in any one of Supplementary Note 1 to Supplementary Note 3, which determines the airflow direction setting for each of the plurality of air outlets based on the preferred operating setting information acquired from wireless communication devices located in the air outlet direction of each of the plurality of air outlets. (Appendix 5) the main control unit classifies each of the plurality of wireless communication devices into a wireless communication device permanently installed in the room or a wireless communication device carried by a person, based on the reception duration and received radio wave intensity from each of the plurality of wireless communication devices; 5. The remote control device according to claim 1, wherein the remote control device estimates the number of people in the room based on the number of wireless communication devices carried by the people. (Appendix 6) the main control unit has a learning unit, A remote control device described in any one of Appendix 1 to Appendix 5, wherein the learning unit learns the operation settings of the air conditioner based on the preferred operation setting information using the satisfaction level with air conditioning operation input by the user into each of the multiple wireless communication devices as training data. (Appendix 7) A remote control device according to any one of Supplementary Note 1 to Supplementary Note 6; The air conditioner; An air conditioning system having: [Explanation of symbols]

[0077] 1A air conditioner, 1B air conditioner, 1C air conditioner, 1D air conditioner, 10A remote control device, 10B remote control device, 11 first communication control unit, 11A first transceiver unit, 11B first communication unit, 12 second communication control unit, 12A second transceiver unit, 12B wireless device detection unit, 12C second communication unit, 13 main control unit, 13A learning unit, 14 display unit, 20A terminal device (wireless communication device), 20B terminal device (wireless communication device), 100 air conditioning system.

Claims

1. a first communication control unit that transmits an operation signal to an air conditioner that conditions the air in the room; a second communication control unit that performs wireless communication with the plurality of wireless communication devices in the room; a main control unit that controls the first communication control unit and the second communication control unit; Equipped with The main control unit acquires information on the number of the plurality of wireless communication devices present in the room via the second communication control unit, and acquires preferred operation setting information from each of the plurality of wireless communication devices; determining operation settings of the air conditioners based on the information on the number of units, the preferred operation setting information, and the information on the size of the room that has been set in advance; A remote control device that transmits the operation signal based on the operation setting to the air conditioner via the first communication control unit.

2. The remote control device of claim 1, wherein the main control unit determines the operation settings based on an average value of the preferred operation setting information when the distribution of the preferred operation setting information acquired from each of the plurality of wireless communication devices is uniform, and determines the operation settings based on a median value of the preferred operation setting information when the distribution of the preferred operation setting information is not uniform.

3. The air conditioner has a plurality of air outlets facing in different directions, The operation setting includes a setting of an airflow direction from the plurality of air outlets, The main control unit estimating a population density in the room based on the information on the number of devices and the information on the size of the room; A remote control device as described in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein when the population density is below a threshold value, the wind direction setting is determined for each of the multiple air outlets, and when the population density is higher than the threshold value, the wind direction setting for all of the multiple air outlets is determined uniformly.

4. The air conditioner has a plurality of air outlets facing in different directions, The operation setting includes a setting of an airflow direction from the plurality of air outlets, The main control unit Based on the position information of the plurality of wireless communication devices, the preferred operation setting information is acquired from the wireless communication devices present in the air outlet directions of the plurality of air outlets; The remote control device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the airflow direction setting for each of the plurality of air outlets is determined based on the preferred operation setting information acquired from a wireless communication device located in the air outlet direction of each of the plurality of air outlets.

5. the main control unit classifies each of the plurality of wireless communication devices into a wireless communication device permanently installed in the room or a wireless communication device carried by a person, based on the reception duration and received radio wave intensity from each of the plurality of wireless communication devices; 3. The remote control device according to claim 1, wherein the number of people in the room is estimated based on the number of wireless communication devices carried by the people.

6. The main control unit has a learning unit, The remote control device described in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the learning unit learns the operation settings of the air conditioner based on the preferred operation setting information using the satisfaction level with air conditioning operation input by the user into each of the multiple wireless communication devices as training data.

7. a remote control device according to claim 1 or 2; The air conditioner; An air conditioning system having:

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