Electric shading device and its operating device

Abstract

To provide an electric shield device allowing a simultaneous control of respective closing of a plurality of stages of shield material stacked in a vertical direction and controlling an action of each shield material with high quality, and its operation device.SOLUTION: The electric shield device of the invention comprises a controller 10 for controlling of a lifting of an upper part shield material 6U hung down from a headbox 1 and having an intermediate rail 7U at a lower end and a lower part shield material 6L hung down from the intermediate rail 7U and having a bottom rail 7L at a lower end. The controller 10 stops a lifting operation of the bottom rail 7L automatically during a control of the lifting of the lower shield material 6L and stops a descent operation of the intermediate rail 7U automatically during a control of the descent of the upper shield material 6U as a control so that an interval between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is arranged within a prescribed range. The operation device 25 of the invention indicates positions of the upper shield material and the lower shield material by a simultaneous indication or an individual indication, or indicates or switches and selects them by a plurality of electric shield device single buttons.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an electric shading device that controls the elevation and lowering of a shading material using the driving force of a motor, and an operating device thereof. [Background technology]

[0002] The electric shading device is capable of raising and lowering the shading material by rotating a drive shaft using the driving force of a motor and winding or unwinding a lifting cord (including a string-like cord or a tape-like lifting tape) onto a winding drum.

[0003] In such an electric shading device, a motor is disposed in a head box, and the rotation of an output shaft of the motor is transmitted to a drive shaft, and the shading material is raised and lowered based on the rotation of the drive shaft.

[0004] In addition, an encoder that detects the rotation speed and amount of rotation of the drive shaft is disposed in the head box of the electric shading device, and the encoder pulse speed and the count value of the number of pulses are managed based on the pulse signal output from the encoder, and the motor rotation speed and amount of rotation are controlled by a control device disposed in the head box. By such an operation, the lifting speed of the shading material is appropriately adjusted, and the stop position of the lifted shading material is controlled.

[0005] Incidentally, it is known that one type of electric shading device is an electric pleated screen, in which a screen that can be folded up and down, for example in a zigzag shape, is suspended from a head box as a shading material, and this screen can be raised and lowered electrically (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

[0006] In particular, the motorized pleated screen disclosed in Patent Document 1 is configured with multiple tiers (multiple types) of shielding materials connected vertically, and can be raised and lowered electrically. That is, in this motorized pleated screen, the screen is configured with upper shielding materials (upper screen) and lower shielding materials (lower screen) made of different fabrics for the upper and lower tiers, the upper edge of the upper screen is attached to the head box and hung down, and its lower edge is attached to the intermediate rail, and the upper edge of the lower screen is attached to the intermediate rail and hung down, and its lower edge is attached to the bottom rail. The intermediate rail and bottom rail are then hung and supported from the head box by independent lifting cords, and the upper screen and lower screen can be raised and lowered individually electrically. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0007] [Patent Document 1] JP 2011-111763 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0008] As described above, one type of conventional motorized shading device, such as a motorized pleated screen, has a plurality of vertically-connected shading materials that can be individually raised and lowered electrically.

[0009] However, in such conventional electric shading devices, the opening and closing positions (e.g., shielding rate) of each of the multiple stages of shading material arranged in the vertical direction are individually operated each time, and are not designed to accept and simultaneously control operation instructions from an operation device (multi-switch, smartphone, tablet, personal computer, zone switch, dial switch, etc.) that allows the opening and closing positions of each of the multiple stages of shading material to be specified simultaneously, or from an operation device (wired or wireless switch, infrared switch, multi-switch, smartphone, tablet, personal computer, zone switch, dial switch, etc.) that allows the opening and closing of each of the multiple stages of shading material to be individually operated.

[0010] In addition, there is room for improvement in the operation of such motorized shading devices to provide high quality control to prevent damage and deterioration of the shading material, cords, etc.

[0011] Therefore, in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, the object of the present invention is to provide an electric shading device and an operating device thereof that allow simultaneous control of the opening and closing of each of multiple stages of shading materials arranged vertically, thereby controlling the operation of each shading material with high quality. [Means for solving the problem]

[0012] The motorized shading device of the present invention is an motorized shading device that can electrically raise and lower each of a plurality of shielding materials, each of which has an upper shielding material suspended from a head box and a lower shielding material suspended from an intermediate rail provided at the lower end of the upper shielding material and has a bottom rail provided at its lower end, and is equipped with a control device that receives an operation signal and controls the raising and lowering of each of the plurality of shielding materials. The control device has: when controlling the raising of the upper shielding material, a means for automatically stopping the raising operation of the bottom rail when the interval between the intermediate rail and the bottom rail falls within a predetermined range during the raising control; and when controlling the lower shielding material to fall, a means for automatically stopping the lowering operation of the intermediate rail when the interval between the intermediate rail and the bottom rail falls within the predetermined range during the lowering control. and when controlling the elevation of both the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material simultaneously by allowing the opening / closing positions of each of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material to be specified by an operation signal, the control unit has a means for automatically stopping the elevation of the bottom rail when a distance between the intermediate rail and the bottom rail falls within a predetermined range during the elevation control, and for continuing the elevation of the intermediate rail until the designated opening / closing position is reached when an opening / closing position is specified, or to a set upper limit position when no opening / closing position is specified, unless an operation signal including a stop command is received; and when controlling the lowering of both the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material simultaneously, the control unit has a means for automatically stopping the lowering of the intermediate rail when a distance between the intermediate rail and the bottom rail falls within the predetermined range during the lowering control, and for continuing the lowering of the bottom rail until the designated opening / closing position is reached when an opening / closing position is specified, or to a set lower limit position when no opening / closing position is specified, unless an operation signal including a stop command is received. It is characterized by:

[0015] In addition, in the electric shading device of the present invention, when the control device simultaneously controls the descent of the upper shielding material and the ascent of the lower shielding material, it is further characterized by having a means for automatically stopping the operation of the intermediate rail and the bottom rail when the distance between the intermediate rail and the bottom rail falls within the specified range during that control.

[0016] In addition, in the electric shading device of the present invention, the control device is characterized in that it has a means for controlling the operation of all shielding materials to stop when an operation signal including a stop command is received during control of the raising and lowering of either or both of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material.

[0017] In the motorized shading device of the present invention, the predetermined range is set as a predefined range obtained by adding a predetermined margin to the limit value of the folding amount of the lower shielding material.

[0018] In addition, in the electric shading device of the present invention, the control device is characterized in that it has a means for receiving and processing an operation signal from an operating device that enables simultaneous specification of the opening and closing positions of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material, and simultaneously controlling the raising and lowering of both the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material.

[0019] In the electric shielding device of the present invention, the control device controls the opening and closing positions of the upper shielding member and the lower shielding member. of Individual designation The upper shielding material and the lower shielding material can be raised and lowered without any trouble. The present invention is characterized in that it has a means for receiving and processing operation signals from an operation device in a time series manner to simultaneously control the elevation of both the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material.

[0020] In addition, the electric shading device of the present invention is characterized in that it is equipped with an encoder that indicates the amount of lifting and lowering of the intermediate rail and the bottom rail, and the control device has a function of determining whether the distance between the intermediate rail and the bottom rail is within the specified range based on the count value of the encoder pulses from the encoder.

[0021] In addition, the electric shading device of the present invention is characterized in that it is equipped with a proximity detection sensor that can detect the distance between the intermediate rail and the bottom rail, and the control device has a function of determining whether the distance between the intermediate rail and the bottom rail is within the specified range based on a sensor signal from the proximity detection sensor.

[0024] The operating device of the present invention is an operating device that can individually operate the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material in the electric shading device of the present invention, Each of the upper and lower shields Multiple motorized shielding devices The electric shading devices having the same device ID are divided into multiple groups according to the device ID that identifies each of the electric shading devices.and a group designation button configured to designate the upper and lower shielding materials with a single button, and an operation button having only one set of an open button for performing an upward operation, a close button for performing a downward operation, and a stop button for performing an operation to stop the upward and downward operation for one of the upper and lower shielding materials designated by the group designation button.

[0025] The operating device of the present invention is an operating device that can individually operate the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material in the electric shading device of the present invention, Each of the upper and lower shields The device is characterized by comprising a switching selection button configured to switch between multiple electric shading devices with a single button, a first operation button having only one set of an open button for performing an upward operation for the upper shielding material, a close button for performing a downward operation for the upper shielding material, and a stop button for performing an operation to stop the upward and downward movement of the upper shielding material, for the electric shading device specified by the switching selection button, and a second operation button having only one set of an open button for performing an upward operation for the lower shielding material, a close button for performing a downward operation for the lower shielding material, and a stop button for performing an operation to stop the upward and downward movement of the lower shielding material, for the electric shading device specified by the switching selection button. Effect of the Invention

[0026] According to the present invention, an electric shading device having multiple stages of shading material arranged in the vertical direction allows simultaneous control of the opening and closing positions of each shading material, making it possible to control the operation of each shading material with high quality, thereby improving usability and quality. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0027] [Figure 1] 1A to 1C are a plan view, a front view, and a side view, respectively, showing a schematic configuration of an electric shading device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a control device in an electric shading device according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Diagram 3]1A to 1C are diagrams showing the schematic configuration of a typical embodiment of an operating device that transmits an operating signal that enables individual or simultaneous specification of the open / close positions of the upper and lower shielding materials in an electric shading device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] A flowchart showing the main flow of an example of control by a control device according to one embodiment when an operation signal is received that individually or simultaneously specifies the open / close positions of the upper and lower shielding materials in an electric shading device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 5] This is a flowchart showing sub-flow A of an example of control by a control device when an operation signal is received that individually or simultaneously specifies the open / close positions of the upper and lower shielding materials in an electric shading device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 6] 13(a) to 13(c) are side views illustrating the operation of subflow A when an operation signal is received that individually or simultaneously specifies the open / close positions of the upper and lower shielding materials in an electric shading device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 7] This is a flowchart showing sub-flow B of an example of control by a control device when an operation signal is received that individually or simultaneously specifies the open / close positions of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material in an electric shading device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 8] 13(a) to 13(c) are side views illustrating the operation of subflow B when an operation signal is received that individually or simultaneously specifies the open / close positions of the upper and lower shielding materials in an electric shading device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 9] This is a flowchart showing subflow C of an example of control by a control device when an operation signal is received that individually or simultaneously specifies the open / close positions of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material in an electric shading device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 10]13A to 13C are side views illustrating the operation of subflow C when an operation signal is received that individually or simultaneously specifies the open / close positions of the upper and lower shielding materials in an electric shading device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 11] This figure shows the schematic configuration of a typical infrared or wireless remote control as an operating device in one embodiment that transmits operating signals to individually open and close the upper and lower shielding materials in an electric shading device of one embodiment according to the present invention. [Figure 12] 1 is a flowchart showing a main flow of an example of control by a control device when an operation signal that enables the opening and closing of an upper shielding material and a lower shielding material individually in an electric shading device according to one embodiment of the present invention is received. [Figure 13] 11 is a flowchart showing a sub-flow A' of an example of control by a control device when an operation signal is received that enables the opening and closing of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material individually in an electric shading device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 14] 11 is a flowchart showing a sub-flow B' of an example of control by a control device when an operation signal is received that enables the opening and closing of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material individually in an electric shading device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 15] 11 is a flowchart showing a sub-flow C' of an example of control by a control device when an operation signal is received that enables the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material to be opened and closed individually in an electric shading device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 16] FIG. 13 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a control device in a modified electric shading device according to the present invention. [Figure 17] 13A and 13B are schematic side views showing the schematic configuration and operation of a modified motorized shading device according to the present invention, respectively. [Figure 18] 1A to 1C are schematic side views showing examples in which a control device according to the present invention is applied to an electric shading device according to another typical embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 19]This figure shows the schematic configuration of a typical infrared or wireless remote control as an operating device for variant 1 that emits operating signals to individually operate the opening and closing of upper and lower shielding materials in multiple electric shading devices of one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 20] This figure shows the schematic configuration of a typical infrared or wireless remote control as an operating device for variant 2 that emits operating signals to individually operate the opening and closing of upper and lower shielding materials in multiple electric shading devices of one embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0028] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the motorized shading device according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In this specification, the upper and lower sides of the front view of the motorized shading device shown in Fig. 1(b) are defined as the upper direction (or upper side) and the lower direction (or lower side), respectively, the left side of the figure is defined as the left side of the motorized shading device, and the right side of the figure is defined as the right side of the motorized shading device. In the example described below, the side viewed from the front view of the motorized shading device shown in Fig. 1(b) is defined as the front side (or indoor side), and the opposite side is defined as the rear side (or outdoor side).

[0029] (Overall composition) 1(a) to 1(c) are respectively a plan view (a top view), a front view, and a side view showing a schematic configuration of an electric shading device according to an embodiment of the present invention. As a representative example of the electric shading device shown in FIG. 1, an electric pleated screen is shown in which a plurality of shading materials are arranged vertically in a row and each of them can be raised and lowered. However, there is no need to be limited to this as long as each of the plurality of shading materials arranged vertically in a row can be electrically raised and lowered by rotating a drive shaft. For example, the electric shading device may be a pleated screen, a honeycomb screen which is a type of pleated screen, a horizontal blind, a roll-up curtain, a roll screen, etc., or a hybrid configuration in which these different types of shading materials are arranged vertically in a row.

[0030] In addition, in one embodiment of the electric pleated screen shown in Figures 1(a) to (c), an example is shown in which two types of shielding materials, an upper screen 6U as an upper shielding material and a lower screen 6L as a lower shielding material, which can be raised and lowered individually by multiple types of lifting cords 3U, 3L, are arranged in a vertical line, but the electric pleated screen may also have three or more types of shielding materials arranged in the front-to-rear direction.

[0031] 1(a) to 1(c) show an embodiment of an electric pleated screen in which an upper screen 6U that can be bent in a zigzag shape is suspended from the lower surface of a head box 1, and the lower end of the upper screen 6U is attached to the upper surface of an intermediate rail 7U that functions as a weight member. The head box 1 is fixed via a bracket 15 to a mounting surface such as a ceiling surface.

[0032] As shown in FIG. 1(c), the upper screen 6U in this example is provided with a protruding piece 60 at the crease on the exterior side of the fabric folded in a zigzag shape, and the protruding piece 60 is provided with insertion holes formed of round holes or long holes, etc., through which the lifting and lowering cords 3U, 3L hanging down from the head box 1 are inserted. For this reason, the lifting and lowering cords 3U, 3L hang down on the rear side of the upper screen 6U, and are not visible in a front view as shown in FIG. 1(b), improving the aesthetics. However, in the present invention, an insertion hole may be provided in the approximate center of the front-rear direction of the upper screen 6U, and the lifting and lowering cords 3U, 3L inserted through the insertion hole may be visible in a front view. Also, as shown in FIG. 1(c), a pitch retention cord 4U hangs down from the head box 1 behind the lifting and lowering cords 3U, 3L, and its lower end is attached to the intermediate rail 7U. This pitch maintaining cord 4U has many annular support cords 40 provided at equal intervals, and the lifting cords 3U, 3L are inserted into the support cords 40. When the intermediate rail 7U is lowered to stretch the upper screen 6U, the protruding pieces 60 are supported by the support cords 40 of the pitch maintaining cord 4U, so that the folds of the upper screen 6U are maintained at approximately equal intervals.

[0033] A lower screen 6L that can be bent in a zigzag shape is suspended from the lower surface of the intermediate rail 7U, and the lower end of the screen 6L is attached to the upper surface of a bottom rail 7L that functions as a weight member.

[0034] As shown in FIG. 1(c), the lower screen 6L of this example is provided with a protruding piece 60 at the crease on the exterior side of the fabric folded in a zigzag shape, and the protruding piece 60 is provided with a round or long hole, through which the lifting cord 3L is inserted, which hangs down from the head box 1 and passes through the intermediate rail 7U. For this reason, the lifting cord 3L hangs down on the rear side of the lower screen 6L, and is not visible from the front as shown in FIG. 1(b), improving the aesthetics. However, in the present invention, a hole may be provided in the lower screen 6L at the approximate center in the front-rear direction, so that the lifting cord 3L inserted through the hole can be seen from the front. Also, as shown in FIG. 1(c), a pitch retention cord 4L hangs down from the head box 1 behind the lifting cord 3L, and its lower end is attached to the bottom rail 7L. This pitch maintaining cord 4L has many annular support cords 40 provided at equal intervals, and the lifting cord 3L is inserted into the support cords 40. When the bottom rail 7L is lowered to stretch the lower screen 6L, the protruding pieces 60 are supported by the support cords 40 of the pitch maintaining cord 4L, so that the folds of the lower screen 6L are maintained at approximately equal intervals.

[0035] The winding drums 51U, 51L are juxtaposed in front of and behind the support members 5 arranged at appropriate positions (two positions on the left and right in this example) in the head box 1 and rotatably supported. Cam clutches 52U, 52L are provided at one axial end of the winding drums 51U, 51L, respectively, so as to transmit driving force to the drive shaft 2F. The winding drums 51U and cam clutches 52U, and the winding drums 51L and cam clutches 52L are each configured to have the same shape.

[0036] The upper end of a lifting / lowering cord 3U (a string-like cord in this example, but a tape-like lifting tape may also be used) is attached to each winding drum 51U so as to be able to be wound up or unwound, and the lower end of the lifting / lowering cord 3U passes through insertion holes formed in each protruding piece 60 provided on the outside of the upper screen 6U and is attached to the intermediate rail 7U. The winding drum 51U is formed so that the diameter gradually tapers toward one side in the axial direction, and in this example, the string-like lifting / lowering cord 3U is sequentially wound in a spiral shape around the winding drum 51U.

[0037] Also, the upper end of a lifting / lowering cord 3L (a string-like cord in this example, but a tape-like lifting tape would also do) is attached to each winding drum 51L so that it can be wound up or unwound, and the lower end of the lifting / lowering cord 3L passes through insertion holes formed in each protruding piece 60 provided on the exterior side of the upper screen 6U, then passes through the intermediate rail 7U, passes through insertion holes formed in each protruding piece 60 provided on the exterior side of the lower screen 6L, and is attached to the bottom rail 7L. The winding drum 51L is formed so that its diameter gradually narrows toward one side in the axial direction, and in this example, the string-like lifting / lowering cord 3L is sequentially wound in a spiral shape around the winding drum 51L.

[0038] A drive shaft 2U is inserted through the central axis of each of the winding drums 51U, the cam clutch 52U and the rotating drum 53, and the rotating drum 53 transmits the rotation of the drive shaft 2U to the winding drum 51U and also transmits the driving force of the winding drum 51U to the drive shaft 2U.

[0039] Similarly, a drive shaft 2L is inserted through the central axis of each winding drum 51L, cam clutch 52L, and rotating drum 53, and the rotating drum 53 transmits the rotation of the drive shaft 2L to the winding drum 51L and also transmits the driving force of the winding drum 51L to the drive shaft 2L.

[0040] One end of the drive shaft 2U is connected to the output shaft of the motor 9U via a drive shaft coupler 20U, and the rotation of the output shaft of the motor 9U is transmitted to the drive shaft 2U. Therefore, the drive shaft 2U is rotated by the driving force of the motor 9U, and the lifting / lowering cord 3U is wound or unwound by the winding drum 51U based on the rotation of the drive shaft 2U, thereby making it possible to lift and lower the intermediate rail 7U, and thus to lift and lower the upper screen 6U. Note that the winding drum 51U utilizes the tension associated with the lifting / lowering cord 3U (the weight of the upper screen 6U and the intermediate rail 7U) when lowering the upper screen 6U, and therefore the driving force is transmitted from the winding drum 51U to the drive shaft 2U via the rotating drum 53, and the descent is controlled by adjusting the driving force associated with this drive shaft 2U.

[0041] One end of the drive shaft 2L is connected to the output shaft of the motor 9L via a drive shaft coupler 20L, and the rotation of the output shaft of the motor 9L is transmitted to the drive shaft 2L. Therefore, the drive shaft 2L is rotated by the driving force of the motor 9L, and the lifting / lowering cord 3L is wound or unwound by the winding drum 51L based on the rotation of the drive shaft 2L, thereby making it possible to lift and lower the bottom rail 7L, and thus to lift and lower the lower screen 6L. Note that the winding drum 51L utilizes the tension associated with the lifting / lowering cord 3L (the weight of the lower screen 6L and the bottom rail 7L) when lowering the lower screen 6L, and therefore the driving force is transmitted from the winding drum 51L to the drive shaft 2L via the rotating drum 53, and the descent is controlled by adjusting the driving force associated with the drive shaft 2L.

[0042] The drive control of each of the motors 9U, 9L is performed by a control device 10 disposed in the head box 1. A DC power supply 11 that supplies power to the motors 9U, 9L and the control device 10 is disposed in the head box 1. When the control device 10 receives an operation signal from an operation device 25 for operating the opening and closing of each shielding material (the upper screen 6U as the upper shielding material and the lower screen 6L as the lower shielding material), the control device 10 performs various controls of the electric shading device corresponding to various commands contained in the operation signal. For example, by configuring the motors 9U, 9L as DC motors, the control device 10 can control the rotation speed of the motors 9U, 9L by controlling the duty ratio of the pulse signal supplied from the control device 10 to the motors 9U, 9L. Further, encoders 8U, 8L for detecting the rotation speed and amount of rotation of each of the drive shafts 2U, 2L are disposed inside the head box 1, and the control device 10 manages the encoder pulse speed and pulse number count value based on the pulse signals output from each encoder 8U, 8L to control the rotation speed and amount of rotation of the motors 9U, 9L. Through such operations, in response to various commands included in the operation signals, the control device 10 appropriately adjusts the lifting and lowering speed of the upper screen 6U or the lower screen 6L, and controls the lifting and lowering stop position of the upper screen 6U or the lower screen 6L.

[0043] In the electric pleated screen of this embodiment configured as described above, the intermediate rail 7U is pulled up to just below the head box 1, and the upper screen 6U is folded between the head box 1 and the intermediate rail 7U, and the bottom rail 7L is lowered, so that the lower screen 6L is shielded from the head box 1 to the desired position.

[0044] Furthermore, when the intermediate rail 7U is lowered onto the bottom rail 7L with the bottom rail 7L lowered to its lowest limit, the lower screen 6L is folded between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L, and the upper screen 6U is shielded between the head box 1 and the intermediate rail 7U. Therefore, for example, if the upper screen 6U is made of a light-transmitting material and the lower screen 6L is made of a light-blocking material, the degree of freedom in adjusting the amount of light can be increased.

[0045] Then, by lowering the bottom rail 7L to its lowest limit and positioning the intermediate rail 7U midway between the head box 1 and the bottom rail 7, soft light can be let in that passes through the upper screen 6U made of a light-transmitting fabric.

[0046] In addition, when the bottom rail 7L is raised to its upper limit and opened, the bottom rail 7L is raised together with the intermediate rail 7U, and the upper screen 6U and lower screen 6L can be folded between the head box 1 and the bottom rail 7L.

[0047] Incidentally, when the intermediate rail 7U or the bottom rail 7L comes into contact with an obstacle and its descent is prevented, a clutch-type obstacle detection and stopping device is activated to lock the drive shaft 2U or 2L. In other words, when the intermediate rail 7U or the bottom rail 7L comes into contact with an obstacle, the take-up drum 51U and the cam clutch 52U, and the take-up drum 51L and the cam clutch 52L supported by the support member 5 function as a clutch-type obstacle detection and stopping device that mechanically performs "obstacle detection" for the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L and "stopping" each drive shaft, respectively.

[0048] (Control device configuration) FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a control device 10 in an electric shading device according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0049] When the control device 10 receives an operation signal from the operation device 25, it performs various controls of the electric shading device corresponding to various commands included in the operation signal. For example, the control device 10 manages the speed of the encoder pulses from the encoders 8U, 8L and the count value of the number of pulses to control the rotation speed and amount of rotation of the motors 9U, 9L, appropriately adjusts the lifting and lowering speed of each shielding material (each screen and each bottom rail) and controls the lifting and lowering stop position of each shielding material.

[0050] As shown in FIG. 2, the control device 10 includes a microcomputer unit 101, a storage unit 102, a communication interface (IF) unit 103, motor driving units 107U and 107L, abnormality detection units 108U and 108L, and pulse detection units 109U and 109L.

[0051] The communication IF unit 103, which is comprehensively illustrated in FIG. 2, is a functional unit that performs two-way or one-way communication with the operation device 25 depending on the form of the operation device 25, receives an operation signal from the operation device 25, and outputs it to the microcomputer unit 101.

[0052] For example, when the operating device 25 is configured to transmit an operating signal via short-range wireless communication, the communication IF unit 103 has a function of receiving an operating signal from the operating device 25 and outputting it to the microcomputer unit 101, enabling mutual communication between the microcomputer unit 101 and the operating device 25 and enabling the exchange of detailed commands related to operations.

[0053] Furthermore, the communication IF section 103 has a function of receiving an operation signal from the operation device 25 and outputting it to the microcomputer section 101 when the operation device 25 is configured to transmit an operation signal by an infrared signal.

[0054] In addition, when the operating device 25 is configured to transmit an operating signal by two-way or one-way wired communication, the communication IF unit 103 has a function of receiving an operating signal from the operating device 25 and outputting it to the microcomputer unit 101.

[0055] Here, the control device 10 can be a typical example of a conventional operating device, such as a wired switch for "individually" operating the opening and closing of each shielding material (upper screen 6U as upper shielding material and lower screen 6L as lower shielding material) via a wired connection, or an infrared or wireless remote controller (hereinafter referred to as a "remote control") via a wireless connection, and can receive and control operation signals from these operating devices.However, as an embodiment of the present invention, an example will be described in which the control device 10 receives and controls operation signals from an operating device 25 that can not only individually operate the opening and closing of each shielding material (upper screen 6U as upper shielding material and lower screen 6L as lower shielding material), but can also "simultaneously" operate them.

[0056] For example, the operating device 25 of the present invention can be in a form that does not allow the opening / closing position of each shielding material (upper screen 6U as upper shielding material and lower screen 6L as lower shielding material) to be specified, such as a wired or wireless switch, infrared switch, multi-switch, smartphone, tablet, personal computer, zone switch, dial switch, etc. that allows the opening and closing of each shielding material to be operated individually, but it can also be in the form of a multi-switch, smartphone, tablet, personal computer, zone switch, dial switch, etc. that allows the opening / closing position (shielding rate in this example) of each shielding material (upper screen 6U as upper shielding material and lower screen 6L as lower shielding material) to be specified "individually or simultaneously" and operated wired or wirelessly.

[0057] Therefore, the control device 10 can be configured to receive and process operation signals from the operation device 25 that allows the open / closed positions of the upper and lower shielding materials to be simultaneously specified, or to receive and process operation signals in a time series from the operation device 25 that allows the upper and lower shielding materials to be individually operated without specifying their open / closed positions, thereby controlling the lifting and lowering of both the upper and lower shielding materials individually or simultaneously. Note that the type of operation signal from the operation device 25 can be determined by including an operation device ID indicating the type of the operation device 25 in the operation signal, allowing the control device 10 to perform control according to the type of the operation device 25.

[0058] That is, the control device 10 is capable of receiving and processing not only operation signals that do not specify the open / closed positions of each of the shielding materials (the upper screen 6U as the upper shielding material and the lower screen 6L as the lower shielding material), but also operation signals that specify the positions individually or simultaneously, and controls the opening and closing of each of the shielding materials (the upper screen 6U as the upper shielding material and the lower screen 6L as the lower shielding material). In particular, the control device 10 according to the present invention, which will be described in detail later with reference to Figs. 4 to 9, allows simultaneous control of the open / closed positions of each of the shielding materials, thereby controlling the operation of each shielding material with high quality.

[0059] The motor driving units 107U and 107L are motor drivers that drive the motors 9U and 9L, respectively.

[0060] The abnormality detection units 108U and 108L are functional units that detect abnormal values ​​(one or more of overcurrent / abnormal waveform current / abnormal waveform voltage) in the motor driving units 107U and 107L, respectively, and notify the microcomputer unit 101 of the detected abnormal values.

[0061] The pulse detection units 109U and 109L are functional units which receive pulse signals from the encoders 8U and 8L, respectively, and notify the microcomputer unit 101 of the signals.

[0062] The microcomputer unit 101 reads out and executes a program previously stored in the memory unit 102, thereby accepting an operation signal received via the communication IF unit 103 and processing various commands included in the operation signal. In this way, the control device 10 that performs various controls of the electric shading device can be configured as a computer.

[0063] The functions of the control device 10 realized by the execution of the program by the microcomputer unit 101 include a function of receiving an operation signal, discriminating various commands contained in the operation signal, and performing various controls of the corresponding electric shading device; a function of counting the presence or absence of encoder pulses and the number of encoder pulses via pulse detection units 109U, 109L which receive pulse signals from each encoder 8U, 8L, respectively, and storing and managing the count values ​​in the memory unit 102 as appropriate; a function of storing and managing in the memory unit 102 various settings related to the upper limit position and lower limit position of each shielding material which can be set according to the count value of the number of encoder pulses; a function of controlling the drive of the motors 9U, 9L via motor driving units 107U, 107L which drive the motors 9U, 9L, respectively; and a function of monitoring the abnormal values ​​via abnormality detection units 108U, 108L which detect abnormal values ​​(one or more of overcurrent / abnormal waveform current / abnormal waveform voltage) in the motor driving units 107U, 107L, respectively, and notifying the microcomputer unit 101 of the abnormal values.

[0064] In the electric shading device of this embodiment, each of the motors 9L, 9U and the control device 10 are connected by a motor harness, but no physical detection switch is provided for detecting the physical upper limit position and the physical lower limit position when the screen is raised and lowered, as in the conventional electric pleated screen. Even in this case, the control device 10 can detect the physical upper limit position and the physical lower limit position that define the physical lifting and lowering operable range for each of the upper screen 6U and the lower screen 6L by one or more of the following methods: determining the absolute upper and lower limit positions based on the count value of the encoder pulses obtained from the encoders 8L, 8U, detecting abnormal values ​​(one or more of overcurrent / abnormal waveform current / abnormal waveform voltage) in the motor drive units 107L, 107U by the abnormality detection units 108L, 108U, respectively, or detecting that the input of the encoder pulses is no longer present for a predetermined period of time during operation control. Then, the control device 10 can perform various settings related to the set upper limit position and set lower limit position of each shielding material based on the detected physical upper limit position and physical lower limit position.

[0065] However, the control device 10 according to the present invention, which will be described in detail later with reference to Figures 4 to 9, allows simultaneous control of the open / closed positions of each shielding material and is intended to control the operation of each shielding material with high quality, so it may be provided with physical detection switches for detecting the upper and lower physical limit positions when raising and lowering the screen as in the conventional case.

[0066] (A typical example of an operating device that allows the opening and closing values ​​of each shielding material to be specified individually or simultaneously) As the operation device 25, a wired or wireless switch, an infrared switch, a multi-switch, a smartphone, a tablet, a personal computer, a zone switch, or a dial switch that allows the opening and closing of each shielding material (the upper screen 6U as the upper shielding material and the lower screen 6L as the lower shielding material) individually can be used, which are similar to those conventionally known, and therefore a description of these will be omitted here. First, referring to Figure 3, a typical embodiment of the operation device 25 that transmits an operation signal that allows the opening and closing positions of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material to be individually or simultaneously specified will be described.

[0067] Figures 3(a) to (c) are diagrams showing the schematic configuration of a typical embodiment of an operating device that transmits an operating signal that enables individual or simultaneous specification of the open / close positions of the upper and lower shielding materials in an electric shading device according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0068] 3(a) shows an example of an operation screen on communication terminal 25A, which is assumed to be a smartphone, tablet, or the like, and this operation screen is presented on communication terminal 25A when an application dedicated to operating the motorized shading device of this embodiment is installed in communication terminal 25A and this application is started to establish communication with control device 10. As a result, communication terminal 25A functions as operation device 25 having a UI (user interface) that allows a user to specify the open / closed positions of each of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material by a user operation, and an operation signal transmission means that transmits an operation signal corresponding to the open / closed positions of each of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material specified via the UI. The operation screen of the communication terminal 25A shown in FIG. 3(a) functioning as the operation device 25 has an upper opening / closing position designation button 201 for selecting the operation of the upper shielding material (upper screen 6U having an intermediate rail 7U at its lower end) and designating its open / closed position (in this example, the shielding rate), a lower opening / closing position designation button 202 for selecting the operation of the lower shielding material (lower screen 6L having a bottom rail 7L at its lower end) and designating its open / closed position, a shielding material simulation display section 203 for displaying a simulated state of each of the open / closed positions of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material in comparison with the background (an upper shielding state display section 203U for displaying a simulated state of the upper shielding material, and a lower shielding state display section 203L for displaying a simulated state of the lower shielding material), and the open / closed positions of each of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material (in this example, the shielding rate) corresponding to the simulated display of the shielding material simulation display section 203. The display section 201 presents opening / closing position display fields 201U, 202L which show the ratio of the shielding material to the opening / closing position as a numerical value, an up button 204 and a down button 205 for changing the opening / closing position to be operated for the shielding material selected and specified by the operator pressing the upper opening / closing position specification button 201 or the lower opening / closing position specification button 202, an execute button 206 for executing the transmission to the control device 10 of an operation signal including a up / down command indicating the opening / closing position of each of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material which are individually specified or simultaneously specified by the up button 204 and the down button 205, and a stop button 207 for executing the transmission to the control device 10 of an operation signal including a stop command for stopping the overall movement of the shielding material simulated display unit 203 while the simulated display is being dynamically changed after the operator presses the execute button 206.

[0069] For example, on the operation screen of the communication terminal 25A shown in Fig. 3(a), after establishing communication with the control device 10, the current state of each shielding material in the electric shading device of this embodiment is simulated and displayed on the shielding material simulation display section 203, and the open / closed position (in this example, the shielding rate) of each shielding material is displayed in the open / closed position display fields 201U, 202L. The open / closed position of the upper shielding material is normalized to 0% when the intermediate rail 7U is at the set upper limit position and 100% when the intermediate rail 7U is at the set lower limit position, and similarly, the open / closed position of the lower shielding material is normalized to 0% when the bottom rail 7L is at the set upper limit position and 100% when the bottom rail 7L is at the set lower limit position. Although not shown, a setting button for performing various settings related to the set upper limit position and the set lower limit position may be provided, or the operator may simultaneously press the up button 204 and the down button 205 for a predetermined time to switch to a setting mode for performing various settings.

[0070] Then, for example, when the operator presses the upper opening / closing position designation button 201 on the operation screen of the communication terminal 25A on which the current state of each shielding material is presented, and then the operator presses the up button 204 or the down button 205, the numerical value in the opening / closing position display field 201U changes, and the desired opening / closing position (the shielding rate in this example) can be selected. Similarly, when the operator presses the lower opening / closing position designation button 202 and then the operator presses the up button 204 or the down button 205, the numerical value in the opening / closing position display field 201L changes, and the desired opening / closing position (the shielding rate in this example) can be selected.

[0071] In response to the change in the values ​​in the open / close position display fields 201U, 201L, the simulated display on the shielding material simulated display area 203 changes dynamically and virtually. In this example, the up button 204 is shown as a "△" and the down button 205 is shown as a "▽" and are displayed in a composite manner on the shielding material simulated display area 203, making it easy for the operator to understand the possible operations.

[0072] After selecting the desired open / closed position, the operator presses the execute button 206, and the communication terminal 25A transmits an operation signal including a lift command indicating the open / closed position of each of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material to the control device 10. Immediately after pressing the execute button 206, the simulated display of the shielding material simulated display unit 203 returns to the display of the current state of each shielding material, and dynamically displays a simulated display from the current state to the selected state of the desired open / closed position. This dynamic simulated display can be performed sequentially in synchronization with the control device 10 through mutual communication, but in this example, it is dynamically displayed in a pseudo manner by calculation within the communication terminal 25A. Then, when the operator presses the stop button 207 while the simulated display of the shielding material simulated display unit 203 is being dynamically changed after the operator presses the execute button 206, the communication terminal 25A transmits an operation signal including a stop command to stop the overall movement of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material to the control device 10. Furthermore, when the specified opening / closing position is reached, or when the movement of all shielding materials has stopped due to a stop command, the control device 10 notifies the communication terminal 25A of the state of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material at that time as their current state, and the current state of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material after the above operation is displayed on the operation screen of the communication terminal 25A.

[0073] As a preferred example from the viewpoint of ease of use, the embodiment in which the simulated display of the shielding material simulated display portion 203 is dynamically changed has been described, but it is not essential to adopt such a form in which a dynamic simulated display is performed.

[0074] In addition, in such a communication terminal 25A, as another embodiment of the electric shading device, when either or both of the upper and lower shading materials are composed of multiple slats in a horizontal blind, an operation menu can be provided that enables operation of the tilt rate of the multiple slats (for example, the slat angle is 0% in the reverse fully closed state, 50% in the horizontal state, and 100% in the fully closed state, etc.).

[0075] In addition, Fig. 3(a) shows an example of an operation screen of the communication terminal 25A assumed to be a smartphone or a tablet, but an application dedicated to the operation of the electric shading device of this embodiment that realizes the function described with reference to Fig. 3(a) can be installed in a personal computer, and the personal computer can be configured to function as the operation device 25. Similarly, a multi-switch that realizes the function described with reference to Fig. 3(a) can be configured. In general, a multi-switch is a multi-function switch that, when a plurality of electric shading devices shown in Fig. 1 are configured, can selectively operate one or more of the plurality of electric shading devices, or can simultaneously operate all of the plurality of electric shading devices.

[0076] Next, Figure 3 (b) shows an example of an operation screen for a zone switch 25B having a UI (user interface) that allows the user to specify the open / closed positions of the upper and lower shielding materials by using a touch panel that physically displays the operation range as a zone, or a liquid crystal display, and an operation signal transmitting means that transmits an operation signal corresponding to the open / closed positions of the upper and lower shielding materials specified via the UI.This operation screen is a device that operably displays functions dedicated to operating the electric shading device of this embodiment on the zone switch 25B and communicates with the control device 10, so that the zone switch 25B functions as an operation device 25. The operation screen of the zone switch 25B shown in FIG. 3(b) functioning as the operation device 25 includes an upper opening / closing position designation slider 211 for designating the opening / closing position of the upper shielding material (upper screen 6U having an intermediate rail 7U at its lower end) by sliding it within a range (zone) of an opening / closing position (in this example, a shielding rate of 0% (OPEN) and an opening / closing position (in this example, a shielding rate of 100% (CLOSE)), a lower opening / closing position designation slider 212 for designating the opening / closing position of the lower shielding material (lower screen 6L having a bottom rail 7L at its lower end) by sliding it within a range (zone) of an opening / closing position of 0% (OPEN) and an opening / closing position of 100% (CLOSE), and a lower opening / closing position designation slider 213 for designating a change in the opening / closing position of the upper shielding material to be opened / closed. An up button 213 and a down button 214, an up button 215 and a down button 216 for specifying a change in the opening / closing position of the lower shielding material to be opened and closed, an execute button 217 for executing the transmission to the control device 10 of an operation signal including a raising / lowering command for the opening / closing positions of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material specified individually or simultaneously with these opening / closing position specifying buttons, and a stop button 218 for executing the transmission to the control device 10 of an operation signal including a stop command for stopping the overall movement of the slider 211 for specifying the upper opening / closing position and / or the slider 212 for specifying the lower opening / closing position while the slide display is dynamically changed after the operator presses the execute button 217.

[0077] For example, on the operation screen of the zone switch 25B shown in Fig. 3(b), after establishing communication with the control device 10, the current state of each shielding material in the motorized shading device of this embodiment is reflected and displayed on a slider 211 for specifying an upper opening / closing position and a slider 212 for specifying a lower opening / closing position. The opening / closing position of the upper shielding material is normalized to 0% when the intermediate rail 7U is at the set upper limit position and 100% when the intermediate rail 7U is at the set lower limit position, and similarly, the opening / closing position of the lower shielding material is normalized to 0% when the bottom rail 7L is at the set upper limit position and 100% when the bottom rail 7L is at the set lower limit position. Although not shown, a setting button for performing various settings related to the set upper limit position and the set lower limit position may be provided, or a mode in which the operator simultaneously presses any two or more buttons for a predetermined period of time to switch to a setting mode for performing various settings may be used.

[0078] Then, on the operation screen of zone switch 25B where the current status of each shielding material is presented, for example, the operator can directly slide slider 211 for specifying the upper opening / closing position and slider 212 for specifying the lower opening / closing position, or press up button 213 and down button 214, and further up button 215 and down button 216 to change the positions of slider 211 for specifying the upper opening / closing position and slider 212 for specifying the lower opening / closing position, thereby selecting and changing the desired opening / closing positions for the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material.

[0079] When the operator presses the execute button 217 after selecting and changing to the desired open / close position, the zone switch 25B transmits an operation signal including a lift command indicating the open / close position of each of the upper and lower shielding materials to the control device 10. Immediately after pressing this execute button 217, the position display of the slider 211 for specifying the upper open / close position and the slider 212 for specifying the lower open / close position return to displaying the current state of each shielding material, and then dynamically reflects and displays the change from the current state to the selected state of the desired open / close position. This dynamic reflection display can also be performed sequentially in synchronization with the control device 10, but in this example, it is dynamically displayed in a pseudo manner by calculation within the zone switch 25B. Then, when the operator presses the stop button 218 while the position displays of the slider 211 for specifying the upper opening / closing position and the slider 212 for specifying the lower opening / closing position are being dynamically changed after the operator presses the execute button 217, the zone switch 25B transmits an operation signal including a stop command for stopping the overall movement of the upper and lower shielding materials to the control device 10. When the control device 10 reaches the specified opening / closing position or when the movement of all the shielding materials has stopped by the stop command, it notifies the zone switch 25B of the state of the upper and lower shielding materials at that time as their current state, and the current state of the upper and lower shielding materials after the above operation is presented on the operation screen of the zone switch 25B as a reflection display of the slider 211 for specifying the upper opening / closing position and the slider 212 for specifying the lower opening / closing position.

[0080] As a preferred example from the viewpoint of ease of use, a form in which the position display of the slider 211 for specifying the upper opening / closing position and the slider 212 for specifying the lower opening / closing position is dynamically changed has been described, but it is not necessarily required to adopt such a form of dynamic display.

[0081] In addition, in such a zone switch 25B, as another embodiment of the electric shading device, when either or both of the upper and lower shading materials are composed of multiple slats in a horizontal blind, an operation menu can be provided that enables operation of the tilt rate of the multiple slats (for example, the slat angle is 0% in the reverse fully closed state, 50% in the horizontal state, and 100% in the fully closed state, etc.).

[0082] In addition, Fig. 3(b) shows an example of an operation screen of the zone switch 25B using a touch panel, but an application dedicated to operating the motorized shading device of this embodiment that realizes the functions described with reference to Fig. 3(b) can be installed in a communication terminal or a personal computer and configured to function as the operation device 25. Similarly, a multi-switch that realizes the functions described with reference to Fig. 3(b) can also be configured. Furthermore, instead of using a touch panel, it is also possible to configure it with a physical switch.

[0083] 3(c) shows an example of an operation section of a dial switch 25C for rotating the opening / closing operation range of each shielding material with a physical dial, and this operation section is a device that presents functions dedicated to the operation of the motorized shading device of this embodiment as if performing a dial rotation operation, and communicates with the control device 10. As a result, the dial switch 25C functions as an operation device 25 having a UI (user interface) that allows the user to specify the opening / closing positions of each of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material by a user operation, and an operation signal transmission means that transmits an operation signal corresponding to the opening / closing positions of each of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material specified via the UI. The operation section of the dial switch 25C shown in FIG. 3(c) functioning as the operation device 25 includes an upper opening / closing position designation dial 221 for designating the opening / closing position of the upper shielding material (upper screen 6U having an intermediate rail 7U at its lower end) by rotating the upper / lower position (shielding rate in this example) between 0% and 100% and a lower opening / closing position designation dial 222 for designating the opening / closing position of the lower shielding material (lower screen 6L having a bottom rail 7L at its lower end) by rotating the lower / lower position (shielding rate in this example) between 0% and 100%. The dials 222 for specifying the opening and closing positions, an execute button 223 for executing an operation signal including a lifting / lowering command indicating the opening and closing positions of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material, which are individually specified or simultaneously specified using these dials for specifying the opening and closing positions, to the control device 10, and a stop button 224 for executing an operation signal including a stop command for stopping the overall movement of the dials 221 for specifying the upper opening and closing position and / or the dial 222 for specifying the lower opening and closing position while the slide display is dynamically changing after the operator presses the execute button 223.

[0084] For example, on the operation part of the dial switch 25C shown in Fig. 3(c), after establishing communication with the control device 10, the current state of each shielding material in the motorized shading device of this embodiment is reflected in a dial 221 for specifying an upper opening / closing position and a dial 222 for specifying a lower opening / closing position. The opening / closing position of the upper shielding material is normalized to 0% when the intermediate rail 7U is at the set upper limit position and 100% when the intermediate rail 7U is at the set lower limit position, and similarly, the opening / closing position of the lower shielding material is normalized to 0% when the bottom rail 7L is at the set upper limit position and 100% when the bottom rail 7L is at the set lower limit position. Although not shown, a setting button for performing various settings related to the set upper limit position and the set lower limit position may be provided, or a mode in which the operator simultaneously presses the execute button 223 and the stop button 224 for a predetermined time to switch to a setting mode for performing various settings may be used.

[0085] Then, for example, when the operator rotates dial 221 for specifying the upper opening / closing position and dial 222 for specifying the lower opening / closing position on the operating portion of dial switch 25C on which the current status of each shielding material is displayed, the upper shielding material and lower shielding material can be changed and selected to the desired opening / closing position.

[0086] After selecting and changing to the desired open / closed position, when the operator presses the execute button 223, the dial switch 25C transmits an operation signal including a lift command indicating the open / closed position of each of the upper and lower shielding materials to the control device 10. Immediately after pressing this execute button 223, the rotational positions of the dial 221 for specifying the upper open / closed position and the dial 222 for specifying the lower open / closed position return to the positions indicating the current states of the respective shielding materials, and a dynamic reflection presentation (rotational presentation) is made from the current states to the selected state of the desired open / closed position. This dynamic reflection presentation can also be made in a form that is performed sequentially in synchronization with the control device 10 through mutual communication, but in this example, a pseudo dynamic presentation is made by calculation within the dial switch 25C. Then, when the operator presses the stop button 224 while the position indications of the dial 221 for specifying the upper opening / closing position and the dial 222 for specifying the lower opening / closing position are being dynamically changed after the operator presses the execute button 223, the dial switch 25C transmits an operation signal including a stop command for stopping the overall movement of the upper and lower shielding materials to the control device 10. When the control device 10 reaches the specified opening / closing position or when the movement of all the shielding materials has stopped by the stop command, it notifies the dial switch 25C of the state of the upper and lower shielding materials at that time as their current state, and the current state of the upper and lower shielding materials after the above operation is presented on the operation section of the dial switch 25C as a reflection of the dial 221 for specifying the upper opening / closing position and the dial 222 for specifying the lower opening / closing position.

[0087] As a preferred example from the standpoint of ease of use, we have described a form in which the position presentation of dial 221 for specifying the upper opening / closing position and dial 222 for specifying the lower opening / closing position is dynamically changed, but it is not necessarily necessary to adopt a form that provides such dynamic presentation.

[0088] Furthermore, in such a dial switch 25C, as another embodiment of the electric shading device, when either or both of the upper and lower shading materials are composed of multiple slats in a horizontal blind, an operating dial can be provided that enables operation of the tilt rate of the multiple slats (for example, the slat angle is 0% in the reverse fully closed state, 50% in the horizontal state, and 100% in the fully closed state, etc.).

[0089] In addition, in Fig. 3(c), the operation unit of the dial switch 25C that rotates the opening / closing operation range of each shielding material with a physical dial has been exemplified, but to realize the function described with reference to Fig. 3(c), a touch panel can be used, or an application dedicated to operating the motorized shading device of this embodiment can be installed in a communication terminal or a personal computer to function as the operation device 25. Similarly, a multi-switch that realizes the function described with reference to Fig. 3(c) can also be configured.

[0090] As described above and illustrated in FIG. 3, the operating device 25 according to the present invention can be a multi-switch, a smartphone, a tablet, a personal computer, a zone switch, a dial switch, or the like for not only individually operating the opening and closing of each shielding material (the upper screen 6U as the upper shielding material and the lower screen 6L as the lower shielding material) but also operating them "simultaneously" by wire or wirelessly. The control device 10 can receive and process not only an individually designated operating signal but also a simultaneously designated operating signal for each opening and closing position of each shielding material, and simultaneously controls the opening and closing of each shielding material. In particular, the control device 10 according to the present invention allows simultaneous control of the opening and closing positions of each shielding material, and controls the operation of each shielding material with high quality, which will be described in detail below with reference to FIG. 4 to FIG. 10.

[0091] (Main flow of a control example of the control device when simultaneously specifying the open / closed positions of each shielding material) First, with reference to Figs. 4 to 10, a control example of the control device 10 when an operation signal for individually or simultaneously designating the open / closed positions of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material exemplified in Fig. 3 is received will be described.

[0092] FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a main flow of an example of control by the control device 10 in one embodiment when an operation signal is received to individually or simultaneously specify the open / close positions of the upper and lower shielding materials in an electric shading device according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0093] First, when the control device 10 receives an operation signal specifying the opening / closing position (in this example, shielding rate) UR of the upper shielding material (upper screen 6U having an intermediate rail 7U at its lower end) and the opening / closing position (in this example, shielding rate) LR of the lower shielding material (lower screen 6L having a bottom rail 7L at its lower end) (step S1), it determines the movement direction of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material from their current states (step S2).

[0094] When the control device 10 determines that the upper shielding material is rising or stopped (no operation required) and the lower shielding material is falling or stopped (no operation required) (step S3), it executes control to raise the intermediate rail 7U and control to lower the bottom rail 7L (step S31) until the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material reach the opening / closing positions UR, LR specified by the operation signal from the operation device 25. When the control device 10 receives an operation signal including a stop command during the raising / lowering control, it executes control to stop the operation of all shielding materials (upper shielding material and lower shielding material).

[0095] On the other hand, when the control device 10 determines that the moving directions of both the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material are upward (step S4), the process proceeds to subflow A shown in FIG.

[0096] Moreover, when the control device 10 determines that the moving directions of both the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material are downward (step S5), the process proceeds to subflow B shown in FIG.

[0097] 9. When the control device 10 determines that the upper shielding material is descending and the lower shielding material is ascending (step S6), the process proceeds to subflow C shown in FIG.

[0098] (Subflow A) FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing subflow A of an example of control by the control device 10 in one embodiment when an operation signal is received that individually or simultaneously specifies the open / closed positions of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material, and FIG. 6 is a side view of the motorized shading device of this embodiment that shows an outline of the operation of subflow A.

[0099] First, as shown in FIG. 5, the control device 10 determines that the movement directions of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material are both upward, and when transitioning to subflow A, starts controlling the upward movement of the intermediate rail 7U at the lower end of the upper shielding material and the bottom rail 7L at the lower end of the lower shielding material (step S41).

[0100] Here, the control device 10 performs lift control of the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L while monitoring whether the interval between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is within a predetermined range (a predetermined range obtained by adding a predetermined margin to the limit value of the folding amount of the lower screen 6L) based on the count of the output values ​​of the encoders 8U and 8L (step S42). Note that the moving speeds of the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L may be the same or different.

[0101] While the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is not within the specified range (step S42: N), the control device 10 also monitors, based on the count of the output values ​​of the encoders 8U, 8L, whether the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material have reached the open / closed positions specified by the operation signal from the operating device 25 (step S43).

[0102] While the distance between the middle rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is not within a predetermined range and the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material are not in their designated opening / closing positions (step S43: N), the control device 10 continues to control the middle rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L to rise (step S44), and when the distance between the middle rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is not within a predetermined range and the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material are in their designated opening / closing positions UR, LR (step S43: Y), the control device 10 stops the rising operation of the upper shielding material (i.e., the middle rail 7U) and the lower shielding material (i.e., the bottom rail 7L) (step S45) and ends this control. Note that when the control device 10 receives an operation signal including a stop command during this rising control, it performs control to stop the operation of all shielding materials (upper shielding material and lower shielding material).

[0103] On the other hand, during the upward control of the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L, when it is determined that the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is within a predetermined range (step S42: Y), the control device 10 automatically stops the upward movement of the bottom rail 7L, continues the upward control of the intermediate rail 7U until it reaches the specified opening / closing position UR of the upper shielding material, and when it reaches the specified opening / closing position UR of the upper shielding material, stops the upward movement of the upper shielding material (i.e., the intermediate rail 7U) as well (step S46), and ends this control. Note that when the control device 10 receives an operation signal including a stop command during this upward control, it performs control to stop the operation of all shielding materials (upper shielding materials and lower shielding materials).

[0104] Therefore, referring to Figure 6, when an opening / closing position UR = 20% and an opening / closing position LR = 20% are specified by an operation signal from the operation device 25 from the opening / closing position UR = 70% and the opening / closing position LR = 80% shown as the current state before operation in Figure 6 (a), the control device 10 determines that the movement directions of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material are both upward, and transitions to control of subflow A shown in Figure 5.

[0105] Then, as shown in FIG. 6(b), the control device 10 performs lift control (indicated by arrow "UM") of the upper shielding material (i.e., the intermediate rail 7U) and lift control (indicated by arrow "LM") of the lower shielding material (i.e., the bottom rail 7L) while monitoring, based on the count of the output values ​​of the encoders 8U and 8L, whether the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is within a predetermined range (a predetermined range obtained by adding a predetermined margin to the limit value of the folding amount of the lower screen 6L) and whether the specified opening and closing positions of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material have been reached.

[0106] Then, as shown in FIG. 6(c), when the control device 10 determines based on the count of the output values ​​of the encoders 8U, 8L that the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is within a predetermined range (a predetermined range obtained by adding a predetermined margin to the limit value of the folding amount of the lower screen 6L), it automatically stops the lifting operation of the bottom rail 7L and continues to control the lifting of the intermediate rail 7U (indicated by the arrow "UM") until it reaches the specified opening / closing position UR of the upper shielding material.

[0107] This allows simultaneous control of the open / closed positions of each shielding material, improving usability, while preventing excessive load from being placed on the upper screen 6U and lower screen 6L, or the lifting cords 3U, 3L, allowing the operation of each shielding material to be controlled with high quality.

[0108] (Subflow B) FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing subflow B of an example of control by the control device 10 when an operation signal is received that individually or simultaneously specifies the open / closed positions of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material, and FIG. 8 is a side view of the motorized shading device of this embodiment that shows an outline of the operation of subflow B.

[0109] First, as shown in FIG. 7, the control device 10 determines that the movement directions of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material are both downward, and when transitioning to subflow B, starts controlling the downward movement of the intermediate rail 7U at the lower end of the upper shielding material and the bottom rail 7L at the lower end of the lower shielding material (step S51).

[0110] Here, the control device 10 performs lowering control of the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L while monitoring whether the interval between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is within a predetermined range (a predetermined range obtained by adding a predetermined margin to the limit value of the folding amount of the lower screen 6L) based on the count of the output values ​​of the encoders 8U and 8L (step S52). Note that the moving speeds of the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L may be the same or different.

[0111] While the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is not within the specified range (step S52: N), the control device 10 also monitors, based on the count of the output values ​​of the encoders 8U, 8L, whether the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material have reached the open / closed positions specified by the operation signal from the operating device 25 (step S53).

[0112] While the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is not within a predetermined range and the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material are not in their designated opening / closing positions (step S53: N), the control device 10 continues to control the lowering of the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L (step S54), and when the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is not within a predetermined range and the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material are in their designated opening / closing positions UR, LR (step S53: Y), the control device 10 stops the lowering operation of the upper shielding material (i.e., the intermediate rail 7U) and the lower shielding material (i.e., the bottom rail 7L) (step S55) and ends this control. Note that when the control device 10 receives an operation signal including a stop command during this lowering control, it performs control to stop the operation of all shielding materials (upper shielding material and lower shielding material).

[0113] On the other hand, during the lowering control of the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L, when it is determined that the interval between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is within a predetermined range (step S52: Y), the control device 10 automatically stops the lowering operation of the intermediate rail 7U, continues the lowering control of the bottom rail 7L until the designated opening / closing position LR of the lower shielding material is reached, and when the designated opening / closing position LR of the lower shielding material is reached, also stops the lowering operation of the lower shielding material (i.e., the bottom rail 7L) (step S56), and ends this control. Note that when the control device 10 receives an operation signal including a stop command during this lowering control, it performs control to stop the operation of all shielding materials (upper shielding material and lower shielding material).

[0114] Therefore, referring to Figure 8, when an opening / closing position UR = 70% and an opening / closing position LR = 100% are specified by an operation signal from the operation device 25 from the opening / closing position UR = 10% and the opening / closing position LR = 40% shown as the current state before operation in Figure 8 (a), the control device 10 determines that the movement directions of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material are both downward, and transitions to control of subflow B shown in Figure 7.

[0115] Then, as shown in FIG. 8(b), the control device 10 performs lowering control (indicated by arrow "UM") of the upper shielding material (i.e., the intermediate rail 7U) and lowering control (indicated by arrow "LM") of the lower shielding material (i.e., the bottom rail 7L) while monitoring, based on the count of the output values ​​of the encoders 8U and 8L, whether the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is within a predetermined range (a predetermined range obtained by adding a predetermined margin to the limit value of the folding amount of the lower screen 6L) and whether the specified opening and closing positions of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material have been reached.

[0116] 8(c), when the control device 10 determines based on the count of the output values ​​of the encoders 8U, 8L that the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is within a predetermined range (a predetermined range obtained by adding a predetermined margin to the limit value of the folding amount of the lower screen 6L), it automatically stops the lowering operation of the intermediate rail 7U and continues the lowering control of the bottom rail 7L (indicated by the arrow "LM") until the designated opening / closing position LR of the lower shielding material is reached. Note that even when the bottom rail 7L is stopped due to the detection of an obstacle or is stopped afterwards during the lowering control of the intermediate rail 7U, the control device 10 automatically stops the lowering operation of the intermediate rail 7U when it determines that the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is within the predetermined range.

[0117] This allows simultaneous control of the open / closed positions of each shielding material, improving usability, while preventing excessive load from being placed on the upper screen 6U and lower screen 6L, or the lifting cords 3U, 3L, allowing the operation of each shielding material to be controlled with high quality.

[0118] (Subflow C) Figure 9 is a flowchart showing subflow C of an example of control by the control device 10 in one embodiment when an operation signal is received that individually or simultaneously specifies the open / closed positions of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material, and Figure 10 is a side view of the motorized shading device of this embodiment that shows an outline of the operation of subflow C.

[0119] As shown in Figure 9, when the control device 10 determines that the upper shielding material is descending and the lower shielding material is rising, and transitions to subflow C, it starts controlling the descending of the intermediate rail 7U at the lower end of the upper shielding material and the ascending of the bottom rail 7L at the lower end of the lower shielding material (step S61).

[0120] Here, the control device 10 controls the lowering of the intermediate rail 7U and the raising of the bottom rail 7L while monitoring whether the interval between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is within a predetermined range (a predetermined range obtained by adding a predetermined margin to the limit value of the folding amount of the lower screen 6L) based on the count of the output values ​​of the encoders 8U and 8L (step S62). Note that the moving speeds of the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L may be the same or different.

[0121] While the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is not within the specified range (step S62: N), the control device 10 also monitors, based on the count of the output values ​​of the encoders 8U, 8L, whether the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material have reached the open / closed positions specified by the operation signal from the operating device 25 (step S63).

[0122] While the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is not within a predetermined range and the upper and lower shielding materials are not in their designated opening and closing positions (step S63: N), the control device 10 continues to control the lowering of the intermediate rail 7U and the raising of the bottom rail 7L (step S64), and when the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is not within a predetermined range and the upper and lower shielding materials are in their designated opening and closing positions UR and LR (step S63: Y), the control device 10 stops the operation of the upper shielding material (i.e., the intermediate rail 7U) and the lower shielding material (i.e., the bottom rail 7L) (step S65) and ends this control. Note that when the control device 10 receives an operation signal including a stop command during this raising and lowering control, it performs control to stop the operation of all shielding materials (upper and lower shielding materials).

[0123] Also, during the lowering control of the intermediate rail 7U and the raising control of the bottom rail 7L, if it is determined that the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is within a predetermined range (step S62: Y), the control device 10 stops the operation of the upper shielding material (i.e., the intermediate rail 7U) and the lower shielding material (i.e., the bottom rail 7L) (step S65) and ends this control. Note that when the control device 10 receives an operation signal including a stop command during this raising and lowering control, it performs control to stop the operation of all shielding materials (upper shielding materials and lower shielding materials).

[0124] Therefore, referring to Figure 10, when an opening / closing position UR = 40% and an opening / closing position LR = 40% are specified by an operation signal from the operation device 25 from the opening / closing position UR = 10% and the opening / closing position LR = 70% shown as the current state before operation in Figure 10 (a), the control device 10 determines that the movement direction of the upper shielding material is downward and the movement direction of the lower shielding material is upward, and transitions to control of subflow C shown in Figure 9.

[0125] Then, as shown in FIG. 10(b), the control device 10 performs lowering control (indicated by arrow "UM") of the upper shielding material (i.e., the intermediate rail 7U) and raising control (indicated by arrow "LM") of the lower shielding material (i.e., the bottom rail 7L) while monitoring, based on the count of the output values ​​of the encoders 8U, 8L, whether the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is within a predetermined range (a predetermined range obtained by adding a predetermined margin to the limit value of the folding amount of the lower screen 6L) and whether the specified opening and closing positions of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material have been reached.

[0126] Then, as shown in Figure 10 (c), when the control device 10 determines, based on the count of the output values ​​of the encoders 8U, 8L, that the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is within a predetermined range (a predetermined range obtained by adding a predetermined margin to the limit value of the folding amount of the lower screen 6L), the control device automatically stops the lowering movement of the intermediate rail 7U and the raising movement of the bottom rail 7L.

[0127] This allows simultaneous control of the open / closed positions of each shielding material, improving usability, while preventing excessive load from being placed on the upper screen 6U and lower screen 6L, or the lifting cords 3U, 3L, allowing the operation of each shielding material to be controlled with high quality. 4 to 10, if the control example of the control device 10 is not stopped when the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L are within a predetermined range, unlike the control according to the present invention described above, the weight of the upper shielding material including the intermediate rail 7U is applied to the lifting cord 3L for the lower shielding material, and the load on the drive system and the lifting cord 3L, such as the winding drum 51L and the motor 9L, suddenly increases, which may adversely affect the quality of these. Therefore, the control device 10 according to the present invention avoids the generation of an excessive load on the lifting cord 3L for the lower shielding material (and the lifting cord 3U for the upper shielding material at the same time) by controlling one embodiment according to Figures 4 to 10, thereby making it possible to maintain high quality of the drive system and the lifting cord.

[0128] Therefore, as shown representatively in Figures 4 to 10, the electric shading device of this embodiment, which is equipped with a control device 10 having means for simultaneously controlling the lifting and lowering of both the upper and lower shielding materials and has multiple stages of shielding materials connected in the vertical direction, allows simultaneous control of the opening and closing positions of each shielding material, and can control the operation of each shielding material with high quality, thereby improving usability and quality.

[0129] (A typical example of an operating device that allows the shielding materials to be raised and lowered without being able to specify their open / closed positions.) Next, referring to Figure 11, we will explain an example of an infrared or wireless remote control 25D, which is a typical example of an operating device 25 that can individually open and close each shielding material (upper screen 6U as upper shielding material and lower screen 6L as lower shielding material) in a form in which it is not possible to specify the open / closed position of each shielding material.

[0130] When the operator uses the infrared or wireless remote control 25D to raise each shielding material (upper screen 6U as the upper shielding material and lower screen 6L as the lower shielding material), he can send an raise command by pressing the ``open button (OPEN, △, etc.)'' 231 as shown in FIG. 11, and when the operator uses the infrared or wireless remote control 25D to raise each shielding material (upper screen 6U as the upper shielding material and lower screen 6L as the lower shielding material), he can send an raise command by pressing the ``close button (CLOSE, ▽, etc.)'' 232 ... wireless remote control 25D to raise each shielding material (upper screen 6U as the upper shielding material and lower screen 6L as the lower shielding material), he can send an raise command by pressing the ``stop button (STOP, □, etc.)'' 233 as shown in FIG. 11,

[0131] In addition, the infrared or wireless remote control 25D shown in Fig. 11 has a group designation button (circular buttons with "1" to "4" shown in the figure) 234 for designating a group and simultaneously operating multiple electric shading devices having the same device ID when multiple electric shading devices are installed as operation targets, and a collective designation button ("ALL" button shown in the figure) 235 for simultaneously operating all groups at once. Each of the multiple electric shading devices installed as operation targets can be set with a device ID corresponding to the group designation button 234 and the collective designation button 255 by a DIP switch or the like. Therefore, when the infrared or wireless remote control 25D shown in Fig. 11 is used, the control device 10 in the electric shading device to be operated recognizes the operation signal transmitted by pressing the open / close button (open button 231 and close button 232) and the stop button 233 after pressing the group designation button 234 or the collective designation button 255, and controls it to perform the corresponding operation. However, the setting value of the device ID in each electric shading device can be set to a mode in which the operation signals generated by pressing the open / close buttons (open button 231 and close button 232) and the stop button 233 directly are recognized and the corresponding operation is performed, without the need to press the group designation button 234 or the collective designation button 235.

[0132] As described above, the infrared or wireless remote control 25D shown in Figure 11 has the function of transmitting an infrared or wireless operation signal to the control device 10 of the electric shading device to be operated, and when performing an upward operation, an upward command can be transmitted by pressing the open button 231, when performing a downward operation, a downward command can be transmitted by pressing the close button 232, and when performing an operation to stop the upward or downward movement, a stop command can be transmitted by pressing the stop button 233.

[0133] In addition, when setting the upper and lower limit positions of each shielding material, the infrared or wireless remote control 25D can send a setting command to the control device 10 in the electric shading device to be set, to transition to setting mode, by pressing and holding the stop button 233 for a predetermined period of time or by pressing and holding the open button 231 and the stop button 233 simultaneously for a predetermined period of time, etc. The control device 10 in the electric shading device to be set transitions to a setting mode based on receipt of a setting command, and then automatically raises a predetermined one of the multiple shading materials possessed by the electric shading device to be set, determines the setting of the upper limit position by pressing and holding the stop button 233 for a predetermined period of time and stores it in the memory unit 102, then automatically raises the other shading material, determines the setting of the upper limit position by pressing and holding the stop button 233 for a predetermined period of time and stores it in the memory unit 102, then automatically lowers each shading material, and determines the setting of the lower limit position of each shading material by pressing and holding the stop button 233 for a predetermined period of time and stores it in the memory unit 102, thereby controlling the setting of the upper and lower limit positions of the multiple shading materials.

[0134] The control device 10 in the motorized shading device of this embodiment selectively controls the lifting and lowering of the upper and lower shielding materials individually and simultaneously controls the lifting and lowering of the upper and lower shielding materials depending on whether or not the operation signals related to lifting and lowering are continuously received (received in time series) among the operation signals based on pressing a pair of open / close buttons 231, 232 and a stop button 233 in an infrared or wireless remote control 25D shown in Fig. 11. In particular, when the operation of the upper and lower shielding materials is stopped, the control device 10 in the motorized shading device of this embodiment controls to lift a predetermined one of the upper and lower shielding materials when an operation signal of a lift command is received by pressing the open button 231 the first time shown in Fig. 11, to lift the other shielding material when an operation signal of a lift command is received in time series by pressing the open button 231 the second time in succession, and to stop the operation of all shielding materials when the stop button 233 is pressed. In this simultaneous control, which will be described below with reference to Figs. 12 to 15, the control device 10 simultaneously controls the opening and closing of each of the upper and lower shielding materials so as to maintain high quality.

[0135] (Main flow of the control example of the control device when lifting and lowering without specifying the opening and closing position of each shielding material) Below, with reference to Figures 12 to 15, we will explain an example of control by the control device 10 when an operation signal that enables the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material to be opened and closed individually is received from an operation device 25 in a form that does not allow the opening and closing position of each shielding material (upper screen 6U as upper shielding material and lower screen 6L as lower shielding material).

[0136] Figure 12 is a flowchart showing the main flow of an example of control by the control device 10 when an operation signal that enables the opening and closing of the upper and lower shielding materials in an electric shading device of one embodiment of the present invention to be individually operated from an operation device 25 such as an infrared or wireless remote control 25D illustrated in Figure 11 is received.

[0137] First, when the control device 10 receives an operation signal related to opening / closing of one of the upper shielding material (upper screen 6U having the intermediate rail 7U at its lower end) and the lower shielding material (lower screen 6L having the bottom rail 7L at its lower end) while the other shielding material is in operation (step S1B), it determines the movement direction of the other shielding material related to the operation signal with respect to the one shielding material in operation (step S2B). For example, when the control device 10 receives a first operation signal for an up command to raise a predetermined one of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material and receives a second operation signal for an up or down command to open or close in chronological order, it determines that the other shielding material is to be operated and determines the movement direction of the other shielding material related to the second operation signal.

[0138] When the control device 10 determines that the upper shielding material is rising and an operation signal to lower the lower shielding material has been received, or that the lower shielding material is falling and an operation signal to raise the upper shielding material has been received (step S3B), it executes lifting and lowering control of the shielding material corresponding to the operation signal (step S31B). Note that when the control device 10 receives an operation signal including a stop command during lifting and lowering control, it performs control to stop the operation of all shielding materials (upper and lower shielding materials).

[0139] On the other hand, when the control device 10 determines that the upper shielding material is rising and that the control signal received is for rising the lower shielding material (step S4B), the process proceeds to subflow A' shown in FIG.

[0140] Moreover, when the control device 10 determines that the lower shielding material is being lowered and that the operation signal received is for lowering the upper shielding material (step S5B), the process proceeds to a subflow B' shown in FIG.

[0141] In addition, when the control device 10 determines that the upper shielding material is descending and an operation signal to raise the lower shielding material has been received, or that the lower shielding material is ascending and an operation signal to lower the upper shielding material has been received (step S6B), it transitions to subflow C' shown in Figure 15.

[0142] (Subflow A') FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing a sub-flow A' of an example of control by the control device 10 in one embodiment when an operation signal that enables the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material to be opened and closed individually is received.

[0143] First, as shown in FIG. 13, the control device 10 determines that the upper shielding material is rising and that an operation signal to raise the lower shielding material has been received. When the control device 10 transitions to subflow A', it starts controlling the rise of the bottom rail 7L at the lower end of the lower shielding material (step S41B).

[0144] Here, the control device 10 performs lift control of the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L while monitoring whether the interval between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is within a predetermined range (a predetermined range obtained by adding a predetermined margin to the limit value of the folding amount of the lower screen 6L) based on the count of the output values ​​of the encoders 8U and 8L (step S42B). Note that the moving speeds of the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L may be the same or different.

[0145] While the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is not within the specified range (step S42B: N), the control device 10 also monitors, based on the count of the output values ​​of the encoders 8U, 8L, whether the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L have reached their set upper limit positions (step S43B).

[0146] While the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is not within a predetermined range and the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L are not at the set upper limit position (step S43B: N), the control device 10 continues the lift control of the bottom rail 7L (when the intermediate rail 7U is not at the set upper limit position, the control device 10 continues the lift control) (step S44B), and when the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L are at the set upper limit position while the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is not within a predetermined range (step S43B: Y), the control device 10 stops the lift operation of the upper shielding material (i.e., the intermediate rail 7U) and the lower shielding material (i.e., the bottom rail 7L) (step S45B) and ends this control. Note that when the control device 10 receives an operation signal including a stop command during this lift control, the control device 10 performs control to stop the operation of all shielding materials (upper shielding material and lower shielding material).

[0147] On the other hand, during the upward control of the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L, when it is determined that the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is within a predetermined range (step S42B: Y), the control device 10 stops the upward movement of the bottom rail 7L (step S46B) while continuing the upward control of the intermediate rail 7U up to the set upper limit position, and ends this control. Note that when the control device 10 receives an operation signal including a stop command during this upward control, it performs control to stop the operation of all shielding materials (upper shielding materials and lower shielding materials).

[0148] Therefore, when the upper shielding material is rising and the control device 10 is simultaneously controlling the rise of the lower shielding material, it automatically stops the rising operation of the bottom rail 7L when it determines that the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is within a predetermined range (a predetermined range obtained by adding a predetermined margin to the limit value of the folding amount of the lower screen 6L), similar to the operation described in Figure 6 above.

[0149] As a result, even when the upper and lower shielding materials are opened and closed individually, the opening and closing positions of each shielding material can be controlled simultaneously, improving usability, while preventing excessive load from being placed on the upper screen 6U and lower screen 6L or the lifting cords 3U, 3L, allowing the operation of each shielding material to be controlled with high quality.

[0150] (Subflow B') FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing a sub-flow B' of an example of control by the control device 10 in one embodiment when an operation signal that enables the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material to be opened and closed individually is received.

[0151] First, as shown in FIG. 14, the control device 10 determines that the lower shielding material is descending and that an operation signal for descending the upper shielding material has been received. When the control device 10 transitions to subflow B', it starts controlling the descent of the intermediate rail 7U at the lower end of the upper shielding material (step S51B).

[0152] Here, the control device 10 performs lowering control of the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L while monitoring whether the interval between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is within a predetermined range (a predetermined range obtained by adding a predetermined margin to the limit value of the folding amount of the lower screen 6L) based on the count of the output values ​​of the encoders 8U and 8L (step S52B). Note that the moving speeds of the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L may be the same or different.

[0153] While the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is not within the specified range (step S52B: N), the control device 10 also monitors, based on the count of the output values ​​of the encoders 8U, 8L, whether the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L have reached their set lower limit positions (step S53B).

[0154] While the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is not within a predetermined range and the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L are not at the set lower limit position (step S53B: N), the control device 10 continues the lowering control of the intermediate rail 7U (when the bottom rail 7L is not at the set lower limit position, the control device 10 continues the lowering control) (step S54B), and when the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L are at the set lower limit position while the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is not within a predetermined range (step S53B: Y), the control device 10 stops the lowering operation of the upper shielding material (i.e., the intermediate rail 7U) and the lower shielding material (i.e., the bottom rail 7L) (step S55B) and ends this control. Note that when the control device 10 receives an operation signal including a stop command during this lowering control, the control device 10 performs control to stop the operation of all shielding materials (upper shielding material and lower shielding material).

[0155] On the other hand, during the control of the lowering of the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L, when it is determined that the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is within a predetermined range (step S52B: Y), the control device 10 stops the lowering operation of the intermediate rail 7U while continuing the control of the lowering of the bottom rail 7L to the set lower limit position (step S56B), and ends this control. Note that when the control device 10 receives an operation signal including a stop command during this lowering control, it performs control to stop the operation of all shielding materials (upper shielding materials and lower shielding materials).

[0156] Therefore, when the control device 10 is simultaneously controlling the lowering of the upper shielding material while the lower shielding material is being lowered, it automatically stops the lowering operation of the intermediate rail 7U when it determines that the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is within a predetermined range (a predetermined range obtained by adding a predetermined margin to the limit value of the folding amount of the lower screen 6L), similar to the operation described in Figure 8 above.

[0157] As a result, even when the upper and lower shielding materials are opened and closed individually, the opening and closing positions of each shielding material can be controlled simultaneously, improving usability, while preventing excessive load from being placed on the upper screen 6U and lower screen 6L or the lifting cords 3U, 3L, allowing the operation of each shielding material to be controlled with high quality.

[0158] (Subflow C') FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing a subflow C' of an example of control by the control device 10 in one embodiment when an operation signal that enables the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material to be opened and closed individually is received.

[0159] As shown in FIG. 15, when the control device 10 determines that the upper shielding material is descending and an operation signal to raise the lower shielding material has been received, or that the lower shielding material is ascending and an operation signal to lower the upper shielding material has been received, and transitions to subflow C', it starts controlling the raising and lowering of the shielding material corresponding to the operation signal, either the intermediate rail 7U at the bottom end of the upper shielding material or the bottom rail 7L at the bottom end of the lower shielding material (step S61B).

[0160] Here, the control device 10 monitors whether the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is within a predetermined range (a predetermined range obtained by adding a predetermined margin to the limit value of the folding amount of the lower screen 6L) based on the count of the output values ​​of the encoders 8U and 8L, and while the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is not within the predetermined range (step S62B:N), it controls the lowering of the intermediate rail 7U and the raising of the bottom rail 7L (step S64B).The moving speeds of the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L may be the same or different.

[0161] On the other hand, during the lowering control of the intermediate rail 7U and the raising control of the bottom rail 7L, when it is determined that the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is within a predetermined range (step S62B: Y), the control device 10 stops the operation of the upper shielding material (i.e., the intermediate rail 7U) and the lower shielding material (i.e., the bottom rail 7L) (step S65B) and ends this control. Note that when the control device 10 receives an operation signal including a stop command during this raising and lowering control, it performs control to stop the operation of all shielding materials (upper shielding materials and lower shielding materials).

[0162] This allows simultaneous control of the open / closed positions of each shielding material, improving usability, while preventing excessive load from being placed on the upper screen 6U and lower screen 6L, or the lifting cords 3U, 3L, allowing the operation of each shielding material to be controlled with high quality.

[0163] Therefore, even when the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material are opened and closed individually, as shown in Figures 12 to 15 as representative examples, the electric shading device of this embodiment, which is equipped with a control device 10 having means for simultaneously controlling the lifting and lowering of both the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material, and has multiple stages of shielding materials lined up in the vertical direction, allows simultaneous control of the opening and closing of each shielding material, and can control the operation of each shielding material with high quality, thereby improving usability and quality.

[0164] (Modification) In addition, in the above-described embodiment, an example was described in which the control device 10 determines whether the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is within a predetermined range based on the count value of the encoder pulses. However, a proximity detection sensor 80 that detects whether the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is close to each other may be provided on the intermediate rail 7U and / or the bottom rail 7L, and the control device 10 may determine whether the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is within a predetermined range based on the sensor signal of the proximity detection sensor 80.

[0165] For example, Fig. 16 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a control device 10 in a modified electric shading device according to the present invention. Also, Figs. 17(a) and 17(b) are schematic side views showing the schematic configuration and operation of a modified electric shading device according to the present invention. In Figs. 16 and 17, the same reference numerals are used for components similar to those in the above-mentioned embodiment.

[0166] First, the control device 10 in the modified electric shading device shown in Figure 16 differs from the one shown in Figure 2 in that it is provided with a sensor signal receiving unit 110 that receives a sensor signal from a proximity detection sensor 80 that detects whether the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is close or not, and in that the microcomputer unit 101 has the function of determining whether the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is within a predetermined range based on the sensor signal of the proximity detection sensor 80; other functional units are similar.

[0167] The proximity detection sensor 80 can be preferably configured as a battery-powered sensor having a short-range wireless communication function with the sensor signal receiving unit 110, but may also be connected to the sensor signal receiving unit 110 by wire to be battery-less.

[0168] Specific examples of the proximity sensor 80 that detects whether the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L is close to each other are shown in FIGS. 17(a) and (b).

[0169] First, the proximity detection sensor 80 illustrated in Fig. 17(a) may be provided on the bottom surface of the intermediate rail 7U and may be a push-type switch or the like that detects the presence or absence of contact with the top surface of the lower screen 6L as a lower shielding material, or a magnetic or electrostatic displacement sensor that detects the presence or absence of contact with the top surface of the lower screen 6L or the condition of contact by a magnetic or electrostatic change in a metal plate arranged on the top surface of the lower screen 6L, or an optical displacement sensor that detects the presence or absence of contact with the top surface of the lower screen 6L or the condition of contact by a change in the amount of light on a reflective sheet arranged on the top surface of the lower screen 6L. Such a proximity detection sensor 80 may detect that the distance between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L falls within a predetermined range as shown in the right diagram of Fig. 17(a) during the upward movement of the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L as shown in the left diagram of Fig. 17(a).

[0170] 17(b) is provided on the bottom rail 7L, and may be a load sensor that detects a load change that increases rapidly when the gap between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L narrows due to a change in the load caused by a change in the folding condition of the upper screen 6U as an upper shielding material (a change in the weight of the upper screen 6U), or an acceleration sensor that detects a change in vibration or inclination of the bottom rail 7L caused by a change in the folding condition. Such a proximity sensor 80 may detect that the gap between the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L falls within a predetermined range, as shown in the right diagram of FIG. 17(b), during the upward movement of the intermediate rail 7U and the bottom rail 7L, as shown in the left diagram of FIG. 17(b).

[0171] Although the present invention has been described above by way of examples of specific embodiments, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments and can be modified in various ways without departing from the technical concept thereof.

[0172] For example, the electric shading device is not limited to the electric pleated screen described above, but can also be applied to other types of electric shading devices, such as a honeycomb screen, which is a type of electric pleated screen, horizontal blinds, pull-up curtains, roller screens, etc., or a hybrid configuration in which these different types of shading materials are combined and arranged in a vertical line (for example, the upper shading material is a pull-up curtain type shading material and the lower shading material is a pleated screen type shading material).

[0173] Another typical example of an electric shading device having shielding members connected vertically is shown in Fig. 18(a) to (c), respectively. Fig. 18(a) to (c) are schematic side views showing an example in which a control device according to the present invention is applied to an electric shading device according to another typical embodiment of the present invention. Note that the same reference numbers are used for components similar to those in the above-mentioned embodiment.

[0174] First, the motorized shading device shown in Fig. 18(a) is an motorized honeycomb screen that can raise and lower the upper shielding material (upper screen 6U with a honeycomb shape in a side view having an intermediate rail 7U at the lower end) suspended from the head box 1 and the lower shielding material (lower screen 6L with a honeycomb shape in a side view having a bottom rail 7L at the lower end) suspended from the intermediate rail 7U. The winding drums 51U and 51L shown in Fig. 18(a) lift and lower the upper screen 6U and the lower screen 6L by winding or unwinding the upper ends of the lifting and lowering cords 3U and 3L, as in the embodiment shown in Fig. 1. Note that insertion holes are provided in the joint pieces 60' forming each honeycomb shape in the upper screen 6U, and the lifting and lowering cords 3U and 3L are inserted into the insertion holes, and the lower ends of the lifting and lowering cords 3U are attached to the intermediate rail 7U. The lifting cord 3L passes through the intermediate rail 7U, is inserted into a through hole provided in the joint piece 60' forming each honeycomb shape in the lower screen 6L, and is attached to the bottom rail 7L. Encoders 8U, 8L and motors 9U, 9L are disposed in the head box 1 (not shown). A DC power source 11 (not shown) and a control device 10 similar to that shown in FIG. 2 or FIG. 16 are disposed in the head box 1. Therefore, for the electric honeycomb screen shown in FIG. 18(a), the control device 10 allows simultaneous control of the opening and closing of each shielding material, and can control the operation of each shielding material with high quality, thereby improving usability and quality.

[0175] The motorized shading device shown in Fig. 18(b) is an electric horizontal blind that can raise and lower an upper shading material (a group of fabric slats 6U' made of light-transmitting fabric, for example, with an intermediate rail 7U at the lower end) supported by a ladder cord 12U suspended from a head box 1, and a lower shading material (a group of aluminum slats 6L' made of light-blocking fabric, for example, with a bottom rail 7L at the lower end) supported by a ladder cord 12L suspended from the head box 1 and penetrating the intermediate rail 7U. The winding drums 51U and 51L shown in Fig. 18(b) raise and lower the group of fabric slats 6U' and the group of aluminum slats 6L' by winding or unwinding the upper ends of the lifting and lowering cords 3U and 3L, as in the embodiment shown in Fig. 1. An insertion hole is provided in the approximate center of the front-rear direction of the group of fabric slats 6U', and the lifting and lowering cords 3U and 3L are inserted through the insertion hole, and the lower end of the lifting and lowering cord 3U is attached to the intermediate rail 7U. The lifting cord 3L passes through the intermediate rail 7U, is inserted into an insertion hole provided in the aluminum slat group 6L' at the approximately center in the front-rear direction, and is attached to the bottom rail 7L. The fabric slat group 6U' and the aluminum slat group 6L' can be rotated by the relative movement of the warps of the ladder cords 12U and 12L, but the mechanism is not described here. The head box 1 is provided with encoders 8U and 8L and motors 9U and 9L (not shown). The head box 1 is provided with a DC power source 11 (not shown) and a control device 10 similar to that shown in FIG. 2 or FIG. 16. Therefore, the control device 10 of the electric horizontal blind shown in FIG. 18(b) allows simultaneous control of the opening and closing of each shielding material, and can control the operation of each shielding material with high quality, thereby improving usability or quality.

[0176] Also, as shown in FIG. 18(c), the upper shielding material is a fabric slat group 6U' made of light-transmitting fabric with an intermediate rail 7U at the lower end, and the lower shielding material is a lower screen 6L with a bottom rail 7L at the lower end and a zigzag shape (or honeycomb shape) in side view. The control device 10 similar to that shown in FIG. 2 or FIG. 16 may be disposed in the hybrid electric shielding device. As another hybrid electric shielding device, not shown, for example, the upper shielding material is a tucked-up curtain type shielding material, and the lower shielding material is a pleated screen type shielding material, may be disposed in the hybrid electric shielding device. For these hybrid electric shielding devices, the control device 10 allows simultaneous control of the opening and closing of each shielding material, and can control the operation of each shielding material with high quality, thereby improving usability or quality.

[0177] (Further Modifications of the Operation Device) The infrared or wireless remote control 25D shown in Figure 11 above, when multiple electric shading devices having upper and lower shielding materials are installed as operation targets, is explained as having groupings of up to four groups by device ID, and has group designation buttons (circular buttons marked "1" to "4" in the figure) 234 for designating a group and operating multiple electric shading devices having the same device ID simultaneously, an all-at-once designation button ("ALL" button in the figure) 235 for operating all groups simultaneously, and a set of open button 231, close button 232, and stop button 233, and can send an up command by pressing open button 231 when performing an up operation, a down command by pressing close button 232 when performing a down operation, and a stop command by pressing stop button 233 when stopping the up / down operation.

[0178] On the other hand, as an operating device for multiple electric shading devices having upper and lower shielding materials, in addition to the configuration examples described above, it can be configured to select or switch between multiple electric shading devices with a single button to open and close the upper and lower shielding materials of the specified electric shading device, as in Variation 1 shown in Figure 19 or Variation 2 shown in Figure 20.

[0179] Fig. 19 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a typical infrared or wireless remote control 25E as an operation device of the first modified example that transmits an operation signal to individually operate the opening and closing of the upper and lower shielding materials in a plurality of motorized shading devices according to an embodiment of the present invention. Note that in Fig. 19, the layout of each operation button is the same as that shown in Fig. 11, and therefore the same reference numbers are used.

[0180] First, infrared or wireless remote control 25E configured as an operating device for variant example 1 shown in Figure 19 is configured to include a group designation button (round buttons labeled "1" to "4" as shown) 234 configured to designate upper and lower shielding materials in a plurality of electric shading devices with a single button, and operation buttons having only one set of buttons, including an open button 231 for performing an upward operation, a close button 232 for performing a downward operation, and a stop button 233 for performing an operation to stop the upward and downward movement, for one of the upper and lower shielding materials designated by group designation button 234.

[0181] That is, in the infrared or wireless remote control 25E configured as the operation device of the modified example 1 shown in Fig. 19, its group designation buttons (circular buttons "1" to "4" shown in the figure) 234 are assigned to "operate the upper shielding material of the electric shading device A", "operate the lower shielding material of the electric shading device A", "operate the upper shielding material of the electric shading device B", and "operate the lower shielding material of the electric shading device B" in two electric shading devices (electric shading devices A and B), respectively, so that the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material in a plurality of electric shading devices can be designated with a single button. Also, the collective designation button ("ALL" button shown in the figure) 235 in this case functions as a button for simultaneously operating all the shielding materials (upper shielding materials and lower shielding materials) of both electric shading devices A and B at the same time. Even in this case, a device ID corresponding to the group designation button 234 and the collective designation button 255 in this variant example 1 can be set for each of the two electric shading devices (electric shading devices A and B) installed as the target of operation using a dip switch or the like.

[0182] Furthermore, with the infrared or wireless remote control 25E configured as an operating device for variant example 1 shown in FIG. 19, the operator can designate the shading material (upper shading material or lower shading material) that he or she wishes to operate in the electric shading device by selectively pressing group designation buttons (circular buttons marked "1" to "4" in the figure) 234, and then when performing an upward operation, an upward command can be sent by pressing the open button 231, when performing a downward operation, a downward command can be sent by pressing the close button 232, and when performing an operation to stop the upward / downward movement, a stop command can be sent by pressing the stop button 233.

[0183] Therefore, the infrared or wireless remote control 25E configured as an operating device for variant example 1 shown in Figure 19 allows the operator to easily grasp the shading material (upper shading material or lower shading material) that he or she wishes to operate in the shading device, making it easy to use.

[0184] On the other hand, as an operating device for variant example 2, an infrared or wireless remote control 25F as shown in Figure 20 described below can be configured to emit an operating signal that enables the upper and lower shielding materials in multiple electric shading devices of one embodiment to be individually opened and closed.

[0185] Figure 20 is a diagram showing the schematic configuration of a typical infrared or wireless remote control 25F as an operating device of variant example 2 that emits operating signals to individually operate the opening and closing of upper and lower shielding materials in multiple electric shading devices of one embodiment of the present invention.

[0186] The infrared or wireless remote control 25F configured as an operating device of the modified example 2 shown in Figure 20 is configured to include a switching selection button 236 configured to switch between and select multiple electric shading devices with a single button, a first operating button having only one set of an open button 231U for performing an upward operation for the upper shielding material, a close button 232U for performing a downward operation for the upper shielding material, and a stop button 233U for performing a stop operation for the upward and downward movement of the upper shielding material, for the electric shading device specified by the switching selection button 236, and a second operating button having only one set of an open button 231L for performing an upward operation for the lower shielding material, a close button 232L for performing a downward operation for the lower shielding material, and a stop button 233L for performing a stop operation for the upward and downward movement of the lower shielding material, for the electric shading device specified by the switching selection button 236.

[0187] In other words, the infrared or wireless remote control 25F configured as an operating device of variant example 2 shown in Figure 20 allows the operator to switch between the electric shading devices to be operated each time the operator presses the switch selection button 236 for the electric shading device he or she wishes to operate, and for the electric shading device specified by this switch selection, a set of open button 231U, close button 232U, and stop button 233U is used to open and close the upper shading material, and a set of open button 231L, close button 232L, and stop button 233L is used to open and close the lower shading material, making it possible to send operation signals for up commands, down commands, and stop commands in a more intuitively understandable manner.

[0188] Therefore, the infrared or wireless remote control 25F configured as an operating device of variant example 2 shown in Figure 20 allows the operator to easily grasp which shading material (upper shading material or lower shading material) he or she wants to operate in the shading device he or she wants to operate, making it easy to use.

[0189] In this way, an operating device for multiple electric shading devices having upper and lower shielding materials can be configured to select or switch between multiple electric shading devices with a single button, and to open and close the upper and lower shielding materials of the specified electric shading device, as shown in variant example 1 in Figure 19 or variant example 2 in Figure 20.

[0190] Therefore, the motorized shading device according to the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment examples, but is limited only by the scope of the claims. [Industrial Applicability]

[0191] According to the present invention, as an electric shading device having multiple stages of shading material arranged in the vertical direction, it is possible to simultaneously control the opening and closing of each shading material, thereby enabling high-quality control of the operation of each shading material, thereby improving usability and quality, making it useful for applications as an electric shading device. [Explanation of symbols]

[0192] 1 Head Box 2U,2L drive shaft Lifting cord for 3U top screen 3L Lifting cord for lower screen 5 Supporting member 6U top shielding material 6L Lower shielding material 7U Mid Rail 7L Bottom Rail 8U,8L Encoder 9U,9L motor 10 Control device 11 DC power supply 20U,20L Drive shaft coupler 25 Operating device 25A Operation device (communication terminal) 25B Operation device (zone switch) 25C Operating device (dial switch) 25D, 25E, 25F Operation device (infrared or wireless switch) 80 Proximity Sensor 101 Microcomputer Division 102 Storage section 103 Communication Interface (IF) Section 107U, 107L Motor drive unit 108U, 108L Abnormality detection unit 109U, 109L Pulse detection unit

Claims

1. An electric shielding device that electrically raises and lowers each of a plurality of shielding materials, each of which includes an upper shielding material suspended from a head box and a lower shielding material suspended from an intermediate rail provided at the lower end of the upper shielding material and having a bottom rail provided at its lower end, a control device that receives an operation signal and controls the elevation of each of the plurality of shielding materials; The control device includes: a means for automatically stopping the lifting operation of the bottom rail when the distance between the intermediate rail and the bottom rail falls within a predetermined range during the lifting control of the lower shielding material; a means for automatically stopping the lowering operation of the intermediate rail when the distance between the intermediate rail and the bottom rail falls within the predetermined range during the lowering control of the upper shielding material; When the opening / closing positions of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material are allowed to be specified by an operation signal and both the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material are raised simultaneously, the device has a means for automatically stopping the raising operation of the bottom rail when the distance between the intermediate rail and the bottom rail falls within a predetermined range during the raising control, and for continuing the raising operation of the intermediate rail until the designated opening / closing position is reached when an opening / closing position is specified, or until the designated upper limit position is reached when no opening / closing position is specified, unless an operation signal including a stop command is received; and When both the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material are controlled to be lowered simultaneously, the electric shielding device is characterized in that it has a means for automatically stopping the lowering movement of the intermediate rail when the distance between the intermediate rail and the bottom rail falls within the specified range during the lowering control, and for continuing the lowering movement of the bottom rail until the specified opening / closing position is reached when an opening / closing position is specified, or to the set lower limit position when an opening / closing position is not specified, unless an operation signal including a stop command is received.

2. The electric shading device of claim 1, characterized in that, when the control device simultaneously controls the lowering of the upper shielding material and the raising of the lower shielding material, the control device further comprises a means for automatically stopping the operation of the intermediate rail and the bottom rail when the distance between the intermediate rail and the bottom rail falls within the specified range during the control.

3. The electric shading device described in claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the control device has a means for controlling the operation of all shielding materials to stop when an operation signal including a stop command is received during control of the lifting and lowering of either or both of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material.

4. The motorized shading device according to claim 1 , wherein the predetermined range is set as a predetermined range obtained by adding a predetermined margin to a limit value of the folding amount of the lower shielding material.

5. The control device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that it has a means for receiving and processing an operation signal from an operating device that enables simultaneous specification of the opening and closing positions of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material, and simultaneously controlling the lifting and lowering of both the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material.

6. The control device is characterized in that it has a means for receiving and processing, in a chronological order, operation signals from an operation device that enables operation of the lifting and lowering movements of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material without individually specifying the opening and closing positions of the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material, and for simultaneously controlling the lifting and lowering of both the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material.

7. An encoder is provided which indicates the amount of elevation of each of the intermediate rail and the bottom rail, The electric shielding device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the control device has a function of determining whether the distance between the intermediate rail and the bottom rail is within the specified range based on a count value of encoder pulses from the encoder.

8. a proximity detection sensor capable of detecting a distance between the intermediate rail and the bottom rail; The electric shielding device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the control device has a function of determining whether the distance between the intermediate rail and the bottom rail is within the specified range based on a sensor signal from the proximity detection sensor.

9. An operating device that enables the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material in the electric shielding device according to any one of claims 1 to 8 to be individually operated, A group designation button configured to group a plurality of electric shielding devices each having the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material into a plurality of groups according to device IDs that identify each of the electric shielding devices, and to designate the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material of the electric shielding devices having the same device ID with a single button; an operation button having only one set of an open button for performing an upward operation, a close button for performing a downward operation, and a stop button for performing an operation to stop the upward / downward movement of one of the upper and lower shielding materials designated by the group designation button; An operating device comprising:

10. An operating device that enables the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material in the electric shielding device according to any one of claims 1 to 8 to be individually operated, A switching selection button configured to switch and select a plurality of electric shielding devices each having the upper shielding material and the lower shielding material with a single button; a first operation button having only one set of an open button for performing an upward operation for the upper shielding material, a close button for performing a downward operation for the upper shielding material, and a stop button for performing an operation to stop the upward and downward movement of the upper shielding material for the electric shielding device designated by the switching selection button; a second operation button having only one set of an open button for performing an upward operation for the lower shielding material, a close button for performing a downward operation for the lower shielding material, and a stop button for performing an operation to stop the upward and downward operation for the lower shielding material, for the electric shielding device designated by the switching selection button; An operating device comprising:

Images