Power reduction amount estimation system and power reduction amount verification method

Abstract

To provide a power reduction amount estimation system that estimates power amount of an air-conditioning facility reduced by washing an outdoor unit of the air-conditioning facility.SOLUTION: A power reduction amount estimation system calculates an estimation amount of a consumption power amount of an air-conditioning facility which is reduced by washing the electrically-operated air-conditioning facility that is installed in a building and is configured by connecting an indoor unit and an outdoor unit with refrigerant piping. The power reduction amount estimation system is equipped with: a data obtaining portion that obtains air-conditioning facility data including data relating to the performance and a use state of the air-conditioning facility, data before washing including data relating to a dirt degree of the outdoor unit of the air-conditioning facility before washing the air-conditioning facility, and data after washing including data relating to an estimated dirt degree of the outdoor unit of the air-conditioning facility after washing the air-conditioning facility; a computing portion that obtains a power reduction amount estimation value of power consumption amount of the air-conditioning facility after the washing with respect to the power consumption amount of the air-conditioning facility before the washing on the basis of the air-conditioning facility data, the data before washing, and the estimation data after washing; and an output portion that outputs the power reduction estimation value.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a power reduction amount estimation system and a power reduction amount verification method for electrically operated air conditioning equipment configured by indoor units and outdoor units connected by refrigerant piping. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a method for evaluating the amount of power consumption reduction in an air conditioning system that uses both a heat exchange ventilator and an air conditioner. The amount of power consumption reduction is evaluated by comparing the amount of power consumption of the air conditioning system when the heat exchange ventilator ensures the same amount of ventilation air as normal ventilation air volume without heat exchange with the amount of power consumption of the air conditioning system when the heat exchange ventilator is operated normally.

[0003] Patent Document 2 discloses a method for supporting the evaluation of the amount of power reduction when conserving power by extending the stop time in adjusting the temperature of a cooling target by repeatedly turning on and off air conditioning equipment, etc. In an air conditioning equipment that repeatedly turns on and off between a lower limit temperature setting and an upper limit temperature setting, data that allows the amount of power reduction to be evaluated is obtained by using a virtual time from when the air conditioning equipment is turned on until the temperature changes from the upper limit temperature setting to the lower limit temperature setting. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2009-300058 A [Patent Document 2] JP 2005-344970 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] There is a strong demand to reduce the power consumption of air conditioning equipment in order to curb soaring electricity prices and to reduce CO2 emissions as a measure against global warming. The applicant of the present application operates a cleaning business that cleans and coats the outdoor units of electrically operated air conditioning equipment (air conditioners), thereby restoring the performance of the air conditioning equipment and contributing to a significant reduction in the power consumption of the air conditioning equipment after the cleaning process compared to before the cleaning process. The inventor of the present application has now developed a method for estimating and predicting the amount of power reduction of the air conditioning equipment by cleaning the outdoor units of the air conditioning equipment (including coating and painting) before the cleaning process is performed.

[0006] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a power reduction estimation system that estimates the amount of power reduction of an air conditioning facility by cleaning (including coating and painting) an outdoor unit of the air conditioning facility.

[0007] It is a further object of the present invention to provide a power reduction amount verification method for verifying the power reduction amount estimated by the power reduction amount estimation system. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the power reduction estimation system of the present invention is an air conditioning equipment installed in a building, and the system calculates an estimate of the amount of power consumption reduced by cleaning the air conditioning equipment, which is configured by an indoor unit and an outdoor unit connected by a refrigerant piping, and is electrically operated. The system is characterized in that it comprises a data acquisition unit that acquires air conditioning equipment data including data on the capacity and usage state of the air conditioning equipment, pre-construction data including data on the degree of dirtiness of the outdoor unit of the air conditioning equipment before the cleaning of the air conditioning equipment, and post-construction estimated data including data on the estimated degree of dirtiness of the outdoor unit of the air conditioning equipment after the cleaning of the air conditioning equipment, based on the air conditioning equipment data, the pre-construction data, and the post-construction estimated data, and calculates a power reduction estimate of the amount of power consumption of the air conditioning equipment after the cleaning of the air conditioning equipment relative to the amount of power consumption of the air conditioning equipment before the cleaning of the air conditioning equipment, and an output unit that outputs the power reduction estimate.

[0009] Furthermore, the power reduction verification method of the present invention includes the steps of: determining the power reduction estimated value using the power reduction estimation system; attaching a power meter to the air conditioning equipment; measuring the power consumption of the air conditioning equipment before cleaning using the power meter for a predetermined period before cleaning the air conditioning equipment; cleaning the air conditioning equipment; measuring the power consumption of the air conditioning equipment after cleaning using the power meter for a predetermined period after cleaning the air conditioning equipment; and comparing the difference between the power consumption of the air conditioning equipment before cleaning and the power consumption of the air conditioning equipment after cleaning with the power reduction estimated value. Effect of the Invention

[0010] According to the present invention, the amount of power reduction of an air conditioning system before and after cleaning of the outdoor unit of the air conditioning system can be estimated and predicted with high accuracy by calculation before the cleaning work is performed. Also, by comparing the actual power consumption before and after cleaning work with the estimated amount of power reduction obtained by calculation, the accuracy of the estimated amount of power reduction can be verified. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of a power reduction amount estimation system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] 2 is a diagram showing an example of data in a database 11a stored in a data storage unit 11 of the server device 10. FIG. [Diagram 3] FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a registration and output process in the power reduction amount estimation system in the embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] 13 is a diagram showing an example of a screen display including a power reduction amount displayed on the terminal device 20. FIG. [Diagram 5] 13 is a diagram showing an example of a screen display including a power reduction amount displayed on the terminal device 20. FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing a verification process for verifying a power reduction amount obtained by calculation. [Figure 7] This is a photograph showing a watt-hour meter attached to a distribution board connected to the outdoor unit of an air conditioning system. [Figure 8] 6 is a photograph showing an example of the state of a fin before and after cleaning. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0012] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. However, such an embodiment does not limit the technical scope of the present invention. An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to specific drawings.

[0013] The air conditioning equipment in this embodiment is an electrically operated heat pump type air conditioner (air conditioner) configured by connecting an indoor unit and an outdoor unit with refrigerant piping.

[0014] Electrically operated air conditioning equipment installed in various buildings such as homes, offices, stores, and factories gradually deteriorates in performance due to aging and the accumulation of dirt, and the power consumption increases accordingly, leading to higher electricity bills. In particular, relatively large buildings such as factories, stores, offices, and schools are equipped with many air conditioning units according to their size, and the total power consumption of the air conditioning units is large, so even a small deterioration in performance tends to result in a large increase in power consumption.

[0015] In order to reduce or suppress the power consumption of an air conditioning system, it is generally known that cleaning or washing the air conditioning system to restore the performance of the air conditioning system to a certain degree is effective, but in an embodiment of the present invention, a power reduction amount estimation system is provided that calculates an estimated value of the power consumption that can be reduced by washing the air conditioning system, in terms of how much power consumption can be suppressed or reduced by washing the air conditioning system. The power reduction amount estimation system in the present invention is constructed and used, for example, by a contractor who performs the cleaning work of the air conditioning system.

[0016] 1 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a power reduction estimation system according to an embodiment of the present invention. The power reduction estimation system 1 is a computer system including a server device 10 on a communication network and a terminal device 20 communicatively connected to the server device 10 via the communication network. The communication network is a commercial communication line such as the Internet or a mobile phone communication network.

[0017] The server device 10 is a general-purpose computer device equipped with a memory device that stores computer programs and various data for executing the calculation processing in this embodiment, a calculation unit (CPU) that executes the computer programs, etc., and the terminal device 20 is a computer device equipped with a display screen (display), such as a personal computer, mobile phone, smartphone, tablet terminal, etc. that is connected to a display.

[0018] The server device 10 includes a data storage unit 11 that acquires and stores air conditioning equipment data, which is data on the capacity and usage status of the air conditioning equipment to be cleaned, pre-cleaning data, which is data on the degree of dirt on the outdoor unit of the air conditioning equipment before the cleaning of the air conditioning equipment, and post-cleaning estimated data, which is an estimated value of the degree of dirt on the outdoor unit of the air conditioning equipment after the cleaning of the air conditioning equipment, a calculation unit 12 that calculates an estimated value of the reduction in the amount of power consumption of the air conditioning equipment after the cleaning work relative to the amount of power consumption of the air conditioning equipment before the cleaning work based on the air conditioning equipment data, the pre-cleaning data, and the post-cleaning estimated data stored in the data storage unit 11, and a control unit 14 that executes various controls including a process of transmitting the estimated value of the amount of power reduction calculated by the calculation unit 12 to a terminal device 20 connected via a communication network and displaying and outputting the estimated value. The calculation unit 12 and the control unit 14 are realized by a calculation processing unit (CPU) that executes a computer program, etc. The data storage unit 11 is a storage medium (memory) that stores the above-mentioned data, and stores a database 11a.

[0019] The above air conditioning equipment data, pre-construction data and post-construction estimated data are obtained in advance by the construction contractor through on-site inspections or the like before the cleaning construction is carried out. The above data may be obtained, for example, by directly inputting the data into the server device 10, or by reading the above data input into an external storage medium, or by transmitting the above data input into the terminal device 20 to the server device.

[0020] The terminal device 20 includes an output unit (display) 21 that displays various information such as the air conditioning equipment data, the pre-construction data, and the post-construction estimated data received from the server device 10, and a control unit 22 that performs transmission and reception processing with the server device 10. The control unit 22 is realized by a computing device (CPU) that executes a computer program, etc.

[0021] The power reduction estimation system is not limited to a configuration including a server device and a terminal device connected via the above-mentioned communication network, but may be, for example, a stand-alone computer device such as a personal computer. When the power reduction estimation system is a stand-alone computer device, the computer device is a device that combines the data storage unit 11 and the calculation unit 12 of the above-mentioned server device 10 and the output unit 21 of the terminal device 20 in a single device, eliminating the need to send and receive data via a communication network and executing all processing by itself.

[0022] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of data in the database 11a stored in the data storage unit 11 of the server device 10. A construction ID is assigned to identify a cleaning work project that the contractor plans to carry out, and the model and number of air conditioning equipment to be cleaned are registered for each construction ID. In the example of FIG. 2, in order to succinctly explain the technical idea of ​​the present invention, the acquisition of the amount of power reduction when cleaning one air conditioning equipment is described as the simplest example. Generally, there will be multiple air conditioning equipment to be cleaned, and there will be multiple air conditioning equipment of different models and types. In that case, the number of units is registered for each model and type, and the desired value is added up.

[0023] In the example of Fig. 2, the air conditioning equipment data, which is data on the capacity and usage status of the air conditioning equipment, includes the capacity, power consumption, annual operation time, equipment load, Design power amount The following items are registered. Capacity (kW) and power consumption (kW) are the design values ​​of the cooling capacity, heating capacity and power consumption of the target air conditioning equipment, so-called catalog values. If the capacity values ​​differ for cooling and heating, they are registered separately.

[0024] The annual operating hours are the operating hours (the time the operation switch is turned on) of the air conditioning equipment in one year, and are obtained by the contractor through interviews with the client of the cleaning work before the work is carried out. Alternatively, data on past power consumption is obtained from the client. If cooling and heating are separated, the operating hours for each are obtained and added together.

[0025] The equipment load is the ratio of the power consumption that would be consumed if the air conditioning equipment were operating at the power consumption value specified in the catalog during operation hours to the power consumption that would be consumed if the equipment were operating at the power consumption value specified in the catalog during operation hours. Air conditioning equipment does not operate at the power consumption value specified in the catalog during all operation hours, and once the set temperature is reached, it operates at a capacity lower than full power in order to maintain that temperature, so the actual power consumption can be estimated by setting the value (ratio) of the equipment load. The equipment load can be roughly determined by the contractor based on the weather conditions of the area where the air conditioning equipment to be installed is installed (the temperature of the area, such as whether it is a cold area or a warm area) and the environment of the installation location (for example, whether the sunlight is strong or weak, whether there is a lot of dust), etc., and is set to a value in the range of about 30% to 60% (0.3 to 0.6), for example.

[0026] The design power consumption is the power consumption based on the catalog value without taking into account the actual dirt of the air conditioning equipment, and is calculated by the following formula (1). Design power consumption = power consumption x annual operating hours x equipment load (1) It is calculated by:

[0027] The items of dirt coefficient, power increase, and pre-cleaning power amount are registered as pre-cleaning data, which is data on the power consumption of the air conditioning equipment before cleaning work. The dirt coefficient is a coefficient according to the degree of dirt adhering to the heat exchange fins of the outdoor unit of the air conditioning equipment, and is set to a value in the range of, for example, 0.1 to 0.5 based on the contractor's visual inspection or measurement of the thickness of dirt adhering to the fins of the outdoor unit. The value of the dirt coefficient is determined and set based on the contractor's past work performance and evaluation / verification.

[0028] The increase in the amount of electricity consumed is due to the decrease in the efficiency of the air conditioning equipment caused by the dirt on the air conditioning equipment, and is calculated by the following formula (2). Increase in power consumption = metering Strength x dirt coefficient (2) It is calculated by:

[0029] The power consumption before cleaning is the power consumption of the air conditioning equipment before cleaning is performed, and is calculated using the following formula (3). Energy consumption before construction = Design energy consumption + Increase in energy consumption (3) It is calculated by:

[0030] As post-cleaning estimated data, which is data related to the estimated power consumption of the air conditioning equipment after cleaning, the items of dirt removal rate, post-cleaning power consumption, and power reduction amount are registered. The values ​​of these items are all estimated values.

[0031] The dirt removal rate is an estimate of the extent to which dirt adhering to air conditioning equipment will be removed by cleaning work, and is determined by the contractor based on the level and type of dirt adhering to the equipment and the extent to which dirt removal is predicted to be possible by cleaning work. For example, a value is set in the range of approximately 100% (0% remaining dirt) to 30% (70% remaining dirt).

[0032] The post-cleaning energy consumption is an estimated value of the energy consumption of the air conditioning equipment after cleaning is performed. Taking into account the set dirt removal rate, it is calculated using the following formula (4). Energy consumption after installation = Design energy consumption + Increase in energy consumption (1 - Dirt removal rate) (4) In the above formula (4), (1-dirt removal rate) is a predetermined coefficient according to the degree of dirt on the outdoor unit after cleaning of the air conditioning equipment.

[0033] The amount of power reduction is an estimated value calculated by the difference between the amount of power consumption before and after the construction. The difference between the above formulas (3) and (4) is calculated as the following formula (5): Power reduction = Increase in power consumption x dirt removal rate (5) It is calculated by:

[0034] The electricity rate corresponding to the amount of electricity can be calculated by multiplying the calculated amount of electricity by the unit price of electricity.

[0035] Furthermore, by multiplying the calculated amount of power by a carbon dioxide emission coefficient, the amount of carbon dioxide emission corresponding to the amount of power can be obtained.

[0036] 3 is a diagram showing a flowchart of the registration and output process in the power reduction amount estimation system in the embodiment of the present invention. This process is executed by the control unit 14 of the server device 10 and the control unit 22 of the terminal device 20.

[0037] The construction company's worker operates the terminal device 20 to input the air conditioning equipment data shown in Figure 2, such as the air conditioning equipment capacity, power consumption, annual operating time, and equipment load data, the dirt coefficient data, which is pre-construction data, and the dirt removal rate data, which is post-construction estimated data (S100), and transmits this to the server device 10 (S102).

[0038] When the server device 10 receives data from the terminal device 20 (S200), it executes the calculations of the above equations (1) to (5) to obtain the amount of power reduction (S202), and transmits data of the calculation result including the obtained amount of power reduction to the terminal device 20 (S204).

[0039] When the terminal device 20 receives the calculation result data (S104), it outputs the calculation result in a predetermined format (S106). The output method may be a screen display of the terminal device 20 or a paper output from a printer connected to the terminal device 20.

[0040] When the power reduction estimation system is a single computer device, all processes except for data transmission and reception between the server device 10 and the terminal device 20 are executed by the single computer device.

[0041] 4 and 5 are diagrams showing examples of screen displays including the amount of power reduction displayed on the terminal device 20. In the example screen shown in FIG. 4, the data input for calculation, the design power amount, the power amount before construction, the power amount after construction, the amount of power reduction (the amount of power before construction-the amount of power after construction), and the power charge and carbon dioxide emission corresponding to each amount of power are displayed and output in a table format as a trial balance. FIG. 5 shows the amount of power reduction in the form of a pie chart. As shown in FIG. 4 and FIG. 5, the amount of power reduction output and the reduction range of the corresponding electricity charge and carbon dioxide emission may be displayed as numbers rounded to a certain extent by rounding to the nearest whole number within a range that does not cause an error, rather than in units of 1 yen, in order to prioritize ease of understanding. Preferably, as shown in FIG. 4 and FIG. 5, the reduction rate of the amount of power consumption (power charge, carbon dioxide emission) may be displayed and output.

[0042] 6 is a diagram showing a flowchart of a verification process for verifying the amount of power reduction calculated by calculation. Since the amount of power reduction calculated above is an estimated value, the amount of power consumption of the air conditioning equipment that has been cleaned is measured for a predetermined period before and after the actual cleaning work, and the amount of power reduction is verified by comparing with the actual measured value.

[0043] Before the cleaning work is carried out, a watt-hour meter that measures the amount of power is attached to the power wiring part of the outdoor unit of the air conditioning equipment to be cleaned or to the distribution board (S300), the amount of power consumed is measured for a predetermined period (for example, about one week) before the cleaning work is carried out (S302), and the measurement data and the weather conditions during the measurement period (temperature, humidity, precipitation, wind speed, wind direction, etc.) are recorded (S304). Note that Fig. 7 is a photograph showing the state in which the watt-hour meter is attached to the distribution board connected to the outdoor unit of the air conditioning equipment.

[0044] After a predetermined period of time has passed, cleaning of the air conditioning equipment is carried out (S306). The cleaning is carried out according to the following procedure. This cleaning can reduce the amount of power consumed by the air conditioning equipment by about 10% on average. (1) Fin brushing (removing dirt from the fins of the outdoor unit using a brush) (2) Water cleaning (removing dirt from the fins using water) (3) Chemical cleaning (removing dirt from the fins using chemicals such as fin cleaners) (4) Rinse (removing residual chemicals (cleaning agents) with water) (5) Rinse process (neutralizing the fins with a neutralizing agent) (6) Corrosion coating treatment (coating the fins with a corrosion prevention coating agent and then painting the fins with a heat-insulating paint) Figure 8 is a photograph showing an example of the state of the fin before and after cleaning. The black dirt that was attached to the fin before cleaning, shown in Figure 8(a), has been completely removed by cleaning, as shown in Figure 8(b).

[0045] Even after the cleaning is completed, the power consumption is measured for a predetermined period of time after the cleaning (e.g., about one week) using the watt-hour meter that was left attached in S300 (or, if the watt-hour meter was removed during the cleaning, it is reinstalled after the cleaning in the same position as before the cleaning) (S308), and further, the measurement data and the weather conditions (temperature, humidity, etc.) during the measurement period are recorded (S310), just as before the cleaning.

[0046] From the measurement data before and after the cleaning work, the actual change in the power consumption of the air conditioning equipment before and after the work is found, and compared with the estimated power reduction amount (converted into a value for a specified period) found by the above calculation (S312). The measurement data used for the actual change is selected from the measurement data on days when the weather conditions, such as temperature, were almost the same before and after the work, and the actual change is found. Since the power consumption of air conditioning equipment varies greatly depending on the weather conditions, when finding the actual change in the measurement data for a relatively short period of time, it is possible to accurately compare it with the estimated power reduction amount and verify its accuracy by using the measurement data from days when the weather conditions before and after the work were practically the same (for example, the temperature difference is within 1°C).

[0047] It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and it goes without saying that the present invention includes design changes that do not deviate from the gist of the present invention, including various modifications and alterations that would occur to a person with ordinary knowledge in the field of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0048] 1: power reduction amount estimation system, 10: server device, 11: data storage unit, 11a: database, 12: calculation unit, 14: (server side) control unit, 20: terminal device, 21: output unit, 22: (terminal side) control unit

Claims

1. In a power reduction estimation system, the system calculates an estimated value of the power consumption of an air conditioning system installed in a building, the air conditioning system being electrically operated and configured with an indoor unit and an outdoor unit connected by a refrigerant pipe, by cleaning the air conditioning system, a data acquisition unit that acquires air conditioning equipment data including data on the capacity and usage state of the air conditioning equipment, pre-construction data including data on the degree of dirt on an outdoor unit of the air conditioning equipment before cleaning construction of the air conditioning equipment, and post-construction estimated data including data on the estimated degree of dirt on an outdoor unit of the air conditioning equipment after cleaning construction of the air conditioning equipment; A calculation unit that calculates an estimated power reduction amount of the power consumption of the air conditioning equipment after cleaning is performed relative to the power consumption of the air conditioning equipment before cleaning is performed based on the air conditioning equipment data, the pre-cleaning data, and the post-cleaning estimated data; an output unit that outputs the power reduction amount estimated value.

2. 2. The power reduction amount estimation system according to claim 1, wherein the degree of dirtiness of the outdoor unit of the air conditioning equipment is the degree of dirtiness of heat exchange fins of the outdoor unit.

3. The power reduction estimation system according to claim 1, characterized in that the calculation unit calculates the power consumption of the air conditioning equipment before cleaning and an estimated value of the power consumption of the air conditioning equipment after cleaning based on the air conditioning equipment data, the pre-construction data, and the post-construction estimated data, and calculates the power reduction estimate from the difference between these.

4. The power consumption of the air conditioning equipment before cleaning is calculated by adding a design power consumption, which is the power consumption of the air conditioning equipment when it is assumed that the outdoor unit of the air conditioning equipment is not dirty, to a power increase value obtained by multiplying the design power consumption by a predetermined coefficient corresponding to the degree of dirtiness of the outdoor unit before cleaning of the air conditioning equipment.

5. The power reduction estimation system according to claim 4, characterized in that the amount of power consumed by the air conditioning equipment after cleaning is calculated by multiplying the increase in power by a predetermined coefficient corresponding to the degree of dirtiness of the outdoor unit after cleaning of the air conditioning equipment, and adding the result to the design power amount.

6. 2. The power reduction amount estimation system according to claim 1, wherein the calculation unit calculates values ​​of an electricity charge and a carbon dioxide emission amount corresponding to the power reduction amount estimated value.

7. A step of obtaining the power reduction amount estimation value by a power reduction amount estimation system according to any one of claims 1 to 6; Attaching a watt-hour meter to the air conditioning equipment; A step of measuring the amount of power consumed by the air conditioning equipment before cleaning is performed using the watt-hour meter for a predetermined period of time before cleaning is performed on the air conditioning equipment; A step of cleaning and installing the air conditioning equipment; measuring the amount of power consumed by the air conditioning equipment after cleaning is performed using the watt-hour meter for a predetermined period of time after the air conditioning equipment is cleaned; A power reduction verification method comprising: comparing a difference between the amount of power consumption before and after cleaning of the air conditioning equipment with the estimated amount of power reduction.

8. The power reduction verification method according to claim 7, characterized in that the power consumption before and after the cleaning of the air conditioning equipment are values ​​obtained on days with substantially identical weather conditions.

Images