Remote device management system

Abstract

Provided is a remote facility management system that can remotely determine the cause of a trip of a circuit breaker and acquire information for constructing countermeasures according to the cause of the trip. 【Solution means】When the circuit breaker 25 provided in the circuit breaker unit 2B of the electro-optical display facility 2 trips, the cause of the trip is determined, and information on the cause of the trip is provided to the management device 4 via the IP network N. As a result, the system administrator can recognize the cause of the trip, and by taking appropriate measures according to the cause of the trip, it is possible to effectively suppress the repeated trips of the circuit breaker 25. In addition, since it is no longer necessary for the facility maintenance worker to go to the site to determine the cause of the trip, the burden on the facility maintenance worker can be reduced and the time required to determine the cause of the trip after the trip occurs can be shortened.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a remote equipment management system. In particular, the present invention relates to measures for improving the maintainability of a remote equipment management system.

Background Art

[0002] As disclosed in Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2, as road equipment installed on expressways and the like, there are various types of equipment such as electro-optical display equipment that provides road information and other information to vehicle drivers, and surveillance camera equipment that captures road conditions.

[0003] Generally, since a relatively large current of, for example, 1 A or more flows through the power supply circuit used in road equipment, as a circuit breaker applied to the power supply circuit, a wiring breaker (such as an MCCB or an ELCB) or an electromagnetic contactor (MG) is used. And, for example, when an overcurrent or the like occurs in the power supply circuit, the circuit breaker trips (power trip) to protect each device in the electrical system from accident currents such as overcurrents and leakage currents.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Patent Document 2

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] By the way, various situations can be cited as the occurrence situation of the trip of the circuit breaker. For example, a trip due to an overcurrent or a leakage current (hereinafter, sometimes referred to as a trip due to an internal factor of road equipment), and a trip due to a malfunction affected by an induced lightning strike caused by a lightning strike (hereinafter, sometimes referred to as a trip due to an external factor of road equipment) can be cited.

[0006] So far, as a system for managing road facilities (road facility management system), the cause of a trip of a circuit breaker has not been determined. When a trip occurs in the circuit breaker, the only measures taken are for the facility maintenance worker to go to the site (the location where the road facility is installed) to perform an ON operation (reset operation) of the circuit breaker or to perform an automatic reset. For this reason, it has been difficult to take appropriate measures according to the cause of the trip, and when this measure is inappropriate (when a measure for a trip caused by the external factor is taken even though the cause of the trip is the internal factor, or when a measure for a trip caused by the internal factor is taken even though the cause of the trip is the external factor), there has been a possibility that the trip of the circuit breaker will be repeated.

[0007] The inventors of the present invention focused on the fact that in order to avoid a situation where the trip of the circuit breaker is repeated, it is necessary to determine the cause of the trip and make it easier to establish appropriate measures according to the cause of the trip. In addition, going to the site to determine the cause of the trip places a heavy burden on the facility maintenance worker and requires a long time from the occurrence of the trip until the cause of the trip can be determined. Therefore, the inventors of the present invention also considered making it possible to remotely determine the cause of the trip of the circuit breaker (able to be determined without the facility maintenance worker going to the site), and arrived at the present invention. Note that such problems occur not only in the management system of road facilities but also in various remote facility management systems such as the management system of railway facilities.

[0008] The present invention has been made in view of such points, and an object thereof is to provide a remote facility management system that can remotely determine the cause of a trip of a circuit breaker and acquire information for constructing measures according to the cause of the trip.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0009] The solution means of the present invention for achieving the above object is directed to a remote facility management system for remotely managing a facility in which a circuit breaker device is interposed in a power line of an electrical system. And this remote facility management system includes a circuit breaker unit having the circuit breaker device, a management device operable by a system administrator, an IP network that enables communication at least between the circuit breaker unit and the management device, and a trip cause determination unit that determines the cause of the trip when the circuit breaker device trips, and the information on the determined cause of the trip is provided to the management device via the IP network. Moreover, in the facility, a communication device for communicating with the management device via the IP network is disposed on the secondary side of the circuit breaker in the power line connected to the circuit breaker, and when a reset request signal for resetting the circuit breaker is transmitted from the management device toward the circuit breaker unit, information indicating that communication via the IP network is temporarily interrupted is provided from the management device to the system administrator. It is characterized by this.

[0010] Due to this specific matter, when the circuit breaker device trips, the cause of the trip is determined by the trip cause determination unit. And the information on the cause of this trip is provided to the management device via the IP network. Thereby, the system administrator can recognize the cause of the trip, and by taking appropriate measures according to the cause of the trip (without taking unnecessary measures), it is possible to effectively suppress the repeated tripping of the circuit breaker device. Also, since the information on the cause of the trip is provided to the management device, there is no need for the facility maintenance worker to go to the site to determine the cause of the trip. For this reason, it is possible to reduce the burden on the facility maintenance worker and shorten the time required to determine the cause of the trip from when the trip occurs. From the above, it becomes possible to take appropriate and planned measures in a short period of time after the circuit breaker device trips. Also, in the configuration where the communication device is disposed on the secondary side (power supply secondary side) of the circuit breaker, power is not supplied to the communication device during the period when the circuit breaker is turned off during reset, resulting in inability to communicate with the management device. For this reason, even if an attempt is made to update information (display screen, etc.) of the management device during this period, it cannot be updated, and there is concern that the system administrator operating the management device may feel discomfort. In this solution, in such a situation, information indicating that communication via the IP network is temporarily interrupted is provided from the management device to the system administrator, thus avoiding the system administrator from feeling the discomfort. Also, as another solution, in the configuration where a communication device for communicating with the management device via the IP network is disposed on the primary side of the circuit breaker in the power line connected to the circuit breaker, when an ON request signal for turning on the circuit breaker is transmitted from the management device toward the circuit breaker unit in a situation where the circuit breaker is off, without turning on the circuit breaker, cautionary information indicating that the circuit breaker will be turned on is provided from the management device to the system administrator. For example, when an equipment maintenance worker is working near the equipment for inspection or maintenance of the equipment in a situation where the circuit breaker is OFF, if an ON request signal is transmitted from the management device to the circuit breaker unit and the circuit breaker is immediately turned ON, the equipment maintenance worker will be inadvertently supplied with power to the equipment. Therefore, in this solution, when an ON request signal is transmitted to the circuit breaker unit, by providing alert information to the system administrator without turning on the circuit breaker, an alert can be issued to confirm whether there is an equipment maintenance worker working near the equipment. Thereby, the safety when the circuit breaker is turned ON can be enhanced. Furthermore, as another solution, the equipment includes a communication device for communicating with the management device via the IP network. When the communication device is disposed on the primary side of the circuit breaker in the power line connected to the circuit breaker and when it is disposed on the secondary side, the information provided from the management device to the system administrator when a request signal for switching the ON / OFF of the circuit breaker is transmitted from the management device to the circuit breaker unit is configured to be different. In a configuration where the communication device is disposed on the secondary side of the circuit breaker, when the circuit breaker is OFF, power is not supplied to the communication device, so communication between the circuit breaker unit and the management device becomes impossible. That is, when the circuit breaker is OFF, remote operation for turning on the circuit breaker is impossible. On the other hand, in a configuration where the communication device is disposed on the primary side of the circuit breaker, even when the circuit breaker is OFF, power is supplied to the communication device, so communication between the circuit breaker unit and the management device is possible. That is, even when the circuit breaker is OFF, remote operation for turning on the circuit breaker is possible. Depending on such differences in the system configuration, by varying the information provided from the management device to the system administrator when a request signal for switching the ON / OFF of the circuit breaker is transmitted, it is possible to optimize the information provision according to the system configuration.

[0011] Further, when the circuit breaker trips, the trip cause determination unit determines whether the trip is due to an internal factor of the facility or an external factor of the facility according to the voltage value of the power line at the time of the occurrence of the trip.

[0012] Regarding the occurrence status of the trip of the circuit breaker, there are trips due to internal factors of the facility such as overcurrent and leakage current, and trips due to external factors of the facility such as malfunction due to the influence of induced lightning caused by lightning strikes. The countermeasures (measures for suppressing the trip) for each are different. In this solution, by determining whether the cause of the trip of the circuit breaker is an internal factor of the facility or an external factor of the facility, it is possible to effectively suppress the repeated trips of the circuit breaker while preventing unnecessary countermeasures from being taken.

[0013] Further, the circuit breaker unit stores time information and is configured to obtain time information from the management device via the IP network in order to correct the time information.

[0014] When the circuit breaker unit is in an OFF state or becomes OFF when the circuit breaker is reset (power reset), the time information may be distorted when there is a situation where power is not supplied (power outage). In this solution, in order to eliminate this distortion of the time information, the circuit breaker unit can obtain time information from the management device via the IP network and store this time information, thereby enabling the time information to be corrected. As a result, it is not necessary for the facility maintenance worker to go to the site to correct the time information of the circuit breaker unit, and it becomes possible to store accurate time information in the circuit breaker unit.

[0021] Specifically, when the communication device is disposed on the secondary side of the circuit breaker in the power supply line connected to the circuit breaker, when an OFF request signal for turning off the circuit breaker is transmitted from the management device toward the circuit breaker unit in a situation where the circuit breaker is ON, caution information indicating that it is necessary to turn on the circuit breaker at the installation site of the facility is provided from the management device to the system administrator.

[0022] As described above, in the configuration where the communication device is disposed on the secondary side of the circuit breaker, when the circuit breaker is OFF, power is not supplied to the communication device, so communication between the circuit breaker unit and the management device becomes impossible. That is, since a remote ON operation cannot be performed, it is necessary for the facility maintenance operator to go to the site and turn on the circuit breaker. Therefore, in this solution, when an OFF request signal is transmitted toward the circuit breaker unit, by providing the system administrator with caution information indicating that it is necessary to perform an ON operation on the circuit breaker at the installation site of the facility, the system administrator is made to recognize that this ON operation is necessary. Thereby, the intention of the system administrator can be confirmed when turning off the circuit breaker.

[0023] Further, the circuit breaker unit is configured to generate state change information each time the state of the circuit breaker changes, accumulate it together with the generation time in the storage means, and provide the state change information to the management device via the IP network in response to a request from the management device.

[0024] Thereby, the system administrator can easily confirm the history of changes in the state of the circuit breaker (for example, a history associating event information on state changes and time information). When some problem occurs in the remote facility management system, the cause of the problem can be easily identified in a short time by checking the history of changes in the state of this circuit breaker.

[0025] In addition, the management device is provided with a display screen, and is configured such that a screen for performing system initial settings and a screen for normal operation can be switched by switching the URL of the connection destination.

[0026] According to this, the authority to enable system initial settings can be given only to a specific system administrator (a system administrator to whom information on the URL for displaying the screen for performing system initial settings is given), and other system administrators (system administrators to whom only the authority for normal operation is given) can be prevented from making human errors such as inadvertently changing the system initial settings, and stable operation of the remote equipment management system becomes possible.

Effects of the Invention

[0027] In the present invention, when the circuit breaker trips, the cause of the trip is discriminated, and information on the cause of the trip is provided to the management device via the IP network. Thereby, the system administrator can recognize the cause of the trip, and by taking appropriate measures according to the cause of the trip, it is possible to effectively suppress the repetition of the trip of the circuit breaker. In addition, since it is not necessary for the equipment maintenance worker to go to the site to discriminate the cause of the trip, it is possible to reduce the burden on the equipment maintenance worker and shorten the time required to discriminate the cause of the trip from the occurrence of the trip.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0028]

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DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0029] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. This embodiment will be described by taking as an example the case where the remote facility management system according to the present invention is applied to the electric sign facilities on an expressway. For this reason, in this embodiment, this system will be referred to as a road facility management system. Note that the road facilities to which the road facility management system can be applied include not only electric sign facilities but also various facilities such as surveillance camera facilities and weather observation facilities.

[0030] -Schematic Configuration of Road Facility Management System- FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an outline of a road facility management system 1 according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the road facility management system 1 according to the present embodiment includes a plurality of electric bulletin boards 2, 2,..., a server 3 installed in a control room, and a management device 4 installed in an office, which are connected to be able to transmit and receive signals to and from each other via an IP network N. The server 3 and the management device 4 are configured by general personal computers or the like including a communication unit, a CPU, a memory, an input / output interface, and the like. Further, the server 3 and the management device 4 may be other types of terminal devices such as tablets, smartphones, and dedicated devices. In FIG. 1, only the internal configuration of one of the plurality of electric bulletin boards 2, 2,... is shown, but the other electric bulletin boards 2, 2,... have the same configuration. Further, as a connection form between the plurality of electric bulletin boards 2, 2,..., the server 3, the management device 4, and the IP network N, a wired connection or a wireless connection may be used.

[0031] (Electric bulletin board device) As described above, since each of the electric bulletin board devices 2, 2,... has the same configuration, one of the electric bulletin board devices 2 will be described here as a representative.

[0032] The electric bulletin board device 2 is for providing road information to drivers of vehicles traveling on a highway by means of an electric bulletin using LEDs or the like, and has a configuration including a control unit 2A, a circuit breaker unit 2B, and a layer 2 switch (L2SW: communication device) 2C.

[0033] Further, the electric bulletin board device 2 according to the present embodiment includes a circuit breaker device 25 that turns OFF (trips) when an overcurrent, a leakage current, or the like occurs, and an L2SW 2C is disposed on the secondary side of the circuit breaker device 25 in a power line (power line of an electrical system) L connected to the circuit breaker device 25. That is, when the circuit of the circuit breaker unit 2B is in a closed state and power is supplied to the L2SW 2C, communication between the server 3, the management device 4, and the electric bulletin board device 2 via the IP network N is enabled.

[0034] <Control Unit> The control unit 2A includes a CPU (control device) 21, an LED display unit (device controlled by the CPU 21) 22, a sensor group 23, etc.

[0035] Figure 2 is a functional block diagram of CPUs 21 and 27 provided in the control unit 2A and the circuit breaker unit 2B, respectively, and the CPU 4A provided in the management device 4. As shown in this Figure 2, the CPU 21 of the control unit 2A includes a communication unit 21a, an LED control unit 21b, and a response information generation unit 21c as functional units realized by a computer program.

[0036] The communication unit 21a transmits and receives signals to and from the server 3 in the control room via the IP network N. Signals transmitted from the server 3 to the control unit 2A include an electric bulletin board control signal, a monitoring information request signal, etc. On the other hand, signals transmitted from the control unit 2A to the server 3 include a response signal corresponding to the monitoring information request signal. Specifically, a monitoring information request signal is transmitted from the server 3 to the control unit 2A at a predetermined time interval or at the timing when a predetermined time is reached, and the control unit 2A receives this monitoring information request signal by the communication unit 21a. When the CPU 21 is operating normally, normal response information is generated by the response information generation unit 21c, and this normal response information is returned to the server 3 as a response signal by the communication unit 21a. On the other hand, when the CPU 21 is not operating normally (for example, when a freeze or thermal runaway occurs), a response signal corresponding to this monitoring information request signal cannot be returned to the server 3, and the server 3 is in a state where it does not receive a response signal corresponding to this monitoring information request signal. As a result, in the control room, it can be recognized that the CPU 21 is not operating normally.

[0037] The LED control unit 21b transmits information to be displayed on the LED display unit 22 towards the LED display unit 22. This information is road information provided to the drivers of vehicles traveling on the highway. For example, when each of the electronic display devices 2, 2,... is equipped with a sensor group 23, the information acquired by each sensor group 23 (such as traffic jam information and traffic accident information) is aggregated in the server 3, and an electronic display control signal including information suitable for being displayed on the LED display units 22 of each of the electronic display devices 2, 2,... is transmitted from the server 3 to the control unit 2A of the electronic display device 2, and this information will be displayed on the LED display unit 22. Note that the LED display unit 22 includes a lighting circuit and an LED module (not shown), and a large number of sets of lighting circuits and LED modules are connected to each other. Each LED module includes an LED array in which a large number of LED elements are arranged, and a plurality of LED modules form a display screen. Each lighting circuit is a power supply for LEDs, which converts an input voltage such as a commercial power supply into a direct current (a current whose current waveform and current value are controlled) under the control of the LED control unit 21b, and supplies the direct current to the LED module.

[0038] The sensor group 23 is not particularly limited, and examples include sensors that detect the vehicle speeds of each vehicle traveling on the highway and Doppler sensors that detect the presence or absence of traffic jams on the highway. These sensors do not necessarily have to be provided in the electronic display device 2.

[0039] <Circuit breaker unit> As shown in FIG. 1, the circuit breaker unit 2B includes a circuit breaker 25, a switching operation means 26, a CPU (control device) 27, a storage device (storage means) 28, etc. These circuit breaker 25, switching operation means 26, CPU 27, and storage device 28 are housed inside a single housing and are so-called packaged. As this housing, a metal or resin one is adopted. Also, the circuit breaker unit 2B and the control unit 2A may be housed inside a single housing and packaged.

[0040] The circuit breaker 25 is provided on the power line L of the electric bulletin board facility 2 and turns the electric circuit including this power line L on and off. When the equipment of the electric bulletin board facility 2 is overloaded and a current exceeding the rated current flows, when a short circuit occurs in the electric circuit, or further, when affected by induced lightning caused by a lightning strike, this circuit breaker 25 turns off (trips) the electric circuit. In the present embodiment, an MCCB which is a wiring breaker is adopted as this circuit breaker 25. However, it is not limited to this, and an ELCB which is a wiring breaker or an MG which is an electromagnetic contactor may be adopted.

[0041] The switching operation means 26 is an operating part for switching the on / off of the circuit breaker 25. Specifically, the circuit breaker 25 is provided with a switching lever (not shown) for switching on / off. This switching lever becomes OFF (a state in which the electric circuit is opened) when, for example, it is pushed down, and becomes ON (a state in which the electric circuit is closed) when, for example, it is pushed up. The switching operation means 26 is a mechanical means for performing the pushing-down operation and the pushing-up operation of this switching lever, and has a configuration including an operating part for applying a pressing force (pressing force for pushing down and pushing up) to the switching lever and an electric motor for generating a driving force for raising and lowering the operating part, similar to a known auto reset breaker. This electric motor operates according to a switching operation command signal output from the CPU 27.

[0042] In response to a request signal from the management device 4, the CPU 27 outputs an OFF command signal or a reset command signal as a switching operation command signal to the switching operation means 26. When the OFF command signal is output to the switching operation means 26, the circuit breaker 25 in the ON state is turned OFF by the operation of the switching operation means 26. When the reset command signal is output to the switching operation means 26, after the circuit breaker 25 is once turned OFF by the operation of the switching operation means 26, the circuit breaker 25 is turned ON by the operation of the switching operation means 26 after a predetermined time has elapsed. For example, a delay process is provided in the operation control program of the electric motor of the switching operation means 26. When resetting the electric bulletin board facility 2, the timing for turning ON the circuit breaker 25 after once turning it OFF needs to be set so as to discharge the charge stored in a built-in capacitor (not shown) of a constant voltage power supply for DC output built in the electric bulletin board facility 2 and eliminate the output of the constant voltage power supply. For this reason, in the present embodiment, a delay time is provided from when the circuit breaker 25 is turned OFF until it is turned ON until this discharge is completed. This delay time is preset by experiments or simulations.

[0043] As an example of a situation where the reset of the circuit breaker device 25 is performed, there is a case where a freeze or thermal runaway occurs in the CPU 21 of the control unit 2A. That is, when a freeze or thermal runaway occurs in the CPU 21, the server 3 cannot receive a response signal corresponding to the monitoring information request signal. Therefore, in the control room, it can be recognized that a freeze or thermal runaway has occurred in the CPU 21 with a specific IP address. By contacting the office administrator (system administrator) about this, the system administrator can send a reset request signal to the circuit breaker unit 2B provided in the same electric bulletin board device 2 as the CPU (the CPU in which a freeze or thermal runaway has occurred) 21 by operating the management device 4. For example, in the Web browser image on the display screen of the management device 4 shown in FIG. 3, by selecting (clicking) the power reset button and operating the execute button, a reset request signal is sent from the management device 4 to the circuit breaker unit 2B via the IP network N (the display on the display screen of the management device 4 when this reset request signal is sent will be described later).

[0044] Since the CPU 27 of the circuit breaker unit 2B is stopped (or in a standby state) during the normal operation of the CPU 21, there is almost no heat generation until the CPU 21 becomes unable to operate normally, and it can operate normally even in a high-temperature environment. Therefore, the CPU 27 that has received the reset request signal can output a reset command signal to the switching operation means 26. In the switching operation means 26, switching operation is performed according to this reset command signal, and the OFF / ON operation of the circuit breaker device 25 is performed. That is, after once turning off the circuit breaker device 25, reset is performed by turning on the circuit breaker device 25 after a predetermined time has elapsed. Whether the reset is properly performed is detected, for example, by providing a limit switch in the circuit breaker device 25, and the information is sent to the management device 4 so that the system administrator in the office can confirm it.

[0045] As shown in FIG. 2, the CPU 27 includes a communication unit 27a, a state detection unit 27b, and an image information generation unit 27g as functional units realized by a computer program. Note that the CPU 27 also includes a plurality of other functional units, which will be described later.

[0046] The communication unit 27a transmits and receives signals to and from the management device 4 of the office via the IP network N. Examples of signals transmitted from the management device 4 to the circuit breaker unit 2B include a status information request signal, an OFF request signal, an ON request signal, a reset request signal, and the like. On the other hand, examples of signals transmitted from the circuit breaker unit 2B to the management device 4 include an image information signal corresponding to the status information request signal.

[0047] Specifically, when a system administrator belonging to an office wants to monitor the state of the circuit breaker 25 of a specific electric signboard facility 2, a status information request signal designating the IP address of the CPU 27 in the electric signboard facility 2 to which the circuit breaker 25 belongs is transmitted by operating the management device 4. That is, in the management device 4, the installation locations (address and latitude / longitude information) of each electric signboard facility 2, 2,... are registered as individual information of each electric signboard facility 2, 2,... respectively, and the system administrator transmits a status information request signal designating the IP address of the electric signboard facility 2 to be monitored by operating the management device 4. This status information request signal is transmitted toward the CPU 27 with the IP address included in the signal. Then, in the CPU 27 that has received this status information request signal (received by the communication unit 27a), the status of the circuit breaker 25 (information such as whether the circuit breaker 25 is in the ON state or the OFF state) is detected by the status detection unit 27b, and the information on the detected status of the circuit breaker 25 is output to the image information generation unit 27g. The image information generation unit 27g processes the image information including the information on the status of the circuit breaker 25 into information that can be displayed by a web browser and outputs this information to the communication unit 27a. Then, the communication unit 27a transmits this information toward the management device 4, and an image including the information on the status of the circuit breaker 25 is displayed on the display screen of the management device 4 by the web browser. Generally publicly available web browsers are used here.

[0048] Here, the display screen of the web browser on the display screen of the management device 4 will be described. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of an image in the remote operation mode on the web browser on the display screen of the management device 4 when the electric signboard facility 2 is in a normal state. As shown in this FIG. 3, the web browser image is divided into a display selection area 41, an installation location information area 42, a breaker status information area 43, a breaker setting change area 44, and a remote breaker operation area 45.

[0049] The selection area 41 is an area for switching the display screen of the web browser, and includes a remote operation part that is pressed (clicked) when displaying a screen for remotely operating the circuit breaker 25, a log information part that is pressed when displaying log information on the state change of the circuit breaker 25 on the screen, a time / name setting part that is pressed when displaying a screen for performing time setting and name setting, and a network setting part that is pressed when displaying a screen for performing initial settings of the system (for example, IP address setting).

[0050] In the installation position information area 42, information on the installation position of the target electric bulletin board facility 2 and the current time is displayed.

[0051] In the breaker state information area 43, there are displays indicating whether the current state of the circuit breaker 25 is in the ON state or the OFF state, whether the state of the terminal (circuit breaker unit 2B) is in the normal state or the abnormal state, the number of times of automatic reset of the circuit breaker 25, the number of trips of the circuit breaker 25 (the number of trips due to internal factors such as overcurrent and leakage current), and the number of lightning surge trips (the number of trips due to external factors such as the influence of induced lightning caused by lightning strikes). Also, in this breaker state information area 43, there are other displays indicating the automatic reset time, the reset trial time, and the number of reset trials.

[0052] In the breaker setting change area 44, there are displays of the reset time when the circuit breaker 25 automatically resets, the number of trials of the automatic reset, and the current set value.

[0053] On the remote breaker operation area 45, a selection screen for selecting the operation to be requested for the circuit breaker unit 2B is displayed. As this selection screen, there are a selection section for requesting the ON / OFF switching (reset) of the circuit breaker device 25, a selection section for forcibly requesting power OFF when the power is ON, a selection section for clearing the integrated values of the number of automatic reset times, the number of trip times, and the number of lightning surge trip times. After selecting any of the selection sections and operating the execute button, the selected request information (request signal) is transmitted to the circuit breaker unit 2B. For example, when the selection section for requesting reset is selected and the execute button is operated, a reset request signal is transmitted from the management device 4 via the IP network N to the circuit breaker unit 2B of the IP address included in the signal. Then, the CPU 27 of the circuit breaker unit 2B that has received this reset request signal outputs a reset command signal to the switching operation means 26, and the reset operation of the circuit breaker device 25 described above is performed. Also, when the selection section for requesting power OFF is selected and the execute button is operated, an OFF request signal is transmitted from the management device 4 via the IP network N to the circuit breaker unit 2B of the IP address included in the signal. Then, the CPU 27 of the circuit breaker unit 2B that has received this OFF request signal outputs an OFF command signal to the switching operation means 26, and the OFF operation of the circuit breaker device 25 described above is performed.

[0054] -Features of the Road Facility Management System- Next, the features of the road facility management system 1 according to the present embodiment will be described. The road facility management system 1 according to the present embodiment has various functions. They will be described in order below.

[0055] (Determination of Trip Cause) First, as one of the features of the road facility management system 1 according to the present embodiment, there is a function for determining the trip cause. It will be specifically described below.

[0056] As shown in FIG. 2, the CPU 27 of the circuit breaker unit 2B includes a trip cause determination unit 27c as a functional unit realized by a computer program. This trip cause determination unit 27c is a functional unit that determines the cause of the trip when the circuit breaker 25 trips.

[0057] Specifically, when detecting the trip of the circuit breaker 25, the voltage on the power line L at the time of the trip is monitored (for example, monitored by the input of the detection signal of a voltage sensor (not shown) to the CPU 27). If the voltage value at the time of the trip exceeds a predetermined threshold, it is determined that the trip occurred due to the influence of induced lightning caused by a lightning strike. If the voltage value at the time of the trip is less than the predetermined threshold, it is determined that the trip occurred due to overcurrent or leakage current. This threshold is determined in advance by experiments or simulations. The information on the cause of the trip thus determined is stored in the storage device 28 in association with the time information at the time of the trip. At the same time, image information reflecting the occurrence of the trip is created by the image information generation unit 27g, and the image information is transmitted to the management device 4 via the communication unit 27a and the IP network N immediately or in response to a request from the management device 4.

[0058] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of an image in the remote operation mode on the web browser on the display screen of the management device 4 when the circuit breaker 25 trips. In the state shown in FIG. 4, in the breaker state information area 43, it is respectively displayed that the circuit breaker 25 has tripped and is in the OFF state, the lighting display facility 2 is in an abnormal operation state, and the trip integration count of the circuit breaker 25 is 1 time. For example, when a trip occurs in the circuit breaker 25 and an image in the remote operation mode is displayed on the web browser on the display screen of the management device 4, the image display as shown in FIG. 4 is updated substantially simultaneously with the occurrence of this trip.

[0059] In this way, the information on the cause of the trip determined by the trip cause determination unit 27c is provided to the management device 4 via the IP network N and is displayed on the display screen of the management device 4 by a web browser. Therefore, the system administrator can recognize the cause of the trip and effectively suppress the repeated trips of the circuit breaker 25 by taking appropriate measures according to the cause of the trip (without taking unnecessary measures). That is, when the cause of the trip is an internal factor of the electric bulletin board facility 2 such as overcurrent or leakage current, there is a possibility that the electric circuit in the electric bulletin board facility 2 is in an overloaded state due to facility expansion or the like. Therefore, it is effective to take measures such as reducing the electrical load or reconstructing the electrical circuit to eliminate the overloaded state. On the other hand, when the cause of the trip is an external factor of the electric bulletin board facility 2 such as a malfunction caused by the influence of induced lightning due to lightning strike, it is effective to take measures such as installing an SPD (Surge Protective Device) or a lightning protection transformer. In this way, appropriate measures can be taken according to the cause of the trip.

[0060] Also, since the information on the cause of the trip is provided to the management device 4 in this way, there is no need for the facility maintenance worker to go to the site to determine the cause of the trip. Therefore, the burden on the facility maintenance worker can be reduced, and the time required to determine the cause of the trip after the trip occurs can be shortened.

[0061] From the above, it becomes possible to take appropriate and planned measures within a short period after a trip occurs in the circuit breaker 25.

[0062] (Correction of time information) In addition, the CPU 27 of the circuit breaker unit 2B includes a time information acquisition unit 27d as a functional unit realized by a computer program. The circuit breaker unit 2B stores time information. However, when the circuit breaker 25 is in the OFF state or when it becomes OFF during the reset of the circuit breaker 25, a situation where power is not supplied (power outage) occurs, and thus the time information may become inaccurate. In order to eliminate this inaccuracy of the time information, the time information acquisition unit 27d acquires time information from the management device 4 via the IP network N and stores this time information in the storage device 28 of the circuit breaker unit 2B, so that the time information can be corrected.

[0063] The timing for acquiring time information from the management device 4 is not particularly limited. For example, it is possible to transmit time information to the circuit breaker unit 2B by an operation from a Web browser on the display screen of the management device 4 and have the time information acquisition unit 27d acquire the time information. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of an image in the time / name setting mode on the Web browser on the display screen of the management device 4 in this case. In this time / name setting mode, in addition to the aforementioned display selection area 41 and installation position information area 42, a name setting area 46 and a time setting area 47 are partitioned as the Web browser image. Text information related to the installation location of the electronic display device 2 and the like is displayed in the name setting area 46, and the input of this text information is possible. Time information (time information acquired from a time server not shown) in the management device 4 is displayed in the time setting area 47, and a setting button is provided. By pressing the setting button, time information is transmitted to the circuit breaker unit 2B and the time information acquisition unit 27d acquires the time information. As a result, the circuit breaker unit 2B can store accurate time information. Note that the time information acquired by the management device 4 is not limited to that from the time server, and various types of time information such as manually inputted ones or those set in a personal computer can be adopted.

[0064] The time information displayed in the time setting area 47 can be arbitrarily changed. Also, the timing at which the time information is transmitted to the circuit breaker unit 2B is not limited to the timing when the setting button is pressed, and it may be every predetermined time, or when some information is transmitted and received between the management device 4 and the circuit breaker unit 2B, the time information may be automatically transmitted together with that information.

[0065] As described above, since the circuit breaker unit 2B is configured to acquire time information from the management device 4 via the IP network N, it is not necessary for the facility maintenance operator to go to the site to correct the time information of the circuit breaker unit 2B, and it becomes possible to store accurate time information in the circuit breaker unit 2B.

[0066] (Information provision at the time of reset of the circuit breaker) Further, the CPU 4A of the management device 4 includes a reset standby information providing unit 4a as a functional unit realized by a computer program. In the configuration where the L2SW 2C is disposed on the secondary side of the circuit breaker 25 as in the present embodiment, since power is not supplied to the L2SW 2C during the period when it is turned off at the time of reset of the circuit breaker 25, communication with the management device 4 becomes impossible. For this reason, even if an attempt is made to update the display screen of the management device 4 during this period, it cannot be updated, and there is a concern that the system administrator operating the management device 4 may feel uncomfortable.

[0067] In order not to cause such a sense of discomfort, when a reset request for the circuit breaker 25 occurs, the reset standby information providing unit 4a is configured to display information on the display screen of the management device 4 indicating that communication via the IP network N is temporarily interrupted. FIG. 6 shows an example of a state in which this information is displayed (a caution image during reset execution on the web browser on the display screen of the management device 4). The display shown in FIG. 6 indicates that in the case where the circuit breaker 25 takes about 10 seconds to turn ON after being once turned OFF during the reset operation of the circuit breaker 25, communication cannot be performed during this period, and the display screen of the management device 4 can be updated by pressing the update button after the elapse of this period.

[0068] By displaying such a caution image, the system administrator will recognize that communication via the IP network N is temporarily interrupted, and the sense of discomfort caused by the non-update of the display screen of the management device 4 is avoided. Incidentally, after a predetermined time (10 seconds in the case of this embodiment) has elapsed since the display shown in FIG. 6 is performed, pressing the update button will cancel the display of this caution image. The predetermined time is not limited to 10 seconds and can be arbitrarily changed according to the set value of the automatic recovery time.

[0069] Incidentally, the reset standby information providing unit 4a may be provided in the CPU 27 of the circuit breaker unit 2B. That is, when a reset request signal is received from the management device 4, prior to the reset of the circuit breaker 25, image information for displaying the screen shown in FIG. 6 on the web browser on the display screen of the management device 4 is transmitted from the circuit breaker unit 2B to the management device 4.

[0070] (Provision of Logs) In addition, the CPU 27 of the circuit breaker unit 2B includes a log information generation unit 27e as a functional unit realized by a computer program. Each time the state of the circuit breaker 25 changes, the log information generation unit 27e generates state change information for the circuit breaker 25, and accumulates this state change information in the storage device 28 in association with time information (information on the occurrence time of the state change). Examples of changes in the state of the circuit breaker 25 include reset, ON, OFF, automatic reset, normal determination, abnormal stop, operation abnormality, time setting, etc., in addition to those described above.

[0071] In addition, when a log information request signal is sent from the management device 4, the CPU 27 reads out state change information from the storage device 28 via the communication unit 27a and sends it to the management device 4. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of an image in the log information mode on the Web browser on the display screen of the management device 4 in this case. In this log information mode, in addition to the above-described display selection area 41 and installation position information area 42, a log information area 48 is partitioned as a Web browser image. In the log information area 48, time information and state change information of the circuit breaker 25 are listed in descending order of the time of the information, from the latest to the oldest. The display form of this log information is not limited to this. Note that the time information in this case is the one obtained by the above-described time information acquisition unit 27d, and accurate time information is displayed in association with the state change information of the circuit breaker 25.

[0072] By displaying the log information on the Web browser on the display screen of the management device 4 in this way, the system administrator can easily check the history of changes in the state of the circuit breaker 25. When any malfunction occurs in the road facility management system 1, the cause of the malfunction can be easily identified in a short time by checking the history of changes in the state of this circuit breaker 25.

[0073] (Switching of Web browser display) Further, the CPU 27 of the circuit breaker unit 2B includes an access request determination unit 27f as a functional unit realized by a computer program. The access request determination unit 27f has a function of switching the image information to be transmitted to the management device 4 in response to an access request from the management device 4. Specifically, when constructing the road facility management system 1, various information such as IP addresses is initially set, and this initial setting needs to be made possible only by a specific system administrator (a system administrator having the authority for system initial setting), and it is desirable to prevent the occurrence of human errors such as other system administrators (system administrators having only the authority for normal operation) inadvertently changing the system initial setting.

[0074] For this reason, the access request determination unit 27f determines whether the access request is from a specific system administrator (a system administrator having the authority for initial setting) or from other system administrators according to the access request corresponding to the URL specified by the operation of the management device 4 (the URL for displaying information on the web browser on the display screen of the management device 4). When the access is from a specific system administrator (access by specifying a URL known only to a specific system administrator), a screen (network setting image) for performing the initial setting of the system is displayed in the display selection area 41 (refer to the display in FIG. 3 for example). On the other hand, when the access is from other system administrators (access by specifying a URL known to other system administrators), a screen for performing the initial setting of the system is not displayed in the display selection area 41, and the initial setting cannot be changed. FIG. 8 shows the display of the web browser on the display screen of the management device 4 where a screen for performing the initial setting of the system is not displayed in the display selection area 41 (the image of the web browser on the display screen of the management device 4 during normal operation).

[0075] Thereby, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of human errors such as other system administrators inadvertently changing the system initial setting, and the stable operation of the road facility management system 1 becomes possible.

[0076] (Switching of Web browser display according to system configuration) In the road facility management system 1 shown in FIG. 1, L2SW2C was disposed on the secondary side of the circuit breaker 25 in the power line L connected to the circuit breaker 25. That is, since power is not supplied to L2SW2C when the circuit breaker 25 is in the OFF state, communication with the management device 4 becomes impossible.

[0077] As a road facility management system 1 different from that in FIG. 1, as shown in FIG. 9, there is one in which L2SW2C is disposed on the primary side of the circuit breaker 25 in the power line L connected to the circuit breaker 25. That is, even when the circuit breaker 25 is in the OFF state, power is supplied to L2SW2C, so communication between the circuit breaker unit 2B and the management device 4 becomes possible.

[0078] The CPU 4A of the management device 4 includes a display switching unit 4b as a functional unit realized by a computer program. This display switching unit 4b has a function of changing the display of the Web browser on the display screen of the management device 4 when a request signal for switching the ON / OFF of the circuit breaker 25 is transmitted from the management device 4 to the circuit breaker unit 2B according to the arrangement form of L2SW2C. Incidentally, this display switching unit 4b may be provided in the circuit breaker unit 2B.

[0079] Specifically, in the case where L2SW2C is arranged on the secondary side of the circuit breaker 25 (the configuration shown in FIG. 1), when the circuit breaker 25 is ON and the system administrator operates the power-off button (more specifically, after selecting the power-off button and then pressing the execute button), an OFF request signal for turning off the circuit breaker 25 is sent from the management device 4 to the circuit breaker unit 2B. At this time, on the web browser of the display screen of the management device 4, caution information indicating that it is necessary to turn on the circuit breaker 25 at the installation site of the electric bulletin board facility 2 is displayed. FIG. 10 shows an example of the state in which this information is displayed. By performing this display, the intention of the system administrator can be confirmed when turning off the circuit breaker 25. When the display shown in FIG. 10 is performed, pressing the OK button will turn off the circuit breaker 25.

[0080] On the other hand, in the case where L2SW2C is arranged on the primary side of the circuit breaker 25 (the configuration shown in FIG. 9), since the circuit breaker 25 can be remotely turned on even when it is OFF, the above-mentioned caution information display is not performed.

[0081] (Information provision when requesting to turn on the circuit breaker) The function of providing information when requesting to turn on the circuit breaker 25 is a function applied to the road facility management system 1 having the configuration shown in FIG. 9 (the configuration in which L2SW2C is arranged on the primary side of the circuit breaker 25).

[0082] The CPU 4A of the management device 4 includes an ON information providing unit 4c as a functional unit realized by a computer program.

[0083] For example, in a situation where the circuit breaker 25 is OFF (for example, in road equipment that is only operated in winter, and the circuit breaker 25 is OFF in summer or the like), when an equipment maintenance worker is working near the electric signboard equipment 2 for inspection or maintenance of the electric signboard equipment 2, if the system administrator operates the power ON button (more specifically, after selecting the power ON button and then pressing the execute button), an ON request signal is sent from the management device 4 to the circuit breaker unit 2B and the circuit breaker 25 is immediately turned ON, there is a problem that the electric signboard equipment 2 is inadvertently powered. In view of this point, in the present embodiment, the CPU 4A of the management device 4 is provided with an ON information providing unit 4c, and when an ON request signal is sent to the circuit breaker unit 2B, without turning on the circuit breaker 25, on the Web browser on the display screen of the management device 4, a caution information indicating that the circuit breaker will be turned ON is displayed. FIG. 11 shows an example of the state where this information is displayed. By performing this display, it is possible to give a caution to confirm whether or not an equipment maintenance worker is working near the electric signboard equipment 2. Thereby, the safety when the circuit breaker 25 is turned ON can be enhanced.

[0084] In addition, when the display shown in FIG. 11 is performed, by pressing the ON button (after confirming that no equipment maintenance worker is working near the electric signboard equipment 2 and pressing the ON button), the circuit breaker 25 will be turned ON.

[0085] -Other Embodiments- In addition, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and all modifications and applications included in the scope of the claims and the scope equivalent thereto are possible.

[0086] For example, in the above embodiment, the system administrator operates the management device 4 to transmit various request signals (reset request signal, ON request signal, OFF request signal, etc.) to the circuit breaker unit 2B. The present invention is not limited to this. The management device 4 may automatically receive information from the server 3 (information indicating that the CPU 21 with a specific IP address has frozen or thermal runaway, etc.), and accordingly, the management device 4 may automatically transmit various request signals to the circuit breaker unit 2B. Further, the management device 4 may be configured to be able to receive information indicating that the CPU 21 with a specific IP address has frozen or thermal runaway, etc., and accordingly, the management device 4 may automatically transmit a reset command signal to the circuit breaker unit 2B.

[0087] Also, in the above embodiment, the circuit breaker 25, the switching operation means 26, the CPU 27, and the storage device 28 are housed inside a single housing. The present invention is not limited to this. A configuration in which two of these circuit breaker 25, switching operation means 26, CPU 27, and storage device 28 are housed inside a single housing may also be acceptable.

[0088] Also, in the above embodiment, various information (attention - calling information, etc.) is displayed on the web browser on the display screen of the management device 4. The present invention is not limited to this. Various information may be provided to the system administrator by voice.

Industrial Applicability

[0089] The present invention is applicable to a road equipment management system for managing road equipment such as highway electronic display equipment.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0090] 1 Road equipment management system (remote equipment management system) 2 Electronic display equipment (road equipment) 2B Circuit breaker unit 25 Circuit breaker 27c Trip cause discrimination unit 28 Memory device (memory means) 4 Management device N IP network L Power line

Claims

1. A remote equipment management system that remotely manages equipment in which a circuit breaker is interposed in a power line of an electrical system, a circuit breaker unit having the circuit breaker device; a management device operable by a system administrator; an IP network that enables communication between at least the circuit breaker unit and the management device; a trip cause determination unit that, when the circuit breaker device is tripped, determines a cause of the trip; information on the determined cause of the trip is provided to the management device via the IP network, the facility includes a communication device for communicating with the management device via the IP network, the communication device being disposed on a secondary side of the circuit interruption device in a power line connected to the circuit interruption device; A remote equipment management system characterized in that, when a reset request signal for resetting the circuit breaker device is sent from the management device to the circuit breaker unit, information that communication via the IP network will be temporarily cut off is provided from the management device to the system administrator.

2. A remote equipment management system for remotely managing equipment in which a circuit breaker is interposed in a power line of an electrical system, comprising: a circuit breaker unit having the circuit breaker device; a management device operable by a system administrator; an IP network that enables communication between at least the circuit breaker unit and the management device; a trip cause determination unit that, when the circuit breaker device is tripped, determines a cause of the trip; information on the determined cause of the trip is provided to the management device via the IP network, the facility includes a communication device for communicating with the management device via the IP network, the communication device being disposed on a primary side of the circuit interruption device in a power line connected to the circuit interruption device; A remote equipment management system characterized in that, when the circuit breaking device is OFF and an ON request signal to turn ON the circuit breaking device is sent from the management device to the circuit breaking unit, the management device provides warning information to the system administrator that the circuit breaking device will be turned ON without turning ON the circuit breaking device.

3. A remote equipment management system for remotely managing equipment in which a circuit breaker is interposed in a power line of an electrical system, comprising: a circuit breaker unit having the circuit breaker device; a management device operable by a system administrator; an IP network that enables communication between at least the circuit breaker unit and the management device; a trip cause determination unit that, when the circuit breaker device is tripped, determines a cause of the trip; information on the determined cause of the trip is provided to the management device via the IP network, the facility includes a communication device for communicating with the management device via the IP network, A remote equipment management system characterized in that the information provided from the management device to the system administrator when a request signal for switching the circuit breaking device ON / OFF is sent from the management device to the circuit breaking unit is different depending on whether the communication device is located on the primary side of the circuit breaking device or the secondary side of the power line connected to the circuit breaking device.

4. In the remote facility management system according to claim 1, 2 or 3, This remote equipment management system is characterized in that, when the circuit breaker device trips, the trip cause determination unit determines whether the trip is due to an internal factor of the equipment or an external factor of the equipment depending on the voltage value of the power line at the time the trip occurs.

5. In the remote facility management system according to claim 1, 2 or 3, A remote equipment management system characterized in that the circuit breaking unit stores time information and is configured to obtain time information from the management device via the IP network in order to correct the time information.

6. In the remote facility management system according to claim 3, A remote equipment management system characterized in that, when the communication device is arranged on the secondary side of the circuit breaking device on the power line connected to the circuit breaking device, when the circuit breaking device is ON and an OFF request signal to turn off the circuit breaking device is sent from the management device to the circuit breaking unit, the management device provides warning information to the system administrator that the circuit breaking device needs to be turned ON at the installation site of the equipment.

7. In the remote facility management system according to claim 1, 2 or 3, A remote equipment management system characterized in that the circuit breaker unit is configured to generate status change information each time the status of the circuit breaker device changes, store the information in a memory means together with the time of occurrence, and provide the status change information to the management device via the IP network in response to a request from the management device.

8. In the remote facility management system according to claim 1, 2 or 3, A remote facility management system characterized in that the management device has a display screen and is configured to be able to switch between a screen for performing system initial configuration and a screen for performing normal operation by switching the URL of the connection destination.

Images