Bathroom Drying Time Estimation System

Abstract

To estimate information relating to the period for drying a bathroom according to the changing behavior of a user relating to drying a drying object in the bathroom (including the bathroom itself), which is difficult to estimate based only on data relating to the climate and the like.SOLUTION: There is provided a system of estimating the period for drying a bathroom which comprises a server S capable of collecting via a network N information relating to a drying operation of drying a drying object in a bathroom B with a plurality of bathroom heating dryers 100. The system comprises: an information acquiring unit S1 for acquiring utilization rate related information relating to the utilization rate of the drying operation of the plurality of bathroom heating dryers 100 in a specified information acquiring period; and a bathroom drying period estimation unit S4 for estimating whether or not the present period is the bathroom drying period when the drying operation with the bathroom heating dryers 100 is to be highly likely carried out, according to the utilization rate related information acquired by the information acquiring unit S1.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a bathroom drying system equipped with a server capable of collecting information via a network regarding the drying operation of multiple bathroom dryers to dry items in a bathroom. [Background technology]

[0002] BACKGROUND ART Bathroom heater / dryer devices are known that can perform a drying operation to dry laundry hung out to dry in the bathroom in addition to heating and ventilating the bathroom (see Patent Document 1). In the technology disclosed in Patent Document 1, the remote control of a bathroom heater / dryer obtains information such as temperature and humidity related to the season and outside air from an external weather server via an internet line, and based on the obtained information, sets the operating time to the time period most suitable for laundry, thereby improving drying efficiency. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2017-35222 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] If it were possible to know when a user is likely to run the drying operation on a bathroom heater / dryer, it would be possible to provide the market with, for example, indoor drying detergents, mildew prevention detergents, dehumidifying equipment, and other items that are used more frequently when the drying operation is performed in the bathroom, in accordance with user demand, thereby contributing to improving the convenience of users when running the drying operation. However, when trying to estimate the time when the drying operation is likely to be performed using only the temperature and precipitation (humidity) used in conventional technology, for example, even in a situation where precipitation (humidity) temporarily increases, it cannot be said that the possibility of the user performing the drying operation is necessarily high, and appropriate estimation cannot be made, so the development of new technology was desired.

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, and its purpose is to provide a bathroom drying time estimation system that can estimate information regarding the bathroom drying time from changes in a user's behavior regarding drying objects in the bathroom (including the bathroom itself), which is difficult to estimate based on data related to weather, etc. alone. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The bathroom drying time estimation system to achieve the above objectives is as follows: A bathroom drying time estimation system is provided with a server that can collect information related to the drying operation of multiple bathroom dryers via a network, the information being used to dry items in a bathroom. The system's features include: an information acquisition unit that acquires usage rate related information regarding usage rates of the drying operations of the plurality of bathroom dryers during a predetermined information acquisition period; a bathroom drying time estimation unit that estimates, based on the usage rate related information acquired by the information acquisition unit, whether the current time is a bathroom drying time when the bathroom dryer is likely to perform the drying operation. 、 the information acquisition unit acquires, in addition to the usage rate related information, weather-related information relating to drying in each of the regions where the multiple bathroom dryers are installed; The bathroom drying period estimation unit estimates whether the current period is the bathroom drying rainy season or the bathroom drying winter season based on the weather-related information and the usage rate-related information acquired by the information acquisition unit. It's at the point.

[0007] According to the above characteristic configuration, firstly, the server can obtain usage-related information relating to the usage rates of multiple bathroom dryers via the network, which leads to more general judgments based on information relating to the usage rates of many users compared to information relating to the usage rate of a single bathroom dryer. Furthermore, the bathroom drying time estimation unit can estimate whether the current time is a bathroom drying time when drying operation is likely to be performed, taking into account the degree of impact on changes in the behavior of general consumers, for example, through evaluation of weather-related information such as temperature and precipitation, based on the usage rate-related information of multiple bathroom dryers that it has collected. This means that, for example, if it is estimated that the current time is the bathroom drying period, the estimation result can be used to predict demand for indoor drying detergent, mold prevention detergent, dehumidifying equipment, etc. that will be needed in conjunction with the drying operation. As a result, a bathroom drying time estimation system can be realized that can estimate information regarding the bathroom drying time from changes in users' behavior regarding drying items to be dried in the bathroom, which is difficult to estimate based on data related to weather, etc. alone.

[0009] Also, The inventors have discovered that the time when drying operation is performed varies depending on the climate, and that when examining the correlation between usage rate and climate-related information such as temperature and precipitation, there are two conditions under which the usage rate of drying operation increases. The first is the rainy season, when temperatures are high and precipitation is heavy. Because of the high precipitation and temperatures, dry operation is often used. The second is the cold winter season. Although the amount of precipitation is low, the temperature is low, so the drying operation is performed at a usage rate similar to that during the rainy season. During the rainy season, humidity is particularly high, making it easy for odors and mold to form when drying clothes indoors. Therefore, it is desirable to be able to estimate whether the rainy season is a bathroom drying rainy season, when drying operations are performed, as a basis for determining the supply and demand of indoor drying detergents, mold prevention detergents, dehumidifying equipment, etc. to prevent these. However, the usage rates of the drying operation are roughly the same during the bathroom drying rainy season, when the drying operation is performed during the rainy season, and during the bathroom drying winter season, when the drying operation is performed during the winter season, so there is a problem in that it is difficult to distinguish between the two based on the usage rate of the drying operation alone. According to the above characteristic configuration, the information acquisition unit acquires not only usage rate related information but also weather-related information related to drying in each area where multiple bathroom dryers are installed, and the bathroom drying time estimation unit estimates the bathroom drying time based on not only the usage rate of drying operation but also weather-related information such as temperature and precipitation, so that the bathroom drying time can be accurately estimated by clearly distinguishing whether the current period is in the bathroom drying rainy season or the bathroom drying winter period. This makes it possible to effectively use the estimation results as information for determining the demand for indoor drying detergents, mildew prevention detergents, dehumidifying equipment, and the like to suppress these issues.

[0010] Further features of the bathroom drying time estimation system include: The usage rate related information is a bathroom dryer usage rate, which means the number of bathroom dryers that were used among the plurality of bathroom dryers during one day as the information acquisition period, The bathroom drying usage rate can be a value calculated by dividing the number of bathroom dryers that used the drying operation during one day as the information acquisition period by the number of bathroom dryers for which information related to the drying operation can be acquired.

[0011] The bathroom dryer usage rate set as usage rate related information in this manner can be used effectively as an index that accurately represents how often the bathroom dryer is used in drying mode.

[0012] Further features of the bathroom drying time estimation system include: The bathroom drying period estimation unit uses a histogram of the bathroom drying usage rate acquired during the information acquisition period in a reference period that includes all seasons to set a threshold value for the bathroom drying usage rate that estimates the start and end points of the bathroom drying period, or uses a histogram of the standard deviation of the bathroom drying usage rate acquired during the information acquisition period in a reference period that includes all seasons to set a threshold value for the standard deviation of the bathroom drying usage rate that estimates the start and end points of the bathroom drying period.

[0013] According to the above characteristic configuration, the threshold value of the bathroom dryer usage rate and the threshold value of the bathroom dryer usage rate deviation can be appropriately set using a histogram. In this specification, the deviation value of the bathroom drying usage rate is considered to be a concept included in the usage rate related information.

[0014] Further features of the bathroom drying time estimation system include: The bathroom drying time estimation unit sets the determination reference period to one year, It is preferable to set the threshold value of the bathroom dryer usage rate to the median value of the bathroom dryer usage rate during the reference period, or to set the threshold value of the deviation value of the bathroom dryer usage rate to the median value of the deviation value of the bathroom dryer usage rate during the reference period.

[0015] The threshold value for the bathroom dryer usage rate can be easily set to the intermediate value by using the histogram of the bathroom dryer usage rate (or the deviation value of the bathroom dryer usage rate) described above. Furthermore, by setting the reference period to one year, all data from one year showing the change of seasons can be used as basic data for estimating the bathroom drying period, which can improve the accuracy of estimating the bathroom drying period compared to, for example, setting the reference period to a period shorter than one year.

[0016] Further features of the bathroom drying time estimation system include: The bathroom drying time estimation unit, The temperature-related information and precipitation-related information as the climate-related information acquired during the information acquisition period in the reference period, which is a period including all seasons, and the utilization-related information acquired during the information acquisition period in the reference period are treated as one data point, and map information is generated by mapping the multiple data points acquired during the reference period with the temperature-related information, the precipitation-related information, and the utilization-related information as three axes, and this map information is used to set thresholds for estimating the start and end points of the bathroom drying period.

[0017] The inventors have discovered that map information in which temperature-related information and precipitation-related information as climate-related information acquired during the information acquisition period in the reference period, which is a period that includes all seasons, and utilization-related information acquired during the information acquisition period in the reference period are treated as one data point, and multiple data points acquired during the reference period are mapped with temperature-related information, precipitation-related information, and utilization-related information as three axes, is effective for setting thresholds for estimating the start and end points of the bathroom drying period. In other words, by capturing multiple data points in three dimensions, including not only climate-related information such as temperature-related information and precipitation-related information, but also usage-related information, it is possible to efficiently and effectively extract a threshold value for distinguishing when the bathroom is drying out. In this characteristic configuration, it is also preferable that the reference period be one year, and the threshold value for the bathroom dryer usage rate be set to the median value of the bathroom dryer usage rate during the reference period.

[0018] Further features of the bathroom drying time estimation system include: The bathroom drying time estimation unit includes an information providing unit that provides the bathroom drying time estimated by the bathroom drying time estimation unit to an outside party.

[0019] As explained above, the bathroom drying period can be used to predict demand for, for example, indoor drying detergents, mildew prevention detergents, dehumidifying equipment, etc. Therefore, for example, if the information provider provides the estimated bathroom drying period to manufacturing companies, marketing companies, etc., various detergents, etc. can be released onto the market in a manner that is more in line with user needs. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0020] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a bathroom drying time estimation system according to an embodiment. [Figure 2] This is three-dimensional data used to determine the threshold value of an index that estimates when the bathroom will dry out. [Figure 3] This is a histogram of the bathroom dryer usage rate obtained over a one-year period as the reference period. [Figure 4] This is a histogram showing the standard deviation of the bathroom dryer usage rate obtained over a one-year period as a reference period. [Figure 5] 10 is a control flow for estimating the bathroom drying time. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0021] The bathroom drying time estimation system 200 of an embodiment of the present invention is capable of estimating information regarding the bathroom drying time from behavioral changes related to drying of the user's laundry items to be dried in the bathroom (including the bathroom itself), which is difficult to estimate based on data related to weather, etc. alone. Hereinafter, an embodiment of a bathroom drying timing estimation system 200 according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0022] [Configuration related to the bathroom heater / dryer] As shown in Figure 1, bathroom heater / dryer 100 (100a, 100b, etc.: examples of bathroom dryers) is composed of a main unit ME, a heat source unit G that circulates and supplies heated heat medium to main unit ME, a control unit R that controls the operation of bathroom heater / dryer 100, and a remote control RE that is used to issue various control commands to control unit R. Remote control RE is provided in the changing room adjacent to the bathroom.

[0023] Remote control RE is configured to be able to communicate with a repeater (in-home router RU) connected to network line N, an external network installed in the home that houses bathroom heater-dryer 100. In particular, in this embodiment, it is configured to be able to send usage rate-related information about the usage rate of the drying operation performed by bathroom heater-dryer 100 to server S connected via network line N.

[0024] The device main body ME is comprised of a roughly rectangular box-shaped case with an opening at the bottom. As shown in Figure 1, the device main body ME is configured to suck in air through an intake port facing the space in bathroom B and blow it out through an outlet facing the space in bathroom B using a circulation fan (not shown). It is also configured to suck in air from the intake port (not shown) using an exhaust fan (not shown) and exhaust it to the outside of the case through a duct connection E (Figure 1). It is also equipped with a heating heat exchanger (not shown) that heats the air ventilated by the circulation fan with a heat medium circulated through a heat medium circulation path from heat source machine G.

[0025] The control unit R controls the operation of the circulation fan, exhaust fan, heat source unit G, etc., thereby performing various controls such as ventilation operation to ventilate the bathroom B, heating operation to heat the bathroom B, and drying operation to dry the bathroom B, as described below.

[0026] Specifically, bathroom heater / dryer 100 is configured to use an exhaust fan to exhaust air from bathroom B outside, and control unit R operates the exhaust fan as a ventilation operation to ventilate bathroom B. Note that during ventilation operation, a circulation fan may also be operated at the same time as the exhaust fan to promote air circulation within bathroom B.

[0027] In addition, the bathroom heater / dryer 100 is configured to draw in air from bathroom B through an intake port using a circulation fan, heat it in a heating heat exchanger, and then blow it into bathroom B through an outlet, and the control unit R operates the circulation fan and the heating heat exchanger in heating operation to heat bathroom B.

[0028] Furthermore, bathroom heater / dryer 100 is configured to perform a drying operation by simultaneously performing ventilation and heating operations to dry the air in bathroom B. The drying operation can be performed with laundry, such as clothes, placed near the air outlet to dry the clothes.

[0029] Bathroom heater / dryer 100 is configured so that the execution of ventilation, heating, and drying operations can be instructed via remote control RE.

[0030] [Configuration related to estimation of bathroom drying time] Now, in the bathroom drying time estimation system 200 of this embodiment, in order to estimate information related to the bathroom drying time from changes in the user's behavior regarding drying of items to be dried in the bathroom, which is difficult to estimate from data related to weather, etc. alone, the system is equipped with a server S that can collect information related to drying operations of multiple bathroom heater-dryers 100 (100a, 100b, etc.) to dry laundry as an item to be dried in the bathroom B via a network line N, and the server S is equipped with an information acquisition unit S1 that acquires usage rate related information regarding the usage rate of drying operations of the multiple bathroom heater-dryers 100 during a specified information acquisition period (e.g., one day), and a bathroom drying time estimation unit S4 that uses the usage rate related information acquired by the information acquisition unit S1 to estimate whether the current period is a bathroom drying time when the bathroom heater-dryers 100 are likely to perform a drying operation.

[0031] In other words, each of the control units R of the multiple bathroom heater / dryer units 100 holds drying operation execution information indicating whether or not drying operation was performed during the information acquisition period, and transmits the drying operation execution information to the server S, for example, for each information acquisition period. Information acquisition unit S1 derives usage rate-related information based on the acquired drying operation execution information. In this embodiment, the usage rate-related information is the bathroom drying usage rate, which refers to the number of bathroom heater / dryers 100 that were used among multiple bathroom heater / dryers 100 during the information acquisition period (one day). To further explain, bathroom drying time estimation unit S4 calculates the bathroom drying usage rate as a value calculated by dividing the number of bathroom heater / dryers 100 that used drying operation during the day by the number of bathroom heater / dryers 100 that have sent the drying operation execution information to server S and for which information related to drying operation (information on whether drying operation was performed) can be obtained.

[0032] Furthermore, the information acquisition unit S1 is configured to be able to acquire climate-related information related to drying in each area where multiple bathroom heater-dryers 100 are installed, such as the average daily temperature (an example of temperature-related information) and the total daily precipitation amount (an example of precipitation-related information), from the weather server K via the network line N, and stores this information in a form linked to each bathroom heater-dryer 100. In this embodiment, the bathroom drying period estimation unit S4 estimates whether the current period is the bathroom drying period, i.e., the bathroom drying rainy season or the bathroom drying winter period, from the weather-related information and usage-related information acquired by the information acquisition unit S1.

[0033] Next, a method for setting a threshold value used to estimate the bathroom drying time will be described. First, regarding the setting of the threshold value for the bathroom dry usage rate, the threshold setting unit S3 (a concept included in the bathroom dry period estimation unit) uses a histogram (shown in Figure 3) of the bathroom dry usage rate acquired during the information acquisition period in a reference period (e.g., one year), which is a period that includes all seasons (four seasons), to set the threshold value for the bathroom dry usage rate that estimates the start and end points of the bathroom dry period. In this embodiment, the threshold setting unit S3 (a concept included in the bathroom drying time setting unit) can set the threshold for the bathroom drying usage rate to various values, but for example, the threshold for the bathroom drying usage rate can be set to the median value of the bathroom drying usage rate during the reference period. In the example of the histogram shown in Figure 3, a bathroom drying usage rate of 10% to 15% is set as the value that will result in an accumulation of 50% of occurrence frequency from the lowest bathroom drying usage rate. Incidentally, the basic data update unit S2 provided in the server S updates the above-mentioned usage rate related information at predetermined update intervals (for example, once a month), and after updating the basic data, the bathroom drying time estimation unit S4 derives and updates the bathroom drying usage rate and its histogram, and sets a threshold value for the bathroom drying usage rate using the histogram of the updated bathroom drying usage rate.

[0034] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 2, the threshold setting unit S3 uses map information in which the daily average temperature (an example of temperature-related information: vertical axis in Figure 2) and daily total precipitation (an example of precipitation-related information: horizontal axis in Figure 2) as climate-related information acquired during the information acquisition period in the reference period (for example, one year), which is a period that includes all seasons (four seasons), and the utilization-related information acquired during the information acquisition period in the reference period (shown in shading in Figure 2) are mapped as one data point, with the daily average temperature, daily total precipitation, and utilization-related information being used as three axes to set thresholds for estimating the start and end points of the bathroom drying period. The basic data update unit S2 in the server S updates the map information at predetermined update intervals (e.g., once a month). After updating the basic data, the bathroom drying time estimation unit S4 uses the updated map information to set thresholds for estimating the start and end of the bathroom drying time. Here, too, the threshold for the bathroom drying usage rate can be set to the median value of the bathroom drying usage rate during the reference period. This allows information on temperature and precipitation, the trends of which may change significantly in response to recent rapid climate change, to be updated to the latest information, and thresholds can be set based on the updated data, making it possible to estimate the time to dry the bathroom in a way that closely follows climate change.

[0035] Hereinafter, control using the threshold value set by the above-described setting method will be described based on the control flow of FIG. In the bathroom drying time estimation system 200, when the information acquisition unit S1 starts the bathroom drying time estimation process, it acquires the current bathroom drying time estimated last time from a memory unit (not shown) if the bathroom drying time estimation process has been performed previously, or if the bathroom drying time estimation process has not been performed previously, it marks the bathroom drying time as unestimated. Furthermore, information acquisition unit S1 acquires the current weather-related information, such as the daily average temperature, and the daily total precipitation amount, which is precipitation-related information, as well as usage-rate-related information about the usage rate of the drying operation during the information acquisition period (e.g., one day) of multiple bathroom heater / dryer units 100 (#01). Once the usage-rate-related information is acquired, bathroom drying time estimation unit S4 calculates the bathroom drying usage rate.

[0036] Next, if the time from the previous update to the present is longer than the update period (Yes in #02), the basic data update unit S2 updates the usage rate related information, and the bathroom dry timing estimation unit S4 derives and updates the bathroom dry usage rate and its histogram, and also updates the map information with the daily average temperature, total daily precipitation, and usage rate related information as three axes (#03).On the other hand, if the time from the previous update to the present is less than the update period (No in #02), the basic data update unit S2 does not perform the update process and executes the processes from #04 onwards.

[0037] The threshold setting unit S3 sets a threshold value relating to the bathroom dryer use rate, a threshold value relating to the daily average temperature, and a threshold value relating to the daily total amount of precipitation based on the basic data (#04).

[0038] If the bathroom drying period estimated last time is the bathroom drying rainy season or the bathroom drying winter season (Yes in #05), the bathroom drying period estimation unit S4 determines whether the end conditions for the bathroom drying rainy season are met (#09), and whether the end conditions for the bathroom drying winter season are met (#10). That is, if the total daily precipitation amount falls below 25 mm (an example of a threshold for the total daily precipitation amount) and the daily bathroom dryer usage rate falls below 7% (an example of a threshold for the bathroom dryer usage rate) (Yes in #09), the bathroom dryer timing estimation unit S4 determines that the bathroom dryer rainy season as the bathroom dryer period has ended, and provides information about the newly estimated current bathroom dryer period (in this case, information indicating that it is not currently the bathroom dryer period) to the outside (#08). That is, the bathroom dryer period estimation system 200 includes an information provider S5 that provides the bathroom dryer period estimated by the bathroom dryer period estimation unit S4 to the outside, and the information provider S5 transmits the estimated bathroom dryer period via the network N to a marketing terminal M for selling, for example, indoor drying detergents, mildew prevention detergents, dehumidifying devices, and the like. The marketing terminal M can predict demand for various products based on the transmitted bathroom dryer period. Furthermore, if the daily average temperature is 10°C or higher (an example of a threshold value for the daily average temperature) and the daily bathroom dryer usage rate is 10% or lower (an example of a threshold value for the bathroom dryer usage rate) (Yes in #10), the bathroom dryer timing estimation unit S4 determines that the bathroom dryer winter period for the bathroom dryer period has ended, and the information providing unit S5 provides information regarding the newly estimated current bathroom dryer period (in this case, information that it is not currently the bathroom dryer period) to the outside (#08).

[0039] On the other hand, if the bathroom drying period estimated last time is not the bathroom drying rainy season or the bathroom drying winter period (No in #05), the bathroom drying period estimation unit S4 determines whether the start conditions for the bathroom drying rainy season are met (#06) and whether the start conditions for the bathroom drying winter period are met (#07). That is, when the average daily temperature is 20°C or higher (an example of a threshold value for the average daily temperature), the total daily precipitation is 50 mm or higher (an example of a threshold value for the total daily precipitation), and the daily bathroom dry usage rate is 15% or higher (an example of a threshold value for the bathroom dry usage rate) (Yes in #06), the information providing unit S5 determines that the bathroom dry rainy season for the bathroom dry period has begun, and provides information regarding the newly estimated current bathroom dry period (in this case, information that it is currently the bathroom dry rainy season) to the outside (#08). Furthermore, if the daily average temperature is below 10°C (an example of a threshold value for the daily average temperature) and the daily bathroom dry usage rate is above 15% (an example of a threshold value for the bathroom dry usage rate) (Yes in #07), the bathroom dry period estimation unit S4 determines that the bathroom dry winter period for the bathroom dry period has begun, and provides information about the newly estimated current bathroom dry period (in this case, information that the current time is the bathroom dry winter period) to the outside (#08).

[0040] After processing #06 to #10, if there is an external instruction to end the bathroom drying estimation process (Yes in #11), the bathroom drying time estimation unit S4 ends the bathroom drying time estimation process, and if there is no external instruction to end the bathroom drying estimation process (No in #11), it waits for a predetermined time (#12) and then continues to execute the processes from #01 onwards.

[0041] [Another embodiment] (1) In the above embodiment, a configuration example is shown in which the daily average temperature is acquired as the temperature-related information, and the daily total precipitation amount is acquired as the precipitation-related information. However, the temperature-related information may be the temperature at a predetermined time on that day, and the precipitation-related information may be the total duration of precipitation. Furthermore, the temperature may not be obtained from weather server K, but may be obtained from a temperature sensor (not shown) provided in each bathroom heater / dryer 100.

[0042] (2) In the above embodiment, the bathroom drying use rate is used as the use rate related information. However, the deviation value of the bathroom-related use rate may be used. In this case, the threshold setting unit S3 (an example of a bathroom drying period estimation unit) uses a histogram (shown in Figure 4) of the standard deviation of the bathroom drying usage rate acquired during the information acquisition period in a reference period (e.g., one year), which is a period that includes all seasons, to set a threshold value for the bathroom drying usage rate that estimates the start and end points of the bathroom drying period. The threshold value setting unit S3 can set the threshold value of the bathroom dryer use rate for the premises to the median value (deviation value: 50) of the deviation values ​​of the bathroom dryer use rate during the reference period.

[0043] (3) In the above embodiment, the bathroom drying time estimation unit S4 estimates whether the current time is the bathroom drying time by using the daily average temperature and total daily precipitation amount as climate-related information in addition to the usage rate-related information. Alternatively, the bathroom drying time estimation unit S4 may estimate whether the current time is the bathroom drying time based only on the usage rate information. In this case, the threshold value for the bathroom drying usage rate can be set to the median value of the bathroom drying usage rate during the reference period. For example, the bathroom dry period estimation unit S4 determines that it is the bathroom dry period when the bathroom usage rate as usage rate related information exceeds the median value for a reference period (for example, one year), and determines that it is not the bathroom dry period when it is equal to or less than the median value. Note that in this case, it does not determine whether the bathroom dry period is the bathroom dry rainy season or the bathroom dry winter season.

[0044] (4) In the above embodiment, the basic data update unit S2 provided in the server S updates various types of basic data at predetermined update intervals. However, updating of the basic data does not necessarily have to be performed.

[0045] Furthermore, the configurations disclosed in the above embodiments (including other embodiments, the same applies below) can be applied in combination with configurations disclosed in other embodiments, as long as no contradictions arise. Furthermore, the embodiments disclosed in this specification are examples, and the embodiments of the present invention are not limited to these, and can be modified as appropriate within the scope that does not deviate from the purpose of the present invention. [Industrial Applicability]

[0046] The bathroom drying time estimation system of the present invention can be effectively used as a bathroom drying time estimation system that can estimate information related to the bathroom drying time from changes in users' behavior regarding drying objects in the bathroom (including the bathroom itself), which is difficult to estimate based on data related to weather, etc. alone. [Explanation of symbols]

[0047] 100: Bathroom heater / dryer 200: Bathroom drying time estimation system B:Bathroom N: Network line S: Server S1: Information acquisition section S2: Basic data update section S3: Threshold setting section S4:Bathroom drying time estimation part S5: Information provision department

Claims

1. A bathroom drying time estimation system including a server that can collect information related to the drying operation of a plurality of bathroom dryers to dry objects in a bathroom via a network, an information acquisition unit that acquires usage rate related information regarding usage rates of the drying operations of the plurality of bathroom dryers during a predetermined information acquisition period; a bathroom drying time estimation unit that estimates, based on the usage rate related information acquired by the information acquisition unit, whether the current time is a bathroom drying time when the bathroom dryer is likely to perform the drying operation, the information acquisition unit acquires, in addition to the usage rate related information, weather-related information relating to drying in each of the regions where the multiple bathroom dryers are installed; The bathroom drying period estimation unit is a bathroom drying period estimation system that estimates whether the current period is the bathroom drying rainy season or the bathroom drying winter period based on the weather-related information and usage-related information acquired by the information acquisition unit.

2. the usage rate related information is a bathroom dryer usage rate, which means the number of bathroom dryers that are used among the plurality of bathroom dryers during one day as the information acquisition period; The bathroom drying time estimation system of claim 1, wherein the bathroom drying usage rate is calculated by dividing the number of bathroom dryers that used the drying operation during one day as the information acquisition period by the number of bathroom dryers for which information related to the drying operation can be acquired.

3. The bathroom drying time estimation system of claim 2, wherein the bathroom drying time estimation unit uses a histogram of the bathroom drying usage rate acquired during the information acquisition period in a reference period that includes all seasons to set a threshold value for the bathroom drying usage rate that estimates the start and end points of the bathroom drying time, or uses a histogram of the standard deviation of the bathroom drying usage rate acquired during the information acquisition period in a reference period that includes all seasons to set a threshold value for the standard deviation of the bathroom drying usage rate that estimates the start and end points of the bathroom drying time.

4. The bathroom drying time estimation unit sets the determination reference period to one year, The bathroom drying time estimation system of claim 3, wherein the threshold value of the bathroom drying usage rate is set to the median value of the bathroom drying usage rate during the reference period, or the threshold value of the bathroom drying usage rate standard value is set to the median value of the bathroom drying usage rate standard value during the reference period.

5. The bathroom drying time estimation unit The bathroom drying time estimation system described in claim 1, wherein the temperature-related information and precipitation-related information as climate-related information acquired during the information acquisition period in the reference period, which is a period including all seasons, and the usage-related information acquired during the information acquisition period in the reference period are treated as one data point, and map information is generated by mapping the multiple data points acquired during the reference period with the temperature-related information, the precipitation-related information, and the usage-related information as three axes, and the map information is used to set thresholds for estimating the start and end points of the bathroom drying time.

6. The bathroom drying time estimation unit sets the determination reference period to one year, the usage rate related information is a bathroom dryer usage rate, which means the number of bathroom dryers that are used among the plurality of bathroom dryers during one day as the information acquisition period; The bathroom dry timing estimation system according to claim 5 , wherein the threshold value of the bathroom dry usage rate is set to a median value of the bathroom dry usage rate during the reference period.

7. The bathroom drying time estimation system according to any one of claims 1 to 6, further comprising an information providing unit that provides the bathroom drying time estimated by the bathroom drying time estimation unit to an external party.

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