[Invention Title]

SCREEN DRIVER APPARATUS AND CONTROL APPARATUS FOR MOTOR APPLIED THEREOF

[Technical Field]

The present invention relates, in general, to a screen drive apparatus and a motor control apparatus applied to the screen drive apparatus and, more particularly, to a screen drive apparatus using an ultrasonic motor and a control apparatus that not only allows a user to manually operate a motor applied to the screen drive apparatus but also automatically operates the motor according to the time, day, or outside weather.

[Background Art]

A screen is a device that is installed in a specific space and covers or partitions the specific space for the purpose of light shading, illustration or interception. As an apparatus for driving such a screen, a screen drive apparatus that was disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. Hei 4-60090 was proposed. As shown in Fig. 1, a motor 2 for raising and lowering a shutter 13 is provided with a reduction gear 3, and a shaft (pipe) 7 is fastened to the output shaft 4 of the reduction gear 3. The motor 2, the reduction gear 3 and an electronic controller 18 are contained in a tube 16. As illustrated in Fig. 2, the plug end 6 of the tube 16 is fastened to a support bracket 23, and the plug end 8 of the shaft 7 is rotatably supported on a support bracket 25.

Meanwhile, a cylindrical (or tube) type motor having a long axial length is used as the motor 2, so that the size of the tube motor is large. Furthermore, the motor 2 is contained in the tube 16, so that a separate plug end 6 for fastening it to the bracket 23 is added. Meanwhile, in the case where the cylindrical motor is employed, the reduction gear 3 is used to increase the rotation torque. A planetary reduction gear having high-load and low-noise characteristics is used as the reduction gear 3, and the planetary gear has three stages (refer to Korean Patent No. 10-0312234).

Meanwhile, such a screen drive apparatus is provided with a motor

control apparatus that is used to control the location of a screen. In the case where a plurality of screen drive apparatuses is installed, a problem arises in that the screen drive apparatuses must be individually controlled. Accordingly, in order to control the screen drive apparatuses together, an apparatus for controlling a maximum of 15 screen motors using a single group controller was disclosed in Korean Patent No. 10-0227927 in 1999.

Furthermore, the above-described motor control apparatus includes a plurality of motor controllers for driving and stopping the motors and a single group controller for controlling the plurality of motor controllers. The group controller is provided with a key button or switch-operated function selection unit and a remote control signal reception unit capable of receiving infrared signals, so that the motor controllers can be controlled in response to control signals received in a wired/wireless manner.

[Disclosure]

[Technical Problem]

Accordingly, according to the above-described screen drive apparatus, problems arise in that the motor 2 and the reduction gear 3 must be used at the same time, and the length of the reduction gear 3 is increased due to the use of the three-stage planetary gear trains.

Meanwhile, according to the prior art apparatus for controlling a plurality of screen motors, a plurality of motor controllers is controlled using a single group controller, so that the problem in which a user must approach respective locations at which screens are installed and control the respective screens is solved, but an inconvenience remains, in which a user must manually control each of the screens whenever individual control of the screen is required.

[Technical Solution]

Accordingly, the present invention has been made keeping in mind the above problems occurring in the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to provide a screen drive apparatus that has a compact size using an ultrasonic motor.

Furthermore, another object of the present invention is to provide a control apparatus that automatically controls motors, which are applied to a plurality of screen drive apparatuses, according to preset operational conditions in the case where the plurality of screen drive apparatuses based on the above-described object is used. [Advantageous Effects]

As apparent from the above description, according to the screen drive apparatus of the present invention, there are the following effects.

First, a screen drive shaft is driven using a motor the motor housing of which is thin, small and light-weight and which has high-efficiency, low- speed, high-torque characteristics, so that the length of the motor itself is very short, thereby considerably reducing the overall size of the apparatus, and a reduction gear is omitted or a single-stage planetary reduction gear can be used, thereby simplifying the structure of the apparatus and reducing the length of the apparatus.

Second, the motor housing is supported on a motor bracket while supporting one end of the screen drive shaft, so that the motor housing itself functions as a support, thereby requiring no additional parts and reducing the length of the motor housing by the length of a portion supported by the motor bracket .

Third, the planetary reduction gear is interposed between the motor rotating shaft and the drive wheel, so that load capacity is increased, thereby achieving stable rotating power.

Meanwhile, according to a motor control apparatus applied to the above- described screen drive apparatus of the present invention, a plurality of screen drive apparatuses can not only be simultaneously controlled by one or two manual switch manipulations but also be automatically controlled according to the preset time, day or outside weather, so that the convenience of operation of the plurality of screen drive apparatuses is provided. [Description of Drawings]

Fig. 1 is a cutaway view showing the principal parts of a conventional

tube type motor apparatus!

Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing a shutter equipped with the apparatus shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a perspective view showing a screen drive apparatus equipped with an ultrasonic motor according to an embodiment of the present invention, with a drive wheel being separated therefrom;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view showing the motor bracket of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a cutaway view showing the principal members of a rotating power transmission member;

Fig. 6 is a perspective view showing the output spline shaft of Fig. 3;

Fig. 7 is a perspective view showing the drive wheel of Fig. 3 when viewed from the backside thereof;

Fig. 8 is a perspective view showing the plug end of Fig. 3;

Fig. 9 is a schematic block diagram illustrating the network of a motor control apparatus that is applied to the screen drive apparatus according to the present invention;

Fig. 10 is a block diagram showing the group controller, motor cluster controllers and motor drivers of the motor control apparatus shown in Fig. 9, in detai 1 ;

Fig. 11 is a flowchart illustrating a process that is performed in the group controller according to the present invention;

Fig. 12 is a flowchart illustrating a process that is performed in the motor cluster controller according to the present invention; and

Fig. 13 is a flowchart illustrating a process that is performed in the motor driver according to the present invention.

*** Description of reference numerals of principal elements ***

100: ultrasonic motor 110: motor housing

150a: axial groove 150b: circumferential groove

200: screen drive shaft 210: plug end

230: crown 300: rotating power transmission member

310: motor rotating shaft

330: single-stage planetary reduction gear 350: output spline shaft 370: drive wheel 400: end bracket 500: motor bracket

550a: engaging projection 550b: engaging depression 600: snap ring

700: computer 810: group controller

811, 821, 831: control unit 812, 822, 832: communication unit 813, 823: display unit 814, 824, 834: manual switch 815, 825, 835: radio frequency reception unit 816: sensor unit 817, 827, 837: storage unit 820: motor cluster controller 826: interworking unit 830: motor controller 839: motor drive unit 840: electrical screen 841: motor 843: rotating rod

845: screen surface [Best Mode]

In order to accomplish the above objects, the present invention provides a screen drive apparatus, including an ultrasonic motor, a screen drive shaft, and a rotating power transmission member that transmits the rotating power of the ultrasonic motor to the screen drive shaft, wherein the motor is an ultrasonic motor.

Additionally, in order to accomplish the above objects, the present invention provides, in use of a plurality of screen drive apparatuses each including an ultrasonic motor, a screen drive shaft, and a rotating power transmission member that transmits rotating power of the ultrasonic motor to the screen drive shaft, a motor control apparatus applied to each of the screen drive apparatuses, including a plurality of motor drivers distinguished by unique Identification (ID) numbers, and configured to drive or stop the ultrasonic motors, which are connected thereto in a one-to-one fashion, in response to control signals including at least the RPM, rotational directions and unique ID numbers of the motors! a plurality of motor cluster controllers distinguished by unique ID numbers, and configured

to be connected to motor driver groups, each including at least two motor drivers, in a one-to-one fashion and control the motor driver groups in response to the control signals; and a group controller configured to include a sensor unit including at least one of a temperature sensor, a wind direction sensor, a wind speed sensor, a humidity sensor and an illumination sensor, and automatically output control signals to the motor cluster controllers in response to detection signals of the sensor unit or preset time and day conditions; wherein each of the motor cluster controllers comprises an interworking unit connected in series to an adjacent motor cluster controller, and a multiswitch configured to generate control signals to be input to the adjacent motor cluster controller via the interworking unit .

Additionally, in order to accomplish the above objects, the present invention provides a motor control apparatus for a plurality of screens, including a plurality of motor drivers distinguished by unique ID numbers, and configured to drive or stop screen motors, which are connected thereto in a one-to-one fashion, in response to control signals including at least the RPM, rotational directions and unique ID numbers of the motors; a plurality of motor cluster controllers distinguished by unique ID numbers, and configured to be connected to motor driver groups, each including at least two motor drivers, in a one-to-one fashion and control the motor driver groups in response to the control signals; and a group controller configured to include a sensor unit including at least one of a temperature sensor, a wind direction sensor, a wind speed sensor, a humidity sensor and an illumination sensor, and automatically output control signals to the motor cluster controllers in response to a detection signal of the sensor unit or preset time and day conditions! wherein each of the motor cluster controllers comprises an interworking unit connected in series to an adjacent motor cluster controller, and a multiswitch configured to generate control signals to be input to the adjacent motor cluster controller via the interworking unit .

[Mode for Invention]

With reference to the accompanying drawings, a screen drive apparatus and a motor control apparatus applied to the screen drive apparatus according to preferred embodiments of the present invention are described in detail be1ow.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view illustrating a screen drive apparatus using an ultrasonic motor according to an embodiment of the present invention, with a drive wheel being separated therefrom. Fig. 4 is a perspective view illustrating the motor bracket of Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a cutaway view showing the principal members of a rotating power transmission member. Fig. 6 is a perspective view illustrating the output spline shaft of Fig. 3. Fig. 7 is a perspective view illustrating the drive wheel of Fig. 3 when viewed from the backside thereof. Fig. 8 is a perspective view illustrating the plug end of Fig. 3.

As shown in Fig. 3, the screen drive apparatus of the present embodiment includes an ultrasonic motor 100, a screen drive shaft 200, and a rotating power transmission member 300 that transmits the rotating power of the ultrasonic motor 100 to the screen drive shaft 200.

The ultrasonic motor 100 is also called a piezoelectric motor. When a resonant frequency of several tens of hertz having a specific voltage is applied to a piezoelectric element, such as a ceramic element, that is, a rigid body, the piezoelectric body expands or contracts according to polarity. When two phase voltage having a phase of 90 degrees is applied to the resonant frequency, the piezoelectric element can be made to vibrate. That is, the ultrasonic motor converts such vibrations into a rotating force (a thrust or driving).

The ultrasonic motor 100 operating based on the above-described principle is characterized in that it is a low-speed, high-torque motor having high efficiency, is not influenced by a magnetic field (EMI/RFI), has a simple structure using no gears, generates no noise, is suitable for precise location control, has a fast response, generates no sparks, and can

have a linear structure.

The above-described low-speed, high-torque ultrasonic motor 100 can be fabricated as a small-size, light-weight motor having a thin motor housing 110, so that the size (in particular, the thickness thereof) can be considerably reduced, and the ultrasonic motor 100 creates high torque therein, so that a reduction gear can be omitted.

In particular, the motor housing 110 of the ultrasonic motor 100, as shown in Fig. 3, is placed at one end of the screen drive shaft 200 to be exposed. The external motor housing 110 of the screen drive shaft 200 is supported by a motor bracket 500. That is, accordingly, a separate support 6 is not necessary. Since the length of the motor housing 110 is reduced by the length of a supported portion, the size of the motor housing 110 can be further reduced.

In order to firmly support the motor housing 110 on the motor bracket 500, axial grooves 150a and circumferential grooves 150b are formed in the circumference of the motor housing 110, and engaging projections 550a and engaging depressions 550b formed in the engaging projections 550a, as shown in Fig. 4, are formed on the motor bracket 500. In the state in which the axial grooves 150a and the engaging projections 550a are engaged with each other, the circumferential grooves 150b and the engaging depressions 550b are substantially placed at the same circumferential location. Accordingly, when a snap rings 600 is inserted into the grooves 150b and 550b, the separation of the motor housing 110 and the motor bracket 500 is reliably prevented and, thereby, the motor housing 110 can be firmly supported and fastened. A hole 560 through which a motor power line 160 is drawn is formed in the motor bracket 500.

The screen drive shaft 200 is a pipe that is provided with a spline groove on the inner circumference of the screen drive shaft 200. A drive wheel 370, that is, an output shaft, which will be described later, engages with the spline groove. One end of the screen drive shaft 200 is supported on the ultrasonic motor 100, and the other end thereof is rotatably supported

on an end bracket 400 via a plug end 210. The plug end 210, as shown in Fig. 8, includes a spline shaft 211 and a support shaft 213. A block 410 which rotatably supports the support shaft 213 and a mounting member 430 on which the block 410 is mounted are mounted on the end bracket 400 which is fastened to a wall or cei ling.

The rotating power transmission member 300, as shown in Fig. 5, preferably includes the rotating shaft 310 of the ultrasonic motor 100, the drive wheel 370 spline-engaged with the screen drive shaft 200, and a planetary reduction gear 330 interposed between the rotating shaft 310 and the drive wheel 370. In this case, the drive wheel 370 shown in Fig. 7 is fitted over an output spline shaft 350 shown in Fig. 6, and the output spline shaft 350 is engaged with the rotating shaft 331 of the planetary reduction gear 330.

The planetary reduction gear 300, as shown in Fig. 5, includes a sun gear 333, a stationary ring gear 339, a pinion 335a engaged with the sun gear 333 and the ring gear 339, and a carrier 337. Accordingly, when the sun gear 333 receives a rotation force from the rotating shaft 310 and transfers the rotation force to the pinion 335, the pinion 335 rotates along the ring gear 339, and this rotation rotates the carrier 339 on the axis thereof, thereby rotating the output spline shaft 350, the drive wheel 370, and the screen drive shaft 200.

As described above, the present embodiment employs the low-speed, high- torque ultrasonic motor 100, so that the single-stage planetary reduction gear 330 may be used or omitted.

The planetary reduction gear 330 is preferably contained in a support tube 130 capable of supporting one end of the screen drive shaft 200 while being further firmly supported on the motor housing 110. Furthermore, the support tube 130 and the motor housing 110 are preferably connected by a connection member 120.

A crown 230 is preferably fitted into one end of the screen drive shaft 200 to be rotatable relative to the support tube 130. That is, the crown 230

functions to further securely support the screen drive shaft support tube 130 while smoothly filling a gap with respect to the screen drive shaft support tube 130.

Meanwhile, Fig. 9 is a schematic block diagram illustrating the network of a motor control apparatus that is applied to the screen drive apparatus according to the present invention.

As shown in Fig. 9, the schematic block diagram of the motor control apparatus for a plurality of screens according to the present invention includes a plurality of screen drive apparatuses 840; a plurality of motor drivers 830 distinguished by unique IDent ification (ID) numbers implemented using binary code and configured to drive or stop motors 841, which are connected thereto in a one-to-one fashion, in response to control signals that are input or generated therein; a group controller 810 configured to automatically output control signals according to preset conditions, such as time, day and various modes! and a plurality of motor cluster controllers 820 distinguished by unique ID numbers implemented using binary code and configured to be connected to motor driver groups, each of which includes at least two motor drivers 830, in a one-to-one fashion and output control signals, which are input from the group controller 810 and generated therein, to the motor driver 830. A certain motor cluster controller 820A is connected in series to four adjacent motor cluster controllers 820B, 820C, 820D and 820E, so that a control signal based on a signal that is received from a multiswitch provided for every five motor cluster controllers can be transferred to the other motor cluster controllers, which are connected in series to a corresponding motor cluster controller. The group controller 810 is connected to a computer 700, receives control signals from the computer 700 according to the rights of use granted to a user, and outputs the received control signals to the motor cluster controllers 820. The reference numeral 860 designates a remote control 860 that outputs remote control signals to the group controller 810, the motor cluster controllers 820 and the motor drivers 830.

In the above-described construction, each of the control signals includes information about the RPM and rotational direction of a motor 841, and the unique ID number of a target motor cluster controller 820 or target motor driver 830. By controlling the RPM and rotational direction of the motor 841, the state of a screen surface, that is, the degree of opening of the screen, can be controlled in two or more stages. By designating unique ID numbers, a plurality of electrical blinders can be selectively or integrally controlled. The various modes realize a function of previously setting and storing the states of the screen surfaces of target screens depending on indoor atmospheres, such as brightness or darkness, or the indoor uses of the screens, such as capturing a photo or viewing a movie, and restoring the states of the screen surfaces of the screens to the set states via simple manipulation if needed. The rights of use may be used to prevent mishaps that may occur due to erroneous manipulation in such a way as to limit control signals to be output for corresponding users when control signals are output to the group controller 810 via the computer 700. For example, the rights of use are implemented using grades. A user assigned a lower grade is allowed to control only the opening and closing of screen surfaces, and a user assigned a higher grade is allowed to monitor the opening and closing of screen surfaces and edit control data, such as data on conditions. Meanwhile, the screen drive apparatuses 840 may be implemented as screen drive apparatuses using the ultrasonic motors described with reference to Figs. 3 to 8. Accordingly, it is preferable to implement the motors 841 using ultrasonic motors.

Fig. 10 is a block diagram showing the group controller, motor cluster controllers and motor drivers of the motor control apparatus for a plurality of screens, which are shown in Fig. 9, in detail.

As shown in Fig. 10, the group controller 810 includes a communication unit 812 capable of transmitting/receiving data to/from the computer 700 and the motor cluster controller 820, a display unit 813 configured to display the current operational status of the motors 841, that is, the locations of

the screen surfaces 845, etc., a manual switch 814 used at the time of manually outputting control signals, a radio frequency reception unit 815 configured to receive control signals from the remote control 860, a storage unit 817 configured to store a control program and data, such as data on conditions, a sensor unit 816 configured to detect weather, and a control unit 811 configured to control the respective units.

In the above-described construction, the communication unit 812 may be implemented using the RS485 communication method. In the communication unit 812, 32 to 256 terminals can be supported depending on transceiver ICs. The sensor of the sensor unit 816 is implemented using a temperature sensor, a wind direction sensor, a wind speed sensor, a humidity sensor, an illumination sensor, etc.

Accordingly, the group controller 810 outputs control signals to corresponding motor cluster controllers 820 in response to control signals received from the computer 700, the manual switch 814, the remote control 860 and the sensor unit 816.

Meanwhile, the motor cluster controller 820A includes a communication unit 822 connected to a multiswitch 888A for outputting control signals to the motor drivers 830 and another adjacent motor cluster controller 820B, a display unit 823 configured to display the current operational status of the motors 841, that is, the locations of the screen surfaces, a manual switch 824 used at the time of manually outputting control signals, a radio frequency reception unit 810 configured to receive control signals from the remote control 860, a storage unit 817 configured to store a control program and data such as unique ID numbers, an interworking unit 826 connected in series to another adjacent motor cluster controller 830B, and a control unit 821 configured to control the respective units.

Accordingly, the motor cluster controller 820A outputs control signals to corresponding motor drivers 830 or a motor cluster controller 820 in response to control signals from the group controller 810, the manual switch 824, and the remote control 860.

Meanwhile, the motor driver 830Al includes a communication unit 832 connected to the motor cluster controller 820A, a manual switch 834 used at the time of manually outputting a control signal, a radio frequency reception unit 835 configured to receive a control signal from the remote control 860, a storage unit 827 configured to store a control program and data such as data on a unique ID number, a motor drive unit 839 connected to the motor 841, and a control unit 831 configured to control the respective units.

Accordingly, the motor driver 830Al outputs a control signal to the motor 841 in response to a control signal from the motor cluster controller 820A, the manual switch 834, or the remote control 860, so that the screen surface moves in response to the control signal.

With reference to Figs. 11 to 13, a method of controlling a plurality of screen motors according to the present invention is described in detail. Fig. 11 is a flowchart illustrating a process that is performed in the group controller according to the present invention. Fig. 12 is a flowchart illustrating a process that is performed in the motor cluster controller according to the present invention. Fig. 13 is a flowchart illustrating a process that is performed in the motor driver according to the present invent ion.

As shown in Fig. 11, the control unit 811 of the group controller determines whether a control signal has been received from the computer 700, the remote control 860, the sensor unit 816 or the manual switch 814, or whether the previously stored conditions have been met at step SIl. If, as a result of the determination at step SIl, the control signal has been received or the previously stored conditions have been met, the process proceeds to step S19 and then outputs the received control signal to a corresponding motor cluster controller 820. If the control signal has not been received or the previously stored conditions have not been met, the process proceeds to step S13 and then determines whether an operational condition input signal has been received.

If, as a result of the determination at step S13, the operational

condition input signal has not been received, the process proceeds to step SIl again. If the operational condition input signal has been received, the process proceeds to step S15, receives and stores operational conditions, proceeds to step S17, and then determines whether the operational conditions have been met .

If, as a result of the determination at step S17, the operational conditions have not been met, the process proceeds to step SIl. If the operational conditions have been met, the process proceeds to step S19 and outputs a control signal to a corresponding motor cluster controller 820.

Thereafter, as shown in Fig. 12, the control unit 821 of each motor cluster controller determines whether a control signal has been received from the group controller 810, the remote control 860 or the manual switch 224 at step S21. If, as a result of the determination at step S21, the control signal has not been received, the process repeats step S21 until a control signal is received. If the control signal has been received, the process proceeds to step S23 and determines whether the received control signal is a control signal for its own motor driver 830 or for some other motor cluster controller 820.

If, as a result of the determination at step S23, the control signal is a control signal for its own motor driver 830, the process proceeds to step S25 and outputs the control signal to the corresponding motor driver 830. If the control signal is a control signal for some other motor cluster controller 820, the process proceeds to step S27 and transfers the received control signal to the corresponding motor cluster controller 820.

As shown in Fig. 13, the control unit 831 of the motor driver determines whether a control signal has been received from the motor cluster controller 820, the remote control 860 or the manual switch 834 at step S31. If, as a result of the determination at step S31, the control signal has not been received, the process repeats step S31 until a control signal is received. If the control signal has been received, the process proceeds to step S33 and drives the motor 841 in response to the control signal.

The screen drive apparatus of the present invention and the motor control apparatus applied to the screen drive apparatus are not limited to the above-described embodiments, but they can be variously modified and implemented within a range that is allowed by the technical spirit of the present invention.