Flow rate measuring device, and gas supply system employing it, method for specifying gas appliance

A flow rate measuring device comprising:na flow rate measurement unit configured to measure a gas flow rate flowing in a flow channel;an appliance registering unit configured to store at least first gas flow rate variation profiles exhibited by a first gas appliance and a second gas appliance, respectively, upon activation thereof, which are coupled to the flow channel, and second gas flow rate variation profiles exhibited by the first gas appliance and the second gas appliance, respectively, under control peculiar thereto;a calculating unit configured to determine a differential value of flow rate value data outputted from the flow rate measurement unit;a determining unit configured to compare the differential value determined by the calculating unit with a preset variation determination value to thereby determine that a state of at least one of the first gas appliance and the second gas appliance has varied when the differential value is larger than the preset variation determination value;a first appliance identifying unit configured to compare a gas flow rate variation profile measured by the flow rate measurement unit with the first gas flow rate variation profiles stored in the appliance registering unit to thereby identify the first gas appliance and the second gas appliance that are activated; anda second appliance identifying unit, whereinwhen the calculating unit calculates a differential value based on variation of the gas flow rate measured by the flow rate measurement unit and the determining unit detects a stop of one of the first gas appliance and the second gas appliance based on the calculated differential value, the second appliance identifying unit compares a gas flow rate variation profile exhibited after the stop is detected with the second gas flow rate variation profiles stored in the appliance registering unit to thereby identify a gas appliance in use and a gas appliance having stopped of the gas appliances that are determined to be activated by the first appliance identifying unit.

A flow rate measuring device comprising:na flow rate measurement unit configured to measure a gas flow rate flowing in a flow channel;an appliance registering unit configured to store at least first gas flow rate variation profiles exhibited by a first gas appliance and a second gas appliance, respectively, upon activation thereof which are coupled to the flow channel, and second gas flow rate variation profiles exhibited by the first gas appliance and the second gas appliance, respectively, under control peculiar thereto;a first appliance identifying unit configured to compare a gas flow rate variation profile measured by the flow rate measurement unit with the first gas flow rate variation profiles stored in the appliance registering unit to thereby identify the first gas appliance and the second gas appliance that are activated;a flow rate storage unit configured to store a total gas flow rate variation profile; anda second appliance identifying unit, whereinwhen the flow rate measurement unit detects that the gas flow ceases, the second appliance identifying unit compares the total gas flow rate variation profile stored in the flow rate storage unit before the gas flow ceases with the second gas flow rate variation profiles stored in the appliance registering unit to thereby identify a gas appliance having stopped second and identifies a gas appliance having stopped first of gas appliances that are determined to be activated by the first appliance identifying unit.

A gas appliance identifying method comprising computer executable steps executed by a processor of a computer system to implement:nA) measuring a gas flow rate flowing in a flow channel;B) storing at least first gas flow rate variation profiles exhibited a first gas appliance and a second gas appliance, respectively, upon activation thereof which are coupled to the flow channel, and second gas flow rate variation profiles exhibited by the first gas appliance and the second gas appliance, respectively, under control peculiar thereto;C) determining a differential value of flow rate value data output in step A);D) comparing the differential value determined in step C) with a preset variation determination value, thereby determining that states of the first gas appliance and the second gas appliance have varied when the differential value is larger than the variation determination value;E) comparing a gas flow rate variation profile measured in step A) with the first gas flow rate variation profiles stored in step B), thereby identifying the first gas appliance and second gas appliance that are activated; andF) when a stop of one of the first gas appliance and the second gas appliance is detected in step D), comparing a gas flow rate variation profile after the stop is detected with the second gas flow rate variation profile stored in step B), thereby identifying a gas appliance in use, a gas appliance having stopped of the gas appliances that are determined to be activated by the first appliance identifying unit.

A gas appliance identifying method comprising computer executable steps executed by a processor of a computer system to implement:nA) measuring a gas flow rate flowing in a flow channel;B) storing at least first gas flow rate variation profiles exhibited by a first gas appliance and a second gas appliance, respectively, upon activation thereof which are coupled to the flow channel, and second gas flow rate variation profiles exhibited by the first gas appliance and the second gas appliance, respectively, under control peculiar thereto;E) comparing a gas flow rate variation profile measured in step A) with the first gas flow rate variation profile stored in step B), thereby identifying the first gas appliance and second gas appliance that are activated;G) storing a total gas flow rate variation profile; andH) when it is detected in step A) that the gas flow ceases, comparing the total gas flow rate variation profile stored in step G) before the gas flow ceases with the second gas flow rate variation profile stored in the appliance registering unit, thereby identifying a gas appliance having stopped second, and a gas appliance having stopped first of the gas appliances that are determined to be activated by the first appliance identifying unit.

A flow rate measuring device for measuring and recording an amount of gas consumed by a respective of gas appliances, comprising:na memory having a first storage in which an amount of gas consumed by a respective of identified gas appliances is storable and a second storage in which an amount of gas consumed by at least one unidentified gas appliance is storable;a transition detector configured to detect an activation and a deactivation of the respective of gas appliances based on a differential value of a gas flow rate measured;a first identifier responsive to a detection of activation by the transition detector to identify an activated gas appliance based on a gas consumption profile exhibited by the gas appliance during the activation;a second identifier responsive to a detection of deactivation by the transition detector, after a plurality of gas appliances are respectively identified simultaneously in use by the first identifier, to monitor a gas flow rate measured subsequent to the detection of deactivation in search of a gas consumption profile discerned from the measured gas flow rate which is attributable to one among the plurality of gas appliances and identify a deactivated gas appliance and/or a gas appliance still being in use among the plurality of gas appliances;an integrator configured to calculate, and store in the first storage, an amount of gas consumed by each of the plurality of gas appliances from an activation thereof till the detection of deactivation by the transition detector and also calculate, and store in the second storage, an amount of gas consumed after the detection of deactivation by the transition detector; anda controller responsive to an identification by the second identifier to distribute at least part of the amount of gas stored in the second storage to the first storage for a gas application determined to have consumed the at least part of the gas amount.

A method of measuring and recording an amount of gas consumed by a respective of gas appliances, comprising computer executable steps executed by a processor of a computer system to implement:n(a) providing a first storage in which an amount of gas consumed by a respective of identified gas appliances is storable and a second storage in which an amount of gas consumed by at least one unidentified gas appliance is storable;(b) detecting an activation and a deactivation of the respective of gas appliances based on a differential value of a gas flow rate measured;(c) responsive to an activation detected in step (b), identifying an activated gas appliance based on a gas consumption profile exhibited by the gas appliance during the activation;(d) responsive to a deactivation detected in step (b), after a plurality of gas appliances are respectively identified simultaneously in use in step (c), monitoring a gas flow rate measured subsequent to the detection of deactivation in search of a gas consumption profile discerned from the measured gas flow rate which is attributable to one among the plurality of gas appliances and identifying a deactivated gas appliance and/or a gas appliance still being in use among the plurality of gas appliances;(e) calculating, and storing in the first storage, an amount of gas consumed by each of the plurality of gas appliances from an activation thereof till the deactivation detected in step (b) and also calculating, and storing in the second storage, an amount of gas consumed after the deactivation detected in step (b); and(f) responsive to an identification in step (d), distributing at least part of the amount of gas stored in the second storage to the first storage for a gas application determined to have consumed the at least part of the gas amount.