Support system and support method

Abstract

A support system supports update of a refrigerant system to which an outdoor unit, an indoor unit, and a refrigerant pipe connecting the outdoor unit and the indoor unit belong. The support system includes a processor that calculates a first amount, which is an amount of refrigerant charged in a refrigerant system after update, based on information related to at least one of the outdoor unit, the indoor unit, and the refrigerant pipe belonging to a refrigerant system before update. The processor acquires a second amount, which is the maximum allowable amount of refrigerant charged in the refrigerant system after update or a retention allowable amount. The processor supports update of a refrigerant system by presenting, as information related to the refrigerant system after update, information related to a refrigerant system in which the calculated first amount does not exceed the acquired second amount.

1 . A support system supporting update of a refrigerant system to which an outdoor unit, an indoor unit, and a refrigerant pipe that connects the outdoor unit and the indoor unit belong, the support system comprising:
 a processor configured to:
 calculate a first amount, which is an amount of refrigerant charged in the refrigerant system after update, based on information related to at least one of the outdoor unit, the indoor unit, and the refrigerant pipe that belong to the refrigerant system before update, 
 acquire a second amount, which is a maximum allowable amount of refrigerant charged in the refrigerant system after update or a maximum amount of refrigerant allowed to be retained in a room when a refrigerant leaks into the room from the indoor unit and the refrigerant pipe that belong to the refrigerant system after update, and 
 support update of the refrigerant system by presenting, as information related to the refrigerant system after update, information related to the refrigerant system in which the calculated first amount does not exceed the acquired second amount. 
   
     
     
         2 . The support system according to  claim 1 , wherein the processor is configured to output, as the information related to the refrigerant system after update, information related to the refrigerant system that has at least a predetermined capacity based on a capacity of the refrigerant system before update. 
     
     
         3 . The support system according to  claim 1 , wherein the processor is configured to update the refrigerant system by output information related to at least one of the outdoor unit, the indoor unit, and the refrigerant pipe having different specifications from a corresponding component of the refrigerant system before update. 
     
     
         4 . The support system according to  claim 1 , wherein, when the refrigerant system before update is divided into a plurality of refrigerant systems, the processor is configured to generate the at least one proposed post-update of the refrigerant system by outputting information related to a connection state of the refrigerant system after update such that the indoor unit that belongs to the refrigerant system before division belongs to any of the plurality of refrigerant systems after division, and
 the information related to the connection state includes information related to which outdoor unit and which indoor unit the refrigerant pipe is connected to.   
     
     
         5 . The support system according to  claim 1 , wherein the processor is configured to output information related to a connection state of the refrigerant system after update such that the indoor unit that belongs to any of a plurality of the refrigerant systems before update belongs to the refrigerant system that is different after update, and
 the information related to the connection state includes information related to which outdoor unit and which indoor unit the refrigerant pipe is connected to.   
     
     
         6 . The support system according to  claim 5 , wherein, when a plurality of the indoor units that belongs to a first refrigerant system of any of the plurality of refrigerant systems before update is disposed across a plurality of rooms, the processor is configured to
 output the information related to the connection state of the refrigerant system after update such that the indoor unit disposed in a portion of the plurality of rooms belongs to a second refrigerant system different from the first refrigerant system after update, and   output the information related to the connection state of the refrigerant system after update such that the second refrigerant system has a smaller number of the indoor units that belong thereto or a smaller amount of charged refrigerant than the first refrigerant system.   
     
     
         7 . The support system according to  claim 1 , wherein
 the processor is configured to:
 acquire a lower flammability limit of a refrigerant charged in the refrigerant system, 
 determine whether a safety device needs to be installed in the refrigerant system, based on the acquired lower flammability limit of refrigerant, and 
 generate at least one proposed post-update refrigerant system configuration refrigerant system, based on a determination result. 
   
     
     
         8 . The support system according to  claim 1 , wherein the at least one proposed post-update refrigerant system configuration specifies at least one of a replacement outdoor unit, a replacement indoor unit, or a replacement refrigerant pipe having different specifications from a corresponding component of the refrigerant system before update. 
     
     
         9 . The support system according to  claim 1 , wherein the at least one alternative proposed post-update refrigerant system configuration comprises a change to at least one of the outdoor unit, one of the plurality of indoor units, or one of the refrigerant pipes. 
     
     
         10 . The support system according to  claim 9 , wherein the change comprises replacing a refrigerant pipe with a refrigerant pipe of a smaller diameter. 
     
     
         11 . The support system according to  claim 1 , wherein the maximum amount of refrigerant allowed to be retained in one of the one or more rooms is calculated based on a volume of the room and a lower flammability limit (LFL) of the refrigerant. 
     
     
         12 . The support system according to  claim 1 , wherein the at least one alternative proposed post-update refrigerant system configuration comprises dividing the refrigerant system before the update into two or more separate refrigerant systems. 
     
     
         13 . The support system according to  claim 1 , wherein the processor is further configured to:
 on condition that the first amount exceeds the second amount, present, as an alternative to the at least one proposed post-update refrigerant system configuration, information necessary for an installation of a safety device in the refrigerant system.   
     
     
         14 . The support system according to  claim 13 , wherein the safety device is a ventilation device for discharging a leaked refrigerant to an outside of a property or a sensor for detecting refrigerant leakage in the room. 
     
     
         15 . The support system according to  claim 13 , wherein the processor is further configured to:
 output information that compares a cost required for updating the refrigerant system according to the at least one proposed post-update refrigerant system configuration with a cost required for the installation of the safety device.   
     
     
         16 . A support method for supporting update of a refrigerant system to which an outdoor unit, an indoor unit, and a refrigerant pipe that connects the outdoor unit and the indoor unit belong, the method comprising:
 calculating a first amount, which is an amount of refrigerant charged in the refrigerant system after update, based on information related to at least one of the outdoor unit, the indoor unit, and the refrigerant pipe of the refrigerant system before update;   acquiring a second amount, which is a maximum allowable amount of refrigerant charged in the refrigerant system after update or a maximum amount of refrigerant allowed to be retained in a room when a refrigerant leaks into the room from the indoor unit and the refrigerant pipe that belong to the refrigerant system after update; and   supporting update of the refrigerant system by presenting, as information related to the refrigerant system after update, information related to the refrigerant system in which the calculated first amount does not exceed the acquired second amount.   
     
     
         17 . The method according to  claim 16 , wherein automatically generating includes:
 identifying, from among a plurality of existing refrigerant systems before update, a first refrigerant system corresponding to the calculated first amount and a second refrigerant system having a refrigerant charge that is less than the second amount; and   modifying a connection state by reassigning at least one indoor unit from the first refrigerant system to the second refrigerant system, to create a modified first refrigerant system and a modified second refrigerant system; and   outputting the proposed post-update refrigerant system configuration, including the modified connection state.   
     
     
         18 . A non-transitory computer readable storage device having computer readable instructions that when executed by circuitry cause the circuitry to perform the method according to  claim 16 . 
     
     
         19 . Control circuitry for controlling a support system supporting update of a refrigerant system to which an outdoor unit, an indoor unit, and a refrigerant pipe that connects the outdoor unit and the indoor unit belong, wherein the control circuitry is configured to:
 calculate a first amount, which is an amount of refrigerant charged in the refrigerant system after update, based on information related to at least one of the outdoor unit, the indoor unit, and the refrigerant pipe that belong to the refrigerant system before update;   acquire a second amount, which is a maximum allowable amount of refrigerant charged in the refrigerant system after update or a maximum amount of refrigerant allowed to be retained in a room when a refrigerant leaks into the room from the indoor unit and the refrigerant pipe that belong to the refrigerant system after update; and   support update of the refrigerant system by presenting, as information related to the refrigerant system after update, information related to the refrigerant system in which the calculated first amount does not exceed the acquired second amount.