Cognitive climate control based on individual thermal-comfort-related data

• US 10,247,438 B2
• Filed: 03/20/2017
• Issued: 04/02/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 03/20/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kyndryl Incorporated
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Bender, Michael, Boss, Gregory J., Fox, Jeremy R., Hamilton, II, Rick A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Everett, Christopher E.
• Application Number:
  US15/463,162
• Publication Number:
  US 20180266716A1
• Time in Patent Office: 743 Days
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/00 Control or safety arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/30 for purposes related to the operation of the system, e.g. for safety or monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/52 Indication arrangements, e.g. displays
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/56 Remote control
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/58 using Internet communication
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/62 characterised by the type of control or by internal processing, e.g. using fuzzy logic, adaptive control or estimation of values
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/63 Electronic processing
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/64 using pre-stored data
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 2120/10 Occupancy
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 2120/14 Activity of occupants
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 2120/20 Feedback from users
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/042 using digital processors G05B19/05 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/2614 HVAC, heating, ventillation, climate control
• CPC Class Codes: G06N 20/00 Machine learning
• CPC Class Codes: G06N 5/043 Distributed expert systems; Blackboards

Abstract

A facility is provided for controlling climate settings for a space. The facility includes ascertaining by a cognitive control, thermal-comfort-related data for one or more individuals within the space, and determining climate settings for a climate system of the space using, at least in part, the thermal-comfort-related data of the individual(s) within the space. In addition, the facility includes identifying, by the cognitive control, a climate adjustment to be made for an individual of the individual(s) based, at least in part, on thermal-comfort-related data acquired for the individual, and based on identifying the climate adjustment, automatically controlling one or more climate adjusting devices of the climate system associated with a location of the individual within the space to enhance climate of the individual within the space.

Claims

1. A method of controlling climate settings for a space, the method comprising:

ascertaining, by a cognitive control, thermal-comfort-related data for multiple individuals within the space, the ascertaining comprising obtaining a preferred ambient temperature for each individual of the multiple individuals, the thermal-comfort-related data comprising the preferred ambient temperature(s) for the multiple individuals;

determining and applying space-based climate settings for a climate system of the space using, at least in part, the thermal-comfort-related data of the multiple individuals within the space, wherein determining the space-based climate settings comprises determining the climate settings that meet a majority of the preferred ambient temperature(s) for the multiple individuals within the space;

based on applying the space-based climate settings, identifying, by the cognitive control, a local climate adjustment to be made for an individual of the multiple individuals based, at least in part, on thermal-comfort-related data ascertained for the individual; and

based on identifying the local climate adjustment, automatically controlling one or more climate adjusting devices of a plurality of climate adjustive devices of the space, the one or more climate adjusting devices being associated with a location of the individual within the space, and the one or more climate adjusting devices being controlled to enhance local climate of the individual within the space.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein ascertaining the thermal-comfort-related data comprises monitoring the multiple individuals within the space to obtain current physiological data for the multiple individuals within the space, the thermal-comfort-related data comprising the obtained current physiological data for the multiple individuals.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the monitoring comprises using one or more physiological monitors associated with the multiple individuals to obtain the current physiological data.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the monitoring the multiple individuals uses at least one item from the group consisting of a video camera, a smartphone, and natural language processing of verbal or text queues.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the ascertaining comprises referencing historical data for the multiple individuals indicative of the preferred ambient temperature(s), and determining the climate settings includes weighting the preferred ambient temperature of one individual of the multiple individuals based on a projected length of time that the one individual is to be within the space.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising ascertaining, by the cognitive control, the projected length of time that the one individual is to be in the space by referencing an electronic calendar of the one individual.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the identifying further includes referencing historical data to cognitively ascertain a preferred ambient temperature for the individual, and based on the preferred ambient temperature, and the ascertained thermal-comfort-related data for the individual, identifying the climate adjustment to be made for the individual.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising accounting for a climate impact within the space in controlling the climate adjusting device(s) associated with the location of the individual within the space, the accounting comprising adjusting one or more other climate settings for the space based on the controlling of the climate adjusting device(s) associated with the location of the individual within the space.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising referencing, by the cognitive control, an electronic calendar of the individual to determine where the individual is coming from prior to entering the space, and based at least in part thereon, providing one or more short term settings of the climate adjusting device(s) associated with the location of the individual within the space.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the automatically controlling comprises modifying control of the climate adjusting device(s) for a period of time based on historical data for the individual and the ascertained thermal-comfort-related data of the individual.

11. A system for controlling climate settings for a space, the system comprising:

a memory; and

a processor communicatively coupled to the memory, wherein the system performs a method comprising;

ascertaining, by a cognitive control, thermal-comfort-related data for multiple individuals within the space, the ascertaining comprising obtaining a preferred ambient temperature for each individual of the multiple individuals, the thermal-comfort-related data comprising the preferred ambient temperature(s) for the multiple individuals;

determining and applying space-based climate settings for a climate system of the space using, at least in part, the thermal-comfort-related data of the multiple individuals within the space, wherein determining the space-based climate settings comprises determining the climate settings that meet a majority of the preferred ambient temperature(s) for the multiple individuals within the space;

based on applying the space-based climate settings, identifying, by the cognitive control, a local climate adjustment to be made for an individual of the multiple individuals based, at least in part, on thermal-comfort-related data ascertained for the individual; and

based on identifying the local climate adjustment, automatically controlling one or more climate adjusting devices of a plurality of climate adjusting devices of the space, the one or more climate adjusting devices being associated within a location of the individual within the space, and the one or more climate adjusting device being controlled to enhance local climate of the individual within the space.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein ascertaining the thermal-comfort-related data comprises monitoring the multiple individuals within the space to obtain current physiological data for the multiple individuals within the space, the thermal-comfort-related data comprising the obtained current physiological data for the multiple individuals.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein the identifying further includes referencing historical data to cognitively ascertain a preferred ambient temperature for the individual, and based on the preferred ambient temperature, and the ascertained thermal-comfort-related data for the individual, identifying the climate adjustment to be made for the individual.

14. The system of claim 11, further comprising accounting for a climate impact within the space in controlling the climate adjusting device(s) associated with the location of the individual within the space, the accounting comprising adjusting one or more other climate settings for the space based on the controlling of the climate adjusting device(s) associated with the location of the individual within the space.

15. The system of claim 11, further comprising referencing, by the cognitive control, an electronic calendar of the individual to determine where the individual is coming from prior to entering the space, and based at least in part thereon, providing one or more short term settings of the climate adjusting device(s) associated with the location of the individual within the space.

16. The system of claim 11, wherein the automatically controlling comprises modifying control of the climate adjusting device(s) for a period of time based on historical data for the individual and the ascertained thermal-comfort-related data of the individual.

17. A computer program product for controlling climate settings for a space, the computer program product comprising:

a computer readable storage medium having computer readable program code embodied therewith, the computer readable program code being executable by a processor to perform a method comprising;

ascertaining, by a cognitive control, thermal-comfort-related data for multiple individuals within the space, the ascertaining comprising obtaining a preferred ambient temperature for each individual of the multiple individuals, the thermal-comfort-related data comprising the preferred ambient temperature(s) for the multiple individuals;

determining and applying space-based climate settings for a climate system of the space using, at least in part, the thermal-comfort-related data of the multiple individuals within the space, determining the space-based climate settings comprises determining the climate settings that meet a majority of the preferred ambient temperature(s) for the multiple individuals within the space;

based on applying the space-based climate settings, identifying, by the cognitive control, a local climate adjustment to be made for an individual of the multiple individuals based, at least in part, on thermal-comfort-related data ascertained for the individual; and

based on identifying the local climate adjustment, automatically controlling one or more climate adjusting devices of a plurality of climate adjusting devices of the space, the one or more climate adjusting devices being associated with a location of the individual within the space, and the one or more climate adjusting devices being controlled to enhance local climate of the individual within the space.