Efficient distribution of heating, ventilation and air conditioning functionality

• US 10,386,088 B2
• Filed: 11/21/2018
• Issued: 08/20/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 01/19/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Lennox Industries Incorporated (Lennox International Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Lennox Industries Incorporated (Lennox International Incorporated)
• Inventors: Castillo, Daniel A., Charavda, Jayprakash, Ho, Nguyen T., Khiani, Sunil K.
• Primary Examiner(s): Karim, Ziaul
• Application Number:
  US16/197,537
• Publication Number:
  US 20190086115A1
• Time in Patent Office: 272 Days
• Field of Search: 700276-286
• 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 11/38 Failure diagnosis
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/52 Indication arrangements, e.g. displays
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/523 for displaying temperature data
• 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 2110/10 Temperature
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 2140/00 Control inputs relating to system states
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 15/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/042 using digital processors G05B19/05 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/21157 Broken, open line, cable, circuit, faulty connection
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/25168 Domotique, access through internet protocols
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0484 for the control of specific functions or operations, e.g. selecting or manipulating an object, an image or a displayed text element, setting a parameter value or selecting a range
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/0004 applied to control information
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2823 Reporting information sensed by appliance or service execution status of appliance services in a home automation network device-related reporting H04L43/065; arrangements in telecontrol or telemetry systems for selectively calling a substation from a main station, in which substation desired apparatus is selected for applying a control signal thereto or for obtaining measured values therefrom H04Q9/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2825 Reporting to a device located outside the home and the home network access arrangements H04L12/2856; for remote control or remote monitoring of applications H04L67/025; telephonic communication systems adapted for combination with telemetering systems H04M11/002
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/283 Processing of data at an internetworking point of a home automation network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2836 : Protocol conversion between an external network and a home network controlling appliance services of a home automation network from a device located outside the home and the home network H04L12/2818; protocol conversion H04L69/08; adaptation of digital video signals for transport over a specific home network H04N7/24
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/2841 : Wireless
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/285 : Generic home appliances, e.g. refrigerators
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 : in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 : specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/70 : Services for machine-to-machine communication [M2M] or machine type communication [MTC]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 : Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 : WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]

Abstract

A control unit for controlling an HVAC network that includes a first interface operable to facilitate communications with a plurality of HVAC units and a second interface operable to facilitate communication with an interactive display. The control unit further includes a system clock, a Wi-Fi module, a universal settings database, and a processor. The processor is configured to connect to the communications network using the Wi-Fi module, to detect a sibling control unit over the communications network, and to receive a sibling control unit time for the sibling control unit. The processor is further configured to determine that the control unit time is synchronized with the sibling control unit time, to generate a setting update that includes values for one or more settings, and to transmit the setting update to the sibling control unit.

Claims

1. A control unit for controlling a heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) network, comprising:

a first interface operable to facilitate communications with a plurality of HVAC units;

a second interface operable to facilitate communication with an interactive display;

a system clock configured to implement coordinated universal time to generate a control unit time;

a Wi-Fi module operable to communicate with a communications network;

a universal settings database comprising a plurality of settings, wherein the settings comprise;

a language preference;

a temperature unit preference;

a password for the communications network; and

an address of the control unit;

a processor communicatively coupled to the first and second interfaces, the system clock, the universal settings database, and the Wi-Fi module, the processor operable to;

connect to the communications network using the Wi-Fi module;

detect a sibling control unit over the communications network;

receive a sibling control unit time for the sibling control unit over the communications network;

compare the sibling control unit time to the control unit time;

determine that the control unit time is synchronized with the sibling control unit time based on the comparison;

generate a setting update for one or more settings from the plurality of settings, wherein the setting update comprises values for the one or more settings; and

transmit the setting update to the sibling control unit.

2. The control unit of claim 1, wherein the second interface is operable to receive a first setting update from the interactive display;

and

the processor is further operable to;

determine that the first setting is associated with one of the plurality of settings in the universal settings database;

update the universal settings database with the first setting; and

transmit the first setting to the sibling control unit over the communications network using the Wi-Fi module.

3. The control unit of claim 1, wherein the second interface is operable to receive a second setting update from the interactive display;

and

the processor is further operable to;

determine that the second setting is not associated with one of the plurality of settings in the universal settings database;

store the second setting in a local settings database; and

determine that the second setting update should not be transmitted to the second control unit.

4. The control unit of claim 1, wherein the Wi-Fi module is operable to receive a setting update notification from the sibling control unit, the setting update notification comprising an update time;

the processor is further operable to;

determine that the setting update notification is associated with one of the plurality of settings in the universal settings database;

compare the update time of the setting update notification to a stored setting time of the one of the plurality of settings;

determine that the update time is more recent than the stored setting time; and

update the one of the plurality of settings with the setting update notification.

5. The control unit of claim 1, wherein the Wi-Fi module is operable to receive a setting update notification from the sibling control unit, the setting update notification comprising an update time;

the processor is further operable to;

determine that the setting update notification is associated with one of the plurality of settings in the universal settings database;

compare the update time of the setting update notification to a stored setting time of the one of the plurality of settings;

determine that the update time is older than the stored setting time; and

retain the one of the plurality of settings in the universal settings database.

6. The control unit of claim 5, wherein the processor is further operable to transmit, using the Wi-Fi module, the retained one of the plurality of settings to the sibling control unit.

7. The control unit of claim 1, wherein the second interface receives an update to a schedule for operating the plurality of HVAC units;

and

the processor is further operable to transmit, using the Wi-Fi module, the update to the schedule to the sibling control unit.

8. The control unit of claim 1, wherein the communications network comprises a wireless access point connected to the Internet;

and

the processor further operable to;

connect, using the Wi-Fi module, to a control server over the Internet using the wireless access point;

receive an update to one of the plurality of settings from the control server;

determine that the one of the plurality of settings is a universal setting; and

transmit, using the Wi-Fi module, the update to the sibling control unit over the communications network.

9. The control unit of claim 1, wherein the communications network is a Wi-Fi network.

10. The control unit of claim 1, wherein the communications network is an HVAC control network, wherein the Wi-Fi module uses a Wi-Fi direct protocol to communicate with the sibling control unit.