Warm air furnace baselining and diagnostic enhancements using rewritable non-volatile memory
First Claim
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1. A method for warm air furnace diagnostics comprising:
- determining a first metric of performance of the furnace at a first time;
comparing the first metric of performance with a baseline metric, whereby a performance variation value is obtained; and
at least partially in response to the performance variation, providing a notification to a user.
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Abstract
A warm-air furnace is adapted to provide diagnostic enhancements and more robust installation. In an embodiment, sensing equipment aboard the furnace is used to determine a first performance metric during installation of the furnace. That performance metric is then compared with a baseline metric that may have been obtained at a factory in order to obtain a performance variation value. At least partially in response to the performance variation, a notification is provided to a user. The notification may be an indication of poor installation or shipping damage, present failure and/or predicted future failure, for instance.
23 Citations
23 Claims
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1. A method for warm air furnace diagnostics comprising:
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determining a first metric of performance of the furnace at a first time;
comparing the first metric of performance with a baseline metric, whereby a performance variation value is obtained; and
at least partially in response to the performance variation, providing a notification to a user. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A warm air furnace with diagnostics comprising:
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a data storage for storing furnace performance data, wherein the furnace performance data includes a baseline measure and a first metric;
a processor communicatively couple with the data storage;
a set of instructions stored in the data storage and executable by the processor, wherein the set of instructions provide for (i) comparing the first metric with the baseline metric, and (ii) storing furnace performance data in the rewritable data storage; and
sensing circuitry for obtaining furnace performance data during operation of the warm air furnace, wherein the sensing circuitry is communicatively coupled with the processor. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18)
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19. A method for detecting a fault in a warm air furnace, comprising in combination:
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measuring a level of current consumption during at least one operational stage of the warm air furnace wherein the level of current consumption of the warm air furnace depends on whether an ignition element, an inducer, and a fan are activated;
determining a performance variation between the measured level of current consumption and a previously measured value of current consumption for the at least one operational stage; and
detecting a fault in the warm air furnace if the performance variation exceeds a threshold amount. - View Dependent Claims (20, 21, 22)
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23. A method of maintaining a furnace comprising:
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determining a first set of performance values for the furnace at a first time;
recording the first set of performance values in a data storage of an electronic control device of the furnace;
comparing the first set of performance values to a historic set of performance values for the furnace; and
in response to a result of the comparing step, predicting a future fault of an element of the furnace.
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Specification