HUMIDITY CONTROL ALGORITHM
First Claim
1. A method of operating an HVAC system capable of dehumidifying and cooling an indoor air environment comprising the steps of:
- sensing the humidity in a location having the indoor air environment controlled by the HVAC system;
comparing the sensed humidity to a humidity set point;
activating the HVAC system when the sensed humidity exceeds the humidity set point;
sensing a starting temperature in the location having the indoor air environment controlled by the HVAC system upon activation of the HVAC system;
monitoring a current temperature in the location having the indoor air temperature controlled by the HVAC system;
comparing the starting temperature to the current temperature; and
deactivating the HVAC system when the current temperature falls below the starting temperature by more than a temperature limit.
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0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A system and method is provided to control the operation of an HVAC system to remove humidity from an indoor air environment without cooling the indoor air environment. The system includes a thermostat that operates the HVAC system to remove humidity when the sensed humidity falls below a humidity set point. After operation of the HVAC system, the thermostat monitors whether the temperature within the indoor air environment falls due to the operation of the HVAC system. If the temperature within the indoor air environment falls consistently, the humidity control algorithm determines that the HVAC system cannot operate without cooling and prevents future operation of the HVAC system to provide only dehumidification. If, however, the humidity control algorithm determines that the HVAC system can operate to dehumidify without cooling, the humidity control algorithm operates the HVAC system accordingly.
47 Citations
20 Claims
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1. A method of operating an HVAC system capable of dehumidifying and cooling an indoor air environment comprising the steps of:
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sensing the humidity in a location having the indoor air environment controlled by the HVAC system; comparing the sensed humidity to a humidity set point; activating the HVAC system when the sensed humidity exceeds the humidity set point; sensing a starting temperature in the location having the indoor air environment controlled by the HVAC system upon activation of the HVAC system; monitoring a current temperature in the location having the indoor air temperature controlled by the HVAC system; comparing the starting temperature to the current temperature; and deactivating the HVAC system when the current temperature falls below the starting temperature by more than a temperature limit. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
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7. A method of operating an HVAC system capable of dehumidifying and cooling an indoor air environment comprising the steps of:
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sensing the humidity in a location having the indoor air environment controlled by the HVAC system; comparing the sensed humidity to a humidity set point; activating the HVAC system when the sensed humidity exceeds the humidity set point; sensing a starting temperature of the air flow from the HVAC system upon activation of the HVAC system; monitoring a current temperature of the air flow from the HVAC system after activation of the HVAC system; comparing the current temperature of the air flow to the starting temperature; and deactivating the HVAC system when the current temperature of the air flow falls below the starting temperature by more than a temperature limit. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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13. A method of operating a thermostat to control the activation of an HVAC system, the method comprising the steps of:
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sensing the humidity of an indoor air environment controlled by the HVAC system; comparing the sensed humidity to a humidity set point entered into the thermostat; activating the HVAC system when the sensed humidity exceeds the humidity set point; sensing a starting temperature related to the indoor air environment upon activation of the HVAC system; monitoring a current temperature related to the indoor air environment after activation of the HVAC system; comparing the current temperature to the starting temperature; and deactivating the HVAC system when the current temperature falls below the starting temperature by more than a temperature limit. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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20. A system for controlling the operation of an HVAC system capable of dehumidifying and cooling an indoor air environment, the system comprising:
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a thermostat positionable within the indoor air environment to be controlled by the HVAC system, the thermostat having operational output in communication with the HVAC system; a temperature sensor coupled to the thermostat and operable to determine the air temperature of the indoor air environment; a humidity sensor coupled to the thermostat and operable to determine the humidity of the indoor air environment; and an air flow probe positionable downstream from the dehumidifier to sense the temperature of the air flow from the HVAC system.
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Specification