HVAC CONTROLLER HAVING A PARAMETER ADJUSTMENT ELEMENT WITH A QUALITATIVE INDICATOR
First Claim
Patent Images
1. An HVAC controller configured to control one or more components of an HVAC system that can operate to control an environmental condition of an indoor space of a building, the HVAC controller comprising:
- a display;
a controller in communication with the display, the controller configured to;
display on the display a setpoint adjustment element for assisting a user in selecting an appropriate setpoint value for the environmental condition from a range of available setpoint values, the setpoint adjustment element concurrently displaying two or more sub-ranges on the display, wherein each of the two or more sub-ranges is labeled with at least one descriptive word that provides a qualitative indication of the setpoint values that fall within the corresponding sub-range, wherein a selected setpoint value corresponds to a desired value for the environmental condition within the building; and
operate an algorithm that at least partially controls the one or more components of the HVAC system in accordance with the selected setpoint value to drive the environmental condition in the indoor space of the building toward the selected setpoint value.
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Abstract
An HVAC controller is described that is configured to be more intuitive and user friendly to program and operate than convention HVAC controllers. In some instances, the HVAC controller may include a touch screen interface that provides greater flexibility in displaying information to the user and/or soliciting information from the user.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. An HVAC controller configured to control one or more components of an HVAC system that can operate to control an environmental condition of an indoor space of a building, the HVAC controller comprising:
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a display; a controller in communication with the display, the controller configured to; display on the display a setpoint adjustment element for assisting a user in selecting an appropriate setpoint value for the environmental condition from a range of available setpoint values, the setpoint adjustment element concurrently displaying two or more sub-ranges on the display, wherein each of the two or more sub-ranges is labeled with at least one descriptive word that provides a qualitative indication of the setpoint values that fall within the corresponding sub-range, wherein a selected setpoint value corresponds to a desired value for the environmental condition within the building; and operate an algorithm that at least partially controls the one or more components of the HVAC system in accordance with the selected setpoint value to drive the environmental condition in the indoor space of the building toward the selected setpoint value. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 16)
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15. An HVAC controller configured to control one or more components of an HVAC system, the HVAC controller comprising:
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a user interface including a display; a controller in communication with the user interface including the display, the controller configured to operate an algorithm that at least partially controls the one or more components of the HVAC system according to a selected setpoint value received from a user via the user interface; and the controller configured to display on the display a setpoint adjustment element for selecting a selected setpoint value from a range of available setpoint values, the setpoint adjustment element including at least three distinct sub-ranges along the range of available setpoint values, wherein each of the at least three distinct sub-ranges includes a label that provides a qualitative indication for the setpoint values that fall within that sub-range, and wherein at least one of the at least three distinct sub ranges defines a comfort range of setpoint values bounded by a lower range and a higher range of setpoint values.
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17. A method for assisting a user in selecting an appropriate setpoint value of an HVAC controller from a range of available setpoint values for an environmental condition of an indoor space of a building serviced by the HVAC controller, the method comprising:
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displaying a setpoint adjustment element on a display, wherein the setpoint adjustment element concurrently displays two or more sub-ranges along the range of available setpoint values, wherein each of the two or more sub-ranges is labeled with at least one descriptive word that provides a qualitative indication of the setpoint values that fall within the corresponding sub-range, the setpoint adjustment element also displaying an indicator that can be moved by the user along the range of available setpoint values to select a selected setpoint value; receiving a selected setpoint value by monitoring the indicator of the setpoint adjustment element; and operating an algorithm in an HVAC controller to at least partially control one or more components of an HVAC system in accordance with the selected setpoint value to drive the environmental condition in the indoor space of the building toward the selected setpoint value. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20)
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Specification