THERMOSTAT WITH POWER STEALING DELAY INTERVAL AT TRANSITIONS BETWEEN POWER STEALING STATES
First Claim
1. A thermostat, comprising:
- at least one Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) wire connector configured to receive at least one HVAC wire including at least one call relay wire;
a powering circuit, including an energy-storage device, that is coupled to said at least one call relay wire and configured to provide electrical power to the thermostat by power stealing therefrom, said power stealing including an active power stealing mode and an inactive power stealing mode;
wherein said powering circuit is configured to substantially suspend said power stealing for at least a first time interval when transitioning from the inactive power stealing mode to the active power stealing mode; and
wherein said powering circuit provides said electrical power to the thermostat during said times of substantially suspended power stealing at least in part by drawing power from said energy-storage device.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
A thermostat includes a plurality of HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) wire connectors including a connection to at least one call relay wire. The thermostat may also include a powering circuit, including a rechargeable battery, which is configured to provide electrical power to the thermostat by power stealing from a selected call relay wire. The power stealing may comprise an active power stealing mode, in which power is taken from the same selected call relay wire that is used to call for an HVAC function, and an inactive power stealing mode in which, in which no active call is being made. The powering circuit may be configured to substantially suspend (or at least reduce the level of) power stealing for at least a first time period following each transition of the thermostat from between operating states.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A thermostat, comprising:
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at least one Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) wire connector configured to receive at least one HVAC wire including at least one call relay wire; a powering circuit, including an energy-storage device, that is coupled to said at least one call relay wire and configured to provide electrical power to the thermostat by power stealing therefrom, said power stealing including an active power stealing mode and an inactive power stealing mode; wherein said powering circuit is configured to substantially suspend said power stealing for at least a first time interval when transitioning from the inactive power stealing mode to the active power stealing mode; and wherein said powering circuit provides said electrical power to the thermostat during said times of substantially suspended power stealing at least in part by drawing power from said energy-storage device. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. A thermostat, comprising:
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at least one HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) wire connector configured to receive at least one HVAC wire including at least one call relay wire; a powering circuit, including an energy-storage device, that is coupled to the at least one call relay wire and configured to provide electrical power to the thermostat by power stealing therefrom, said power stealing including an active power stealing mode and an inactive power stealing mode; wherein said powering circuit is configured to substantially suspend said power stealing for a first time interval when transitioning from the inactive power stealing mode to the active power stealing mode, wherein said first time interval is at least 5 seconds. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
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15. A method of powering a thermostat coupled to an HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) system, the method comprising:
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receiving at least one HVAC wire including at least one call relay wire; providing electrical power to the thermostat by power stealing from said at least one call relay wire, said power stealing including an active power stealing mode and an inactive power stealing mode; and substantially suspending said power stealing for at least a first time interval following a transition from the second operating mode to the first operating mode; and providing said electrical power to the thermostat during said times of substantially suspended power stealing at least in part by drawing power from an energy-storage device of the thermostat. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification