Temperature conditioning system staging control and method
First Claim
1. A control for a temperature conditioning system having a plurality of stages that may be selectively energized to meet a temperature conditioning demand in a zone, said control comprisinga. a temperature sensor disposed within the zone;
- b. means for selecting a zone setpoint temperature; and
c. means responsive to the temperature sensor and the setpoint selecting means, for controlling the temperature conditioning stages as a function both of the deviation of the zone temperature from the setpoint temperature, and of the rate of change of the temperature in the zone, said control means including means for selectively energizing or de-energizing the stages of temperature conditioning depending upon the range in which the deviation of the zone temperature from the setpoint temperature lies, and predefined limits for the rate of change in the zone temperature that are associated with that range.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A control for a multi-stage heating and cooling system used to temperature conditioning a comfort zone. The control includes a microprocessor responsive to a temperature sensor installed in the comfort zone. Heating and cooling setpoints and a lookup table including a plurality of ranges for deviation of the comfort zone from the setpoint temperature and associated limits for the rate of change of the comfort zone temperature used in determining specific staging control actions are stored in solid state memory accessed by the microprocessor.
The stages of temperature conditioning are controlled as a function of both the deviation of the zone temperature from the heating or cooling setpoint (depending on the system operating mode), and the rate of change of zone temperature. The mode of operation, i.e., heating or cooling, is determined by the relative values of the zone temperature and the heating and cooling setpoint.
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Citations
15 Claims
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1. A control for a temperature conditioning system having a plurality of stages that may be selectively energized to meet a temperature conditioning demand in a zone, said control comprising
a. a temperature sensor disposed within the zone; -
b. means for selecting a zone setpoint temperature; and c. means responsive to the temperature sensor and the setpoint selecting means, for controlling the temperature conditioning stages as a function both of the deviation of the zone temperature from the setpoint temperature, and of the rate of change of the temperature in the zone, said control means including means for selectively energizing or de-energizing the stages of temperature conditioning depending upon the range in which the deviation of the zone temperature from the setpoint temperature lies, and predefined limits for the rate of change in the zone temperature that are associated with that range. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
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7. A control for a temperature conditioning system having a plurality of stages that may be selectively energized to meet a temperature conditioning demand within a zone, said control comprising
a. a temperature sensor disposed within the zone and operative to sense its temperature; -
b. means for selecting a zone setpoint temperature; and c. means responsive to the temperature sensor and the setpoint temperature selector means, for controlling the temperature conditioning stages, said concontrol means including microprocessor means for; i. determining the deviation of the zone temperature from the setpoint temperature; and ii. determining the rate of change of the zone temperature; and iii. selecting an appropriate range for the deviation of the zone temperature from setpoint, from a plurality of predefined ranges, by comparison to the deviation determined in (c) (i); and iv. dependent upon the rate of change of the zone temperature as compared to one or more limits associated with said appropriate range selected in (c) (iii), either;
energizing one or more stages, or de-energizing one or more stages, or making no change in the number of stages of temperature conditioning that are energized. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A method for controlling a temperature conditioning system having a plurality of stages that may be selectively energized to meet a temperature conditioning demand in a zone, said method comprising the steps of
a. sensing the temperature in the zone; -
b. selecting a zone setpoint temperature; c. determining the deviation of the zone temperature from the setpoint temperature; d. determining the rate of change of the zone temperature; e. comparing the deviation of the zone temperature from the setpoint temperature to a plurality of predefined ranges to determine an appropriate range in which said deviation lies; and f. dependent upon the rate of change of the zone temperature as compared to one or more limits associated with said appropriate range determined in (e), either; i. energizing one or more stages of temperature conditioning;
orii. de-energizing one or more stages;
oriii. making no change in the number of stages that are energized. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15)
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Specification