Location adjusted HVAC control

• US 6,865,449 B2
• Filed: 05/17/2002
• Issued: 03/08/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 05/17/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Carrier Corporation (Carrier Global Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Carrier Corporation (Carrier Global Corporation)
• Inventors: Dudley, Kevin F.
• Primary Examiner(s): Gandhi, Jayprakash N.
• Application Number:
  US10/147,400
• Publication Number:
  US 20030216838A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,026 Days
• Field of Search: 236/1, 236/51, 700275-278, 165/205, 165/209
• US Class Current: 700/276
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/30 for purposes related to the operation of the system, e.g. for safety or monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/62 characterised by the type of control or by internal processing, e.g. using fuzzy logic, adaptive control or estimation of values
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/65 for selecting an operating mode
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 2120/20 Feedback from users
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 23/1902 characterised by the use of a variable reference value
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 27/02 characterised by the use of electric means

Abstract

A system and method allows occupants in various locations to provide indications as to their respective levels of comfort. The indications as to comfort level are provided to a network computer. The network computer is operative to compute overall levels of comfort for each location by using a weighting factor for that location in combination with the indications as to levels of comfort These overall levels of comfort are sent to an HVAC control for further analysis prior to controlling the HVAC system that is to provide conditioned air to the locations. The resulting control of the HVAC system is influenced by the over weighting or under weighting factors used in computing the comfort levels for the locations.

Claims

1. A process for controlling a system that provides conditioned air to a plurality of locations, said process comprising the steps of:

collecting information as to levels of comfort from each location;

computing a level of comfort for each location using the collected information as well as further information concerning the need for conditioned air at each location relative to the need for conditioned air at other locations; and

transmitting indications as to the computed levels of comfort for each location to the system that provides conditioned air to the plurality of locations, wherein the system that provides conditioned air to the plurality of locations includes at least one HVAC control that is operative to control the provision of air to each of the locations and wherein said step of transmitting indications as to the computed levels of comfort for each location to the system that provides conditioned air to the plurality of locations comprises transmitting the indications as to the computed overall levels of comfort to the HVAC control that is operative to control the provision of air to each of the locations.

2. The process of claim 1 wherein said step of computing the level of comfort for each location comprises the step of:

using stored adjustment factors which have been previously generated based upon the need for conditioned air at each location relative to the need for conditioned air at other locations.

3. The process of claim 2 wherein the adjustment factors are defined relative to a numerical value of one with factors fractionally greater than one for locations requiring more conditioned air and factors being less than one for locations requiring less conditioned air.

4. The process of claim 2 wherein said step of computing a level of comfort for each location further comprises the steps of:

determining an overall level of comfort for each particular location based upon the collected information as to levels of comfort from these locations; and

applying the stored adjustment factor for the particular location to the previously determined overall level of comfort for the particular location.

5. The process of claim 4 wherein the adjustment factors are defined relative to a numerical value of one with factors fractionally greater than one for locations requiring more conditioned air and factors being less than one for locations requiring less conditioned air.

6. The process of claim 2 wherein the stored adjustment factors have been previously generated based upon the heat retention properties or by occupancy priority for the locations.

7. The process of claim 1 further comprising the steps of:

providing for the entry of one or more levels of comfort in a plurality of data entry devices at each location whereby said step of collecting information as to the levels of comfort comprises the step of collecting the one or more levels of comfort entered at the data entry devices at each location; and

wherein said step of computing a level comfort for each location comprises determining an overall level of comfort for each particular location from the collected information as to the levels of comfort entered at the particular location and adjusting the determined overall level for the particular location using the further information concerning the need for conditioned air at each location relative to the need for conditioned air at other locations.

8. The process of claim 7 wherein the further information concerning the need for conditioned air at each location relative to the need for conditioned air at other locations comprises stored adjustment factors for each location, each adjustment factor having been previously generated based upon the need for conditioned air at a respective location relative to the need for conditioned air at the other locations and wherein said step of adjusting the determined overall level of comfort for the particular location comprises the step of:

applying the stored adjustment factor for the location to the determined overall level of comfort for the particular location, the stored adjustment factor having been previously generated based upon the need for conditioned air at the particular location relative to the need for conditioned air at other locations.

9. The process of claim 8 wherein the stored adjustment factors have been previously generated based upon the heat retention properties or by occupancy priority for the location.

10. The process of claim 7 wherein said step of providing for the entry of one or more levels of comfort in a plurality of data entry devices comprises the steps of:

generating a menu of different comfort levels that may be selected at each data entry device; and

storing at least one comfort level that is selected in the data entry device.

11. A system for providing conditioned air to a plurality of locations, said system comprising:

at least one data entry device at each location, each data entry device being operative to provide for the selection of at least one level of comfort at the location;

at least one computer in communication with the plurality of data entry devices, said computer being operative to collect information as to the selections of comfort level entered at the data entry devices and being furthermore operative to compute an overall level of comfort for each location based upon the collected information and further information concerning the need for conditioned air at the location relative to the need for conditioned air at the other locations wherein the further information concerning the need for conditioned air at the location relative to the need for conditioned air at other locations comprises stored adjustment factors for each location, each adjustment factor having been previously generated based upon the need for conditioned air at a respective location relative to the need for conditioned air at other locations, said at least one computer is communication with the plurality of data entry devices being operative to use the stored adjustment factor for the particular location when computing a level of comfort for the particular location, the stored adjustment factor having been previously generated based upon the need for conditioned air at the particular location relative to the need for conditioned air at the other locations; and

at least one HVAC control being operative to control the provision of conditioned air to each of the locations in response to receipt of the computed overall levels of comfort for each location.

12. The system of claim 11 wherein the stored adjustment factors have been previously generated based upon the heat retention properties or by occupancy priority for the locations in which the particular groupings of entry devices are located.

13. The system of claim 12 wherein the adjustment factors are defined relative to numerical value of one with factors fractionally greater than one for locations requiring more conditioned air and factors being less than one for locations requiring less conditioned air.

14. The system of claim 11 wherein the adjustment factors are defined relative to a numerical value of one with factors fractionally greater than one for locations requiring more conditioned air and factors being less than one for locations requiring less conditioned air.

15. The system of claim 11 wherein said at least one computer in communication with the plurality of data entry devices is operative to determine an overall level of comfort for each particular location based upon the collected levels of comfort for the particular location and to thereafter apply the adjustment factor for the particular location to the previously determined overall level of comfort for the location.

16. The system of claim 15 wherein the stored adjustment factors have been previously generated based upon the heat retention properties or by occupancy priority for the locations in which the particular groupings of entry devices are located.

17. The system of claim 16 wherein the adjustment factors are defined relative to a numerical value of one with factors fractionally greater than one for locations requiring more conditioned air and factors being less than one for locations requiring less conditioned air.

18. The system of claim 11 wherein said data entry devices are operative to generate a menu of different comfort levels that may be selected at each data entry device, each said data entry device being operative to store at least one comfort level that has been selected for transmission to said at least one computer in communication with said data entry devices.