HVAC zone control panel with constant function buttons
First Claim
1. A zone control panel having a user interface, the user interface comprising:
- a display;
a controller configured to control a plurality of HVAC zones, the controller coupled to the display for displaying a menu on the display, wherein the menu is configured to allow a user to set one or more parameters of the zone control panel;
two or more buttons separate from the display and coupled to the controller, wherein each of the two or more buttons has a unique and constant function, wherein a first subset of the two or more buttons have a unique and constant function for manipulating the menu, and a second subset of the two or more buttons have a unique and constant function for setting one or more parameters of the zone control panel via the menu; and
wherein the menu comprises a sequence of menu screens, wherein the first subset of the two or more buttons include a BACK button to move backwards in the sequence of menu screens and a NEXT button to move forwards in the sequence of menu screens.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A zone control panel that is easy and intuitive to use and to program. In some embodiments, a zone control panel may be configured to have an easy to use, single level menu structure with, for example, a configuration mode and/or a checkout mode. The configuration mode may, if present, include a number of menu screens sometimes without any sub-menu levels. Likewise, the checkout mode may, if present, include a number of menu screens sometimes without any sub-menu levels. A mode selector may be provided to select a particular mode, after which, the menu screens that correspond to the selected mode may be sequentially displayed to the user. Other features and aspects are also disclosed.
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Citations
18 Claims
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1. A zone control panel having a user interface, the user interface comprising:
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a display; a controller configured to control a plurality of HVAC zones, the controller coupled to the display for displaying a menu on the display, wherein the menu is configured to allow a user to set one or more parameters of the zone control panel; two or more buttons separate from the display and coupled to the controller, wherein each of the two or more buttons has a unique and constant function, wherein a first subset of the two or more buttons have a unique and constant function for manipulating the menu, and a second subset of the two or more buttons have a unique and constant function for setting one or more parameters of the zone control panel via the menu; and wherein the menu comprises a sequence of menu screens, wherein the first subset of the two or more buttons include a BACK button to move backwards in the sequence of menu screens and a NEXT button to move forwards in the sequence of menu screens. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4)
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5. A zone control panel having a user interface, the user interface comprising:
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a display; a controller configured to control a plurality of HVAC zones, the controller coupled to the display for displaying a menu on the display, wherein the menu is configured to allow a user to set one or more parameters of the zone control panel; two or more buttons separate from the display and coupled to the controller, wherein each of the two or more buttons has a unique and constant function, wherein a first subset of the two or more buttons have a unique and constant function for manipulating the menu, and a second subset of the two or more buttons have a unique and constant function for setting one or more parameters of the zone control panel via the menu; and wherein the menu includes a first sequence of menu screens that correspond to a first menu mode, and a second sequence of menu screens that correspond to a second menu mode, wherein each of the two or more buttons retain their unique and constant function whether the menu is in the first menu mode or second menu mode. - View Dependent Claims (6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. A zone control panel having a user interface, the user interface comprising:
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a display; a controller configured to control a plurality of HVAC zones, the controller coupled to the display for displaying a menu on the display, wherein the menu is configured to allow a user to set one or more parameters of the zone control panel; two or more buttons separate from the display and coupled to the controller, wherein each of the two or more buttons has a unique and constant function, wherein a first subset of the two or more buttons have a unique and constant function for manipulating the menu, and a second subset of the two or more buttons have a unique and constant function for setting one or more parameters of the zone control panel via the menu; wherein each of the two or more buttons comprise distinct markings disposed on or near each of the respective buttons that provide an indication to a user of the unique and constant function of the corresponding button; and wherein the menu includes a number of menu screens, and wherein at least some of the menu screens display a marking that is similar to the distinct marking of at least one of the respective buttons to show a user which button(s) should be used for that menu screen.
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11. A zone control panel having a user interface, the user interface comprising:
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a display; a controller configured to control a plurality of HVAC zones, the controller coupled to the display for displaying a menu on the display, wherein the menu includes two or more menu modes, and for each menu mode, the menu includes a series of menu screens including a first menu screen to a last menu screen that are all at a common menu level with no sub-menu screens; and two or more buttons separate from the display and coupled to the controller, wherein each of the two or more buttons has a unique and constant function in relation to the menu screens regardless of the menu mode. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13)
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14. A zone control panel having a user interface, the user interface comprising:
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a display; a controller configured to control a plurality of HVAC zones, the controller coupled to the display for displaying a menu on the display, wherein the menu includes two or more menu screens used by a user for configuring the zone control panel; two or more buttons separate from the display and coupled to the controller, wherein each of the two or more buttons has a unique and constant function in relation to the menu screens that are used for configuring the zone control panel; and the two or more buttons having distinct markings disposed on or near the respective buttons that provide an indication of the unique and constant function of the corresponding button. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18)
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Specification