Demand control

• US 8,099,194 B2
• Filed: 05/23/2008
• Issued: 01/17/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 11/19/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Tutenlabs Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Prenova, Inc. (ENGIE SA)
• Inventors: Chambers, Gregory L., Van Meter, Kenneth
• Primary Examiner(s): Decady, Albert
• Assistant Examiner(s): Lee, Douglas S.
• Application Number:
  US12/126,566
• Publication Number:
  US 20090132092A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,334 Days
• Field of Search: 700/19, 700/83, 700/86, 700/276, 700/291, 700/300, 715/716, 454/258
• US Class Current: 700/276
• CPC Class Codes: G01D 4/004 Remote reading of utility meters to a fixed location
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 13/00 Adaptive control systems, i.e. systems automatically adjusting themselves to have a performance which is optimum according to some preassigned criterion G05B19/00 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/32 Means for saving power
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/06 Energy or water supply
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/1441 Countermeasures against malicious traffic countermeasures against attacks on cryptographic mechanisms H04L9/002

Abstract

Included are embodiments for demand control. At least one embodiment of a method includes sending a first control signal, the first control signal configured to indicate a first supply for an environment, the first supply based on a first environmental factor and a control setting and determining a change in a second environmental factor. Some embodiments include calculating a second supply for the environment, based on the determined change and sending a second control signal, the second control signal configured to indicate the second supply for the environment.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

monitoring a first environmental factor of an environment;

sending a first control signal to set a first supply for the environment, the first supply being based, at least in part, on the first environmental factor and a predefined business strategy;

monitoring a second environmental factor of the environment, the second environmental factor exhibiting a correlation with respect to the first environmental factor;

determining a change in the second environmental factor;

storing data related to the determined change;

predicting a future change in the second environmental factor based, at least in part, on the stored data;

calculating a second supply for the environment based, at least in part, on the predicted future change and the predefined business strategy; and

sending a second control signal to set the second supply at a time associated with a predicted occurrence of the predicted future change such that the second control signal is sent to alter the environment prior to the predicted occurrence.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the second environmental factor corresponds to a number of people in the environment.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the first control signal and the second control signal are sent to a heating ventilation and cooling (HVAC) system.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the first control signal and second control signal are configured to facilitate control of at least one of the following:

temperature, humidity, electrical power, and ventilation.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the first control signal and the second control signal are configured to facilitate control of a portion of the environment.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the monitoring, the determining, the storing, the predicting and the calculating are performed remotely from the environment.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the environment is a first of multiple environments being monitored.

8. A system comprising:

a first monitoring component operative to monitor a first environmental factor of an environment;

a sending component operative to send a first control signal to set a first supply for the environment, the first supply being based, at least in part, on a first environmental factor and a predefined business strategy;

a second monitoring component operative to monitor a second environmental factor of the environment, the second environmental factor exhibiting a correlation with respect to the first environmental factor;

a determining component operative to determine a change in the second environmental factor;

a storing component operative to store data related to the determined change;

a predicting component operative to predict a future change in the second environmental factor based, at least in part, on the stored data; and

a calculating component operative to calculate a second supply for the environment based, at least in part, on the predicted future change and the predefined business strategy;

wherein the sending component is further operative to send a second control signal to set the second supply at a time associated with a predicted occurrence of the predicted future change such that the second control signal is sent to alter the environment prior to the predicted occurrence.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the second environmental factor corresponds to a number of computing devices that are operating in the environment.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein the first control signal and second control signal are configured to facilitate control of at least one of the following:

temperature, humidity, electrical power, and ventilation.

11. The system of claim 8, wherein the first control signal and the second control signal are configured to facilitate control of a portion of the environment.

12. The system of claim 8, wherein the calculating component comprises a non-transitory computer-readable medium.

13. The system of claim 8, wherein the monitoring component, the determining component, the storing component, the predicting component and the calculating component are located remotely from the environment.

14. The system of claim 8, wherein the environment is a first of multiple environments being monitored.

15. A system comprising:

means for monitoring a first environmental factor of an environment;

means for sending a first control signal, the first control signal configured to indicate a first supply for an environment, the first supply based on a first environmental factor and a control setting;

means for monitoring a second environmental factor of the environment, the second environmental factor exhibiting a correlation with respect to the first environmental factor;

means for determining a change in the second environmental factor;

means for storing data related to the determined change;

means for predicting a future change in the second environmental factor based, at least in part, on the stored data; and

means for calculating a second supply for the environment based, at least in part, on the predicted future change;

wherein the means for sending is further operative to send a second control signal to set the second supply at a time associated with a predicted occurrence of the predicted future change such that the second control signal is sent to alter the environment prior to the predicted occurrence.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the second environmental factor comprises time of day.

17. The system of claim 15, wherein the means for monitoring the first environmental factor monitors temperature.

18. The system of claim 15, wherein the first control signal and the second control signal are configured to facilitate control of a portion of the environment.

19. The system of claim 15, wherein the means for monitoring, the means for determining, the means for storing, the means for predicting and the means for calculating are located remotely from the environment.

20. The system of claim 15, wherein the environment is a first of multiple environments being monitored.