HVAC control with comfort/economy management
First Claim
1. An HVAC controller configured to control one or more pieces of HVAC equipment of an HVAC system, the HVAC equipment capable of modifying a temperature of an inside space with at least a primary stage and an auxiliary stage, the HVAC controller comprising:
- a user interface including a display, the user interface configured to allow a user to make a selection of one of three or more qualitatively expressed comfort versus economy settings displayed on a single screen; and
a controller operatively coupled to the user interface, the controller is configured to relate the selected qualitatively expressed comfort versus economy setting to one or more corresponding quantitative control parameter values, and to control the primary stage and the auxiliary stage using the one or more corresponding quantitative control parameter values to control the temperature of the inside space with the primary stage of the HVAC equipment and to activate the auxiliary stage when the primary stage is deemed to not be providing a desired level of comfort in the inside space based at least in part on the one or more quantitative control parameter values that correspond to the selected qualitatively expressed comfort versus economy setting.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A programmable thermostat may be configured to control one or more pieces of HVAC equipment in accordance with a programmable schedule. The HVAC equipment may be capable of modifying a temperature of an inside space with at least a primary stage and an auxiliary stage. The programmable thermostat may include a memory for storing operating parameters of the programmable thermostat, a user interface configured to accept modification of operating parameters, including one or more droop values, and a controller coupled to the memory and the user interface. The controller attempts to control the temperature of the inside space with the primary stage of the HVAC equipment, but if the temperature of the inside space deviates from a desired setpoint temperature value by more than or equal to a programmed droop value, the controller may activate the auxiliary stage. In some instances, the user interface of the programmable thermostat may be configured to allow a user to selectively override one or more of the applicable droop values. In some instances, the droop value that is used may depend on the current operation condition of the controller.
280 Citations
16 Claims
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1. An HVAC controller configured to control one or more pieces of HVAC equipment of an HVAC system, the HVAC equipment capable of modifying a temperature of an inside space with at least a primary stage and an auxiliary stage, the HVAC controller comprising:
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a user interface including a display, the user interface configured to allow a user to make a selection of one of three or more qualitatively expressed comfort versus economy settings displayed on a single screen; and a controller operatively coupled to the user interface, the controller is configured to relate the selected qualitatively expressed comfort versus economy setting to one or more corresponding quantitative control parameter values, and to control the primary stage and the auxiliary stage using the one or more corresponding quantitative control parameter values to control the temperature of the inside space with the primary stage of the HVAC equipment and to activate the auxiliary stage when the primary stage is deemed to not be providing a desired level of comfort in the inside space based at least in part on the one or more quantitative control parameter values that correspond to the selected qualitatively expressed comfort versus economy setting. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
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8. An HVAC controller configured to control one or more pieces of HVAC equipment of an HVAC system, the HVAC equipment capable of modifying a temperature of an inside space with at least a first stage and a second stage, the HVAC controller comprising:
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a memory for storing a comfort versus economy setting, wherein the comfort versus economy setting is one of three or more different comfort versus economy settings that are available for selection by a user, wherein each of the three or more different comfort versus economy settings is associated with a different droop value; a user interface including a display; and a controller operatively coupled to the memory; wherein the controller is configured to display on the display the three or more different comfort versus economy settings along a qualitatively expressed scale on a single screen, the user interface is configured to accept the selection of a comfort versus economy setting from the user, the controller is further configured to relate the selected comfort versus economy setting to the corresponding droop value, and to control the primary stage and the auxiliary stage using the corresponding droop value to control the temperature of the inside space with the first stage of the HVAC equipment and to activate the second stage when the primary stage is deemed to not be providing a desired level of comfort in the inside space based at least in part on the corresponding droop value. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A computer readable medium having stored thereon in a non-transitory state a program code for execution by a device having a controller in communication one or more pieces of HVAC equipment of an HVAC system, the HVAC equipment capable of modifying a temperature of an inside space with at least a first stage and a second stage, the program code causing the device to execute a method comprising:
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displaying three or more different comfort versus economy settings along a qualitative scale on a single screen of a display of a user interface, and allowing a user to select one of the three or more different comfort versus economy settings, wherein each of the three or more different comfort versus economy settings is associated with a different droop value; attempting to control the temperature of the inside space with the first stage of the HVAC equipment; determining if the primary stage is not providing a desired level of comfort in the inside space, wherein the desired level of comfort is dependent on the droop value associated with the comfort versus economy setting received from the user; and activating the second stage if it is determined that the primary stage is not providing the desired level of comfort in the inside space.
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Specification