Occupancy-based wireless control of multiple environmental zones with zone controller identification
원문보기
IPC분류정보
국가/구분
United States(US) Patent
등록
국제특허분류(IPC7판)
F24F-011/02
F24F-011/00
F24F-001/02
F24F-011/053
G05D-023/19
F24F-007/10
F24F-011/04
출원번호
US-0183222
(2014-02-18)
등록번호
US-9353963
(2016-05-31)
발명자
/ 주소
Kates, Lawrence
출원인 / 주소
Google Inc.
대리인 / 주소
Wolfe-SBMC
인용정보
피인용 횟수 :
5인용 특허 :
138
초록▼
An Electronically-Controlled Register vent (ECRV) that can be easily installed by a homeowner or general handyman is disclosed. The ECRV can be used to convert a non-zoned HVAC system into a zoned system. The ECRV can also be used in connection with a conventional zoned HVAC system to provide additi
An Electronically-Controlled Register vent (ECRV) that can be easily installed by a homeowner or general handyman is disclosed. The ECRV can be used to convert a non-zoned HVAC system into a zoned system. The ECRV can also be used in connection with a conventional zoned HVAC system to provide additional control and additional zones not provided by the conventional zoned HVAC system. In one embodiment, the ECRV is configured have a size and form-factor that conforms to a standard manually-controlled register vent. In one embodiment, a zone thermostat is configured to provide thermostat information to the ECRV. In one embodiment, the zone thermostat communicates with a central monitoring system that coordinates operation of the heating and cooling zones.
대표청구항▼
1. A system for wirelessly controlling multiple environmental zones, comprising: a plurality of zone controllers, each zone controller being associated with one of the environmental zones and being configured to send wireless communications to one or more other devices of the system, each wireless c
1. A system for wirelessly controlling multiple environmental zones, comprising: a plurality of zone controllers, each zone controller being associated with one of the environmental zones and being configured to send wireless communications to one or more other devices of the system, each wireless communication including a zone controller identifier that uniquely identifies the zone controller with respect to the other zone controllers, wherein:each zone controller comprises an occupancy sensor for detecting an occupancy state of the environmental zone associated with the zone controller, and is configured to include an indication of the occupancy state in the wireless communications to the one or more other devices: andthe other devices of the system comprise one or more other zone controllers of the plurality of zone controllers and a temperature control device; andthe temperature control device configured to:receive the wireless communications communication from the plurality of zone controllers;determine whether an environmental zone at which the temperature controller is located is occupied or unoccupied based at least in part on the wireless communications from one or more zone controllers associated with other environmental zones; andcontrol an HVAC system to adjust a temperature of the environmental zone at which the temperature control device is located based on whether the environmental zone was determined to be occupied or unoccupied. 2. The system of claim 1, wherein the temperature control device is further configured to: determine a desired temperature of the environmental zone at which the temperature control device is located; andcontrol the HVAC system to adjust the temperature of the environmental zone at which the temperature control device is located when the environmental zone is occupied to reach the desired temperature. 3. The system of claim 2, wherein each zone controller comprises a temperature sensor for sensing a current temperature of the environmental zone associated with the zone controller, each zone controller is configured to communicate the current temperature of the environmental zone associated with the zone controller, and the temperature control device is further configured to control the HVAC system to adjust the temperature of the environmental zone at which the temperature control device is located when the environmental zone is occupied to reach the desired temperature based on the communicated current temperature. 4. The system of claim 2, wherein being configured to determine a desired temperature of the environmental zone at which the temperature control device is located includes being configured to receive the desired temperature from a user. 5. The system of claim 1, wherein the temperature control device is further configured to display information indicating a characteristic of the environmental zone at which the temperature control device is located. 6. The system of claim 5, wherein the characteristic is a current temperature of the environmental zone at which the temperature control device is located. 7. The system of claim 5, wherein the characteristic is a desired temperature of the environmental zone at which the temperature control device is located, the desired temperature being set by a user. 8. The system of claim 1, further comprising a thermostat operable to control the HVAC system, the thermostat configured to wirelessly communicate with the temperature control device. 9. The system of claim 1, wherein the temperature control device is a thermostat. 10. A method for wirelessly controlling multiple environmental zones, comprising: sending, by each of a plurality of zone controllers, each zone controller being associated with one of the environmental zones, wireless communications to one or more other devices of the system, each wireless communication including a zone controller identifier that uniquely identifies the zone controller with respect to the other zone controllers, wherein;each zone controller comprises an occupancy sensor for detecting an occupancy state of the environmental zone associated with the zone controller, and is configured to include an indication of the occupancy state in the wireless communications to the one or more other devices; andthe other devices of the system comprise one or more other zone controllers of the plurality of zone controllers and a temperature control device;receiving, by the temperature control device, the wireless communication from at least one of the zone controllers;determining, by the temperature control device, whether an environmental zone at which the temperature control device is located is occupied or unoccupied based at least in part on the wireless communication from one or more zone controllers associated with the other environmental zones; andcontrolling, by the temperature control device, an HVAC system to adjust a temperature of the environmental zone at which the temperature control device is located based on whether the environmental zone was determined to be occupied or unoccupied. 11. The method of claim 10, further comprising: determining a desired temperature of the environmental zone at which the temperature control device is located; andcontrolling the HVAC system to adjust the temperature of the environmental zone at which the temperature control device is located when the environmental zone is occupied to reach the desired temperature. 12. The method of claim 11, further comprising: sensing a current temperature of the environmental zone associated with the zone controller to the temperature control device; andcontrolling the HVAC system to adjust the temperature of the environmental zone at which the temperature control device is located when the environmental zone is occupied to reach the desired temperature based on the communicated current temperature. 13. The method of claim 11, wherein determining a desired temperature of the environmental zone at which the temperature control device is located includes wirelessly receiving the desired temperature from a user. 14. The method of claim 10, wherein controlling an HVAC system to adjust a temperature of the environmental zone at which the temperature control device is located includes varying an amount of heating or cooling into the environmental zone at which the temperature control device is located. 15. The method of claim 14, wherein varying an amount of heating or cooling into the environmental zone at which the temperature control device is located includes adjusting an aperture size of an air vent located in the environmental zone at which the temperature control device is located. 16. The method of claim 14, further comprising the at least one zone controller operating in a multiple power modes including a low power mode and a high power mode. 17. The method of claim 16, wherein, when the at least one zone controller operates in the low power mode, the at least one zone controller performs a first set of operations, and when in the high power mode, the at least one zone controller performs a second set of operations that includes operations excluded by the first set of operations. 18. The method of claim 16, wherein at least one of the zone controllers is battery powered, and the method further comprises displaying, to a user, information indicative of an amount of power available to the at least one zone controller. 19. The method of claim 16, wherein at least one of the zone controllers is battery powered, and the method further comprises: comparing an amount of power available to the at least one zone controller to a threshold value;determining whether the amount of power available to the at least one zone controller is below the threshold value; andin response to determining that the amount of power available to the at least one zone controller is below the threshold value, displaying a low battery alert.
연구과제 타임라인
LOADING...
LOADING...
LOADING...
LOADING...
LOADING...
이 특허에 인용된 특허 (138)
Zou, Shazhou; Wang, Victor W; Mao, Jian; Wang, Tianxin, Affordable and easy to install multi-zone HVAC system.
Agrawal Prathima ; Chen Jyh-Cheng ; Kishore Shalinee ; Sivalingam Krishna M., CDMA mobile station wireless transmission power management with adaptive scheduling priorities based on battery power level.
Payne, Peter P.; Schmidt, Stephan E.; Powers Goppel, Kristin; King, Darrell J.; Tobin, Stephen M.; Fowler, J. Thomas, Constant current flame ionization circuit.
Kidder Kenneth B. (Coon Rapids MN) Smith Gary A. (Albuquerque NM) Wacker Paul C. (St. Louis Park MN), Demand limit control by integral reset of thermostats.
Aggers John R. (Apple Valley MN) Brindle Ralph C. (Minnetonka MN) Kidder Kenneth B. (Coon Rapids MN) Ullestad David C. (Brooklyn Park MN), Distributed environmental/load control system.
Dushane Steven D. (17170 Los Alamos St. Granada Hills CA 91344) Anderson Kenneth K. (Simi Valley CA) Bohm Grant E. (Redding CA), Dwelling heating and air conditioning system.
Dushane Steven D. (17170 Los Alamos St. Granada Hills CA 91344) Anderson Kenneth K. (Simi Valley CA) Bohm Grant E. (Redding CA) Simoni Wayne (West Hill CA), Dwelling heating and air conditioning system.
Brown ; Jr. Robert J. (6688 Serena La. Boca Raton FL 33433) Romanowiz James D. (2919 Banyan Rd. Boca Raton FL 33432) Staples Charles W. (270 NW. 36th St. Boca Raton FL 33431), Energy management and home automation system.
Zillner ; Jr. Anthony H. (438 Lotus La. Glenview IL 60025), Environmental control system using poled diodes to allow additional controlled devices in existing four wire system.
Shah Dipak J. (Eden Prairie MN) MacArthur J. Ward (Minneapolis MN) Buchholz Robert L. (Eden Prairie MN) Grald Eric W. (Lyme NH) Nelson Lorne W. (Bloomington MN), Error based zone controller.
Chapman, Jr.,John Gilman; Ashworth,Nicholas; Burt,Robert; Wallaert,Timothy E., Hazardous condition detection system and method and thermostat for use therewith.
Genga ; Jr. Richard A. (East Greenwich RI) Pishdadian Hamid (Warwick RI) McCarthy Michael (Cranston RI), Integrated zoning circulator with priority controller.
Berkeley Arnold D. (10687 Weymouth St. ; Apt. 102 Bethesda MD 20814) Bernstein Alec (Baltimore MD) Carney Daniel C. (Baltimore MD), Interactive electronic thermostat with installation assistance.
Berkeley Arnold D. (Potomac MD) Bernstein Alec (Pasadena CA) Jefferson Donald E. (Silver Spring MD) Carney Daniel C. (Baltimore MD), Interactive electronic thermostat with minimum and maximum temperature thermal limit switches.
Tinsley Timothy M. (Coon Rapids MN) Schwarz Edward L. (Minneapolis MN), Locally powered control system having a remote sensing unit with a two wire connection.
Brown, Michael Wayne; Lawrence, Kelvin Roderick; Paolini, Michael A., Managing an environment according to environmental preferences retrieved from a personal storage device.
Mueller, Carl J.; Toth, Bartholomew L.; Albanello, Frank A., Method and apparatus for automatically transmitting temperature information to a thermostat.
Podgorny, Marek; Beca, Luke; Markowski, Roman; Bogucz, Edward A.; Santanam, Suresh; Lipson, Edward; Roman, Paul; Michalak, Greg; Lewandowski, Gregg; Gelling, Paul D., Open web services-based indoor climate control system.
Bohrer, Philip J.; Merten, Gregory J.; Schnell, Robert J.; Atlass, Michael B., Profile based method for deriving a temperature setpoint using a `delta` based on cross-indexing a received price-point level signal.
Bohrer, Philip J.; Merten, Gregory J.; Schnell, Robert J.; Atlass, Michael B., Profile based method for deriving a temperature setpoint using a ‘delta’ based on cross-indexing a received price-point level signal.
Elliason Kurt L. (12725 54th Ave. North Plymouth MN 55422) Schnell Robert J. (15415 47th Ave. No. Plymouth MN 55446) Bohrer Philip J. (5900 Amy Dr. Edina MN 55436) Merten Gregory J. (3753 Windtree Dr, Real time and/shed load based on received tier pricing and direct load control with processors for each load.
MacArthur J. Ward (Minneapolis MN) Wahlstedt David A. (Minneapolis MN) Woessner Michael A. (Minneapolis MN) Foslien Wendy K. (Minneapolis MN), Receding horizon based adaptive control having means for minimizing operating costs.
Chapman, Jr.,John Gilman; Ashworth,Nicholas; Burt,Robert; Wallaert,Timothy E.; Rao,Joseph P., System and method for controlling appliances and thermostat for use therewith.
Mueller, Carl J.; Sartain, John M.; Carey, Steven L.; Fredricks, Thomas J.; Miles, Ronald E.; Vogel, G. Scott; Garozzo, James P., Thermostat capable of displaying received information.
Simon ; deceased Bernard S. (late of St. Louis Park MN by Barbara J. Simon ; executor) Smith Wade W. (Plymouth MN), Two-way wireless HVAC system and thermostat.
Salazar Joe Andrew ; Molero-Castro Luis,ESX, Wireless and wired communications, command, control and sensing system for sound and/or data transmission and reception.
※ AI-Helper는 부적절한 답변을 할 수 있습니다.