Patent Application
20240263839
The present disclosure relates generally water heater units and more particularly to systems and methods for gas valve adjustment of a water heater.
The conventional initial installation process associated with water heater units, boilers, and the like may oftentimes require a certified technician to perform the installation given the specific types of hardware and/or software adjustments that may need to be performed based on factors such as the environment in which the unit is installed. This results in a limited number of individuals being able to perform the initial installation. As a specific example, adjustments to hardware associated with the gas intake line to increase or decrease the amount of combustible gas introduced to the air-gas mixture provided to the burner may conventionally involve adjusting a venturi of a water heater unit. Additionally, the adjustments typically only impact situations when the water heater unit is experiencing full gas input. Thus, the amount of gas that is provided to the burner throughout the operating range of the unit may not necessarily be optimized to a particular environment.
The detailed description is set forth with reference to the accompanying drawings. The drawings are provided for purposes of illustration only and merely depict example embodiments of the disclosure. The drawings are provided to facilitate understanding of the disclosure and shall not be deemed to limit the breadth, scope, or applicability of the disclosure. The use of the same reference numerals indicates similar but not necessarily the same or identical components; different reference numerals may be used to identify similar components as well. Various embodiments may utilize elements or components other than those illustrated in the drawings, and some elements and/or components may not be present in various embodiments. The use of singular terminology to describe a component or element may depending on the context, encompass a plural number of such components or elements and vice versa.
This disclosure relates to, among other things, systems and methods for gas valve adjustment of a water heater. Particularly, the water heater unit includes at least one controller provided with gas valve offset adjustment logic. During a gas valve adjustment test, the controller logic may automatically adjust the water heater unit to the necessary conditions (for example, blower fan speed, water heater tank temperature, etc.) for an installer (also generally referred to as a “user” herein) to verify an offset setting of a gas valve. From there, the at least one controller may cause instructions to be presented on a display of the water heater unit. The instructions may guide the installer through the step-by-step process of adjusting the offset setting of the gas valve while simultaneously maintaining optimal operating conditions of the water heater unit. The at least one controller may also send the gas valve adjustment test under certain conditions, such as when a fault is detected in the unit or a temperature set point being exceeded, as non-limiting examples (further examples are shown in
Adjusting the offset setting of the gas valve changes the combustion level (e.g., carbon dioxide (CO2) percentage) of the air-gas mixture provided to the burner, so that the water heater unit can more effectively ignite based on the conditions in which the water heater unit is installed. For example, different percentages of carbon dioxide may be optimal to provide to the burning to be ignited based on factors such as the geographical region in which the water heater is installed (e.g., elevation may impact the optimal carbon dioxide to provide to the burner), ventilation provided in the installation location, the type of fuel that is used in the water heater unit, etc.
In one or more embodiments, the adjustments may involve rotating an offset screw provided on the gas valve. Rotation of the screw may modify the amount an orifice of the gas valve opens when the water heater unit causes the gas valve to open. For example, the gas valve may include a “plunger” or other type of actuating element that may actuate between multiple positions relative to the orifice. In the “closed” position, the actuating element may cover the orifice of the gas valve, thus preventing gas from the gas intake line traversing through the gas valve to the burner. When it is desired for gas to be mixed with intake air to be provided to the burner to be ignited, the water heater unit (for example, a controller) may provide an actuation signal to the gas valve to actuate the actuating element to an “open” position. In the open position, the actuating element may actuate a certain distance away from the orifice (depending on the position of the offset screw) to allow a certain amount of gas to traverse through the gas valve and to the burner to be mixed with air from an air intake and ignited. The use of the offset screw is not intended to be limiting and any other suitable mechanism may be provided to adjust the offset of the actuating element in the open position of the gas valve. Additionally, the gas valve may have multiple orifices, as is described in additional below with respect to
To perform these adjustments to ensure that an optimal amount of gas is included in the air-gas mixture provided to the burner, certified installers may be required to adjust the fan speeds in order to adjust the gas values. In contrast, the instructions provided through the display as described herein may allow for any type of user to more easily perform an install and tune the water heater unit to an optimal amount of gas introduced to the air-gas mixture. Additionally, in one or more embodiments, the water heater unit may be configured to automatically adjust the gas valve offset without requiring any manual intervention by the installer. While reference is made herein specifically to water heater units, this is not necessarily intended to be limiting and a similar approach may be provided for boilers or other types of similar units.
Turning to the figures,
In one or more embodiments, the blower 102 may include a fan that generates a vacuum to pull air from the environment into the water heater unit 100. When water within the water heater unit 100 needs to be heated to a particular temperature, the blower 102 is ramped up to a certain RPM (for example, 2500 RPM or any other fan speed) to pull air into the water heater unit 100 from the environment. Gas is also pulled into the water heater unit 100 through the gas valve 104 and from the gas intake based on the vacuum generated by the blower 102.
In one or more embodiments, the gas valve 104 may be a valve used to regulate the amount of gas that is provided to the burner, such that the ratio of gas to air may be adjusted. The gas valve 104 can be any appropriate form of valve, including but not limited to, a ball valve, a plug valve, a butterfly valve, a rotary valve, a linear valve, a gate valve, a globe valve, a needle valve, a solenoid valve, a coaxial valve, an angled seat valve, a pinch valve, a shutter valve, or any other valve that would be appropriate for the particular application.
The gas valve 104 may include one or more orifices (for example, first orifice 112 and second orifice 114, and/or any other number of orifices). The first orifice 112 may be used while the water heater unit 100 is ramping up to full input. The second orifice 114 may be used at a full input of the water heater unit 100.
There may be a number of different ways in which the amount of gas that is provided through these orifices when the gas valve 104 is open may be adjusted. As one non limiting example, an offset screw provided on the gas valve 104 may be rotated counterclockwise or clockwise by a particular amount. Rotation of the screw may modify the amount an orifice of the gas valve opens when the water heater unit causes the gas valve to open. For example, the gas valve 104 may include individual “plungers” or other type of actuating element for the orifices. In the “closed” position, the actuating element may cover the orifice of the gas valve, thus preventing gas from the gas intake line traversing through the gas valve to the burner. When it is desired for gas to be mixed with intake air to be provided to the burner to be ignited, the water heater unit (for example, a controller) may provide an actuation signal to the gas valve to actuate the actuating element to an “open” position. In the open position, the actuating element may actuate a certain distance away from the orifice (depending on the position of the offset screw) to allow a certain amount of gas to traverse through the gas valve and to the burner to be mixed with air from an air intake and ignited. The use of the offset screw is not intended to be limiting and any other suitable mechanism may be provided to adjust the offset of the actuating element in the open position of the gas valve.
Additionally, the actuating element may not necessarily be limited to moving towards and away from the orifice to regulate the amount of gas flowing through the gas valve 104. For example, an actuating element may rotate within the orifice, the actuating element may include one or more blades in an “iris” configuration, and/or the actuating element may be provided in any other form suitable to regulate the amount of gas flowing through the gas valve 104.
The plungers or other actuating elements may be actuated based on an electric signal received from the controller 110. When the orifices of the gas valve 104 are not open, no gas flows through the gas valve 104 to the burner 108. One benefit of regulating the amount of gas that is provided to the burner may include reduced noise produced by the water heater unit 100 during ignition.
In one or more embodiments, the venturi 106 is a constriction within a pipe that varies the flow characteristics of a fluid (e.g., the intake air and/or the intake gas) travelling through the pipe. The constriction within the venturi 106 causes the amount of fluid passing through the venturi to decrease, but the velocity of the fluid to increase. The venturi 106 may be used to regulate the rate at which the air and gas is provided to the burner 108.
In one or more embodiments, the burner 108 may receive the air-gas mixture from the gas intake and the air intake and ignited the mixture to heat water provided in a tank (not shown in the figure) of the water heater unit 100.
In one or more embodiments, the one or more controllers 110 (which may be the same as controller(s) 404, 412, 432, etc.) may be configured to perform any of the functionality described herein with respect to causing information to be presented on a display of the water heater unit 100, adjusting operation of the water heater unit 100 during a gas valve adjustment test, performing any of the logic described with respect to
Beginning with
Upon receiving an indication of a selection of the first selectable element 203, the second user interface 204 may be displayed. The second user interface 204 includes a listing of conditions that may be required to be satisfied before the gas valve adjustment test may be performed. Non-limiting examples of such conditions may include: (1) no active alarm codes being associated with the water heater unit and/or (2) the mode of operation of the water heater unit is in a heating mode or a disabled mode. The second user interface 204 may also include a second selectable element 205. Upon receiving an indication of a selection of the second selectable element 205, the gas valve adjustment test may be initiated by the water heater unit and the third user interface 206 may be displayed. The third user interface 206 may indicate that the display controller (and/or any other controller) is awaiting a response from an ignition controller (and/or any other controller) of the water heater unit before the test continues. In one or more embodiments, a timer may also be provided. If a response is not received from the ignition controller (and/or any other controller) within the timer, then, as shown in the fourth user interface 208, the test may be ended. The first user interface 202 may then be displayed again and the test may be re-initiated automatically or based on a user input.
Turning to
While the test is running as shown in the fifth user interface 210, data about the amount of carbon dioxide that is provided to the water heater unit through the gas valve may also be obtained (as well as gas readings at any other part of the water heater unit). This data may be obtained in a number of different manners. For example, a user may connect an external carbon dioxide device to the water heater unit to obtain data about the amount of carbon dioxide. As another example, the water heater unit itself may have carbon dioxide sensors provided on or within the water heater unit, which may allow for the water heater unit to automatically obtain the carbon dioxide data. This data may also be presented through the fifth user interface 210 as well.
Once the carbon dioxide data is obtained, the user may proceed with adjusting the gas valve to change the amount of carbon dioxide that is provided to the burner of the water heater unit through the gas valve. Sixth user interface 212 and/or seventh user interface 214 may be displayed providing an indication to the user of a manner in which the gas valve adjustments may be performed. For example, sixth user interface shows locations of different screws that may be adjusted by turning clockwise or counterclockwise (for example, using a hex tool or any other type of tool). The sixth user interface 212 and/or the seventh user interface 214 may also provide more granular instructions, such as a direction that the screw should be turned and an amount by which the screw should be turned. The instructions may also vary depending on the type of actuating element(s) that are provided within the gas valve and the mechanisms provided to allow for adjustment of the actuating element(s).
In one or more embodiments, the sixth user interface 212 and the seventh user interface 214 may not necessarily be displayed. In such embodiments, the user may instead reference a user manual that may provide this information about adjusting the gas valve. In such embodiments, the user may manually adjust the screw of the gas valve and then may reference the carbon dioxide data to determine if further adjustments may be required.
In one or more further embodiments, the adjustments made to the gas valve may also be performed automatically by the water heater unit. For example, rather than the adjustments to the gas valve being performed by manually rotating an offset screw, a device configured to actuate the gas valve based on an electrical signal may be connected to the gas valve. For example, a motor may be provided with a shaft of the motor being provided within the offset screw. The motor may be driven by an electrical signal sent to the motor by the water heater unit, which may cause the motor to rotate the shaft and consequentially adjust the gas valve. The gas valve adjustment may also be performed automatically in any other manner using any other type of device.
Regardless of the manner in which the adjustments are performed, in one or more embodiments, the amount of adjustment may be determined based on pre-determined optimal carbon dioxide percentages. The pre-determined optimal carbon dioxide percentages may be established based on factors such as the type of fuel being provided to the water heater for igniting with the carbon dioxide gas (for example, the amount of carbon dioxide used with natural gas may differ from the amount of carbon dioxide used with propane). As further examples, the amount of carbon dioxide may be determined based on the elevation of the environment in which the water heater unit is provided and an amount of ventilation provided for the water heater unit. The amount of adjustment may also be determined in any other manner.
As shown in
Continuing with
The flow diagram 300 begins with condition 301, which involves determining that the water heater is a specific type of water heater configured for the gas valve adjustment test (however, in some embodiments, this condition may not be required and the gas valve adjustment test may be performed for any type of water heater, boiler, etc.). Operation 302 involves the display (for example, display 411 of
Operations and conditions 311-333 are operations and conditions performed by an ignition controller. Operations 334-354 are operations and conditions performed by a display controller. However, this is not intended to be limiting and any of the operations and conditions may also be performed by any number of controllers as well (including a single controller).
Beginning with operations and conditions of the ignition controller, condition 312 involves determining if a mode of operation of the water heater unit (shown as “VLVSTATE” in
Condition 316 involves determining if the mode of operation is “standby.” If condition 316 is met, then the flow diagram 300 proceeds to operation 313. If condition 316 is met, then condition 317 involves determining if the mode of operation is “pre-purge.” If condition 317 is met, then the flow diagram 300 proceeds to operation 313. If condition 317 is not met, then condition 318 involves determining if the mode of operation is “ignition.” If condition 318 is met, then the flow diagram 300 proceeds to operation 313. If condition 318 is not met, then condition 319 involves determining if the mode of operation is “heating.”
If condition 319 is met, then operation 320 involves adjusting a fan speed of the blower of the water heater unit to an ignition speed plus 400 RPM (this number is merely exemplary). If condition 319 is not met, then the flow diagram 300 proceeds to condition 321. Following operation 320, condition 322 involves determining if a temperature of the tank of the water heater is greater than or equal to a temperature set point. If condition 322 is not met, condition 323 involves determining if the mode of operation is “test timed out.” If condition 323 is not met, condition 324 involves determining if the mode of operation is “end test request.” If condition 324 is not met, the flow diagram 300 returns to condition 322. If any of conditions 322, 323, or 324 are met, the flow diagram 300 proceeds to condition 321.
Condition 321 involves determining if the mode of operation is “post purge.” If condition 321 is met, the flow diagram 300 proceeds to operation 325. If condition 321 is not met, condition 326 involves determining if the mode of operation is “retry.” If condition 326 is not met, condition 327 involves determining if the mode of operation is “recycle.” If condition 327 is not met, condition 328 involves determining if the mode of operation is “fault.” If condition 328 is not met, condition 329 involves determining if the mode of operation is “ignition command error.” If condition 329 is not met, then operation 330 involves displaying an error condition. If any of conditions 326-329 are met, then the flow diagram proceeds to operation 313.
Operation 325 involves adjusting the fan speed of the blower to a maximum fan speed. Condition 331 involves determining if the test state began in “standby” or “disabled” mode. If condition 331 is not met, the flow diagram 300 proceeds to operation 313. If condition 311 is met, condition 332 involves determining if a post purge of the water heater unit is complete. Until condition 332 is met, condition 332 is looped. Once condition 332 is met, operation 333 involves setting the mode of operation to “disabled.”
Turning to operations and conditions of the display controller, condition 334 involves determining if the mode of operation is “ignition test.” If condition 334 is not met, the flow diagram 300 proceeds to operation 335. If condition 334 is met, the flow diagram 300 proceeds to operation 336.
Operation 335 involves decrementing the acknowledgement response timer. Condition 337 involves determining if the acknowledgement response timer has expired. If condition 337 is not met, then the flow diagram 300 returns to condition 334. If condition 337 is met, operation 338 involves transitioning the display to an “acknowledgement not received screen” (for example, the fourth user interface 208 of
Operation 336 involves transmitting an indication that the test state is “acknowledgement received.” Operation 340 involves the display clearing the acknowledgement response timer. Operation 341 involves the display transitioning to the “test running” screen (for example, the fifth user interface 210 of
Operation 345 involves the display transmitting a test state of “test timed out.” Operation 347 involves the ignition controller transitioning to a post purge mode of the water heater unit. Condition 348 involves determining if the post purge is complete. Once condition 348 is met, operation 349 involves setting the mode of operation to “disabled.”
Condition 346 involves determining if the mode of operation is “post purge.” If condition 346 is met, then the flow diagram 300 proceeds to operation 347. If condition 346 is not met, then the flow diagram 300 proceeds to condition 394. Condition 394 involves a determination if the test has been ended by a user. If condition 394 is met, the flow diagram proceeds to operation 353. If condition 394 is not met, condition 395 involves determining if a mode of operation is “fault.” If condition 395 is not met, condition 350 involves determining if a mode of operation is “recycle.” If condition 350 is not met, condition 351 involves determining if the mode of operation is “disabled.” If condition 351 is not met, operation 352 involves decrementing the test duration timer.
If any of conditions 395, 350, and 351 are met, operation 353 involves the display transmitting a test state of “end test request.” Operation 393 involves clearing a test duration time. Operation 354 involves the display detecting a mode of operation being “post purge.” The eleventh user interface 222 of
From operation 353, the twelfth user interface 224 of
From operation 345, the display may present the eighth user interface 216 of
From operation 338, operation 375 involves the display transmitting a state indicating that no acknowledgement was received. Condition 376 involves determining if a mode of operation is “disabled.” If condition 376 is not met, the condition loops. If condition 376 is met, the flow diagram 300 proceeds to operation 313.
From operation 341, the fifth user interface 210 of
The water heater unit 402 may include any number of different types of water heater units that may be included within an environment. Additionally, while reference is made to a “water heater” herein, this is not necessarily intended to be limiting and any other type of unit configured to provide warm water to the environment may also be used (e.g., a boiler). The water heater unit 402 may include one or more controller(s) 404, such as an ignition controller, a display controller, and/or any other number of controllers. The one or more controllers may include one or more processor(s) 408 and memory 410. The one or more controller(s) may also be provided externally to the water heater unit 402 as well (for example, as standalone controller(s) 412 or controller(s) 432 associated with a remote server 430. The water heater unit 402 may also include one or more sensors 450 used to capture information about the operation of the water heater unit 402. For example, the sensors 450 may capture fan speed data, temperature data of the tank of the water heater unit 402, data indicating an amount of gas and an amount of air being provided to the burner of the water heater unit 402, and/or any other types of relevant data. The water heater unit 402 may also include a display 411 configured to present various types of information to a user (for example, user 422). For example, the display 411 may present any of the user interfaces of
The mobile device 420 may be a device that is used by user 422 to interact with any of the elements of the system 400. For example, the mobile device may include a smartphone, a laptop or desktop computer, a tablet, a smart television, and/or any other type of device. An application 424 of the mobile device 420 may provide any functionality provided by the display 411 of the water heater unit 402 described herein. For example, any of the information that may be presented on the display 411 may also be presented through the 424 application of the mobile device 420. The user 422 may also provide inputs to the application 424 to cause the water heater 402 to perform certain functions, such as performing any automated adjustments described herein. The user 422 may also provide inputs to the water heater 402 (for example, via the display 411 or any other input mechanism of the water heater 402) to cause the water heater 402 to automatically perform such adjustments.
Any of the processing and/or signal transmission described herein with respect to any of the other components of the system 400 may similarly be performed by the remote server 430 as well. That is, in some embodiments, remote processing and/or signal transmission may be performed instead of local processing and/or signal transmission that may otherwise be performed by the controller 412 and/or the water heater unit 402. In some embodiments, a combination of local and remote processing may be performed as well.
The one or more water heater units 402, one or more controller(s) 412, one or more mobile devices 420, and/or one or more remote servers 430 may perform communications via a communications network 470. The communications network 470 may include, but not limited to, any one of a combination of different types of suitable communications networks such as, for example, broadcasting networks, cable networks, public networks (e.g., the Internet), private networks, wireless networks, cellular networks, or any other suitable private and/or public networks. Additional details about example communications networks may be described with respect to
In one or more embodiments, any of the one or more water heater units 402, one or more controller(s) 412, one or more mobile devices 420, one or more remote servers 430, may include any of the components of the computing device(s) 600 described with respect to
At block 502, the method 500 may include presenting, using one or more processors, on a display of a water heater unit, and during an initial configuration of the water heater unit, one or more instructions relating to a gas valve adjustment test, wherein the water heater unit includes a gas valve in fluid communication with a burner of the water heater unit, the gas valve comprising a first aperture, wherein the gas valve is configured to open or close the first aperture based on an actuation of an actuating component.
The computing device(s) 600 may be configured to communicate via one or more networks. Such network(s) may include, but are not limited to, any one or more different types of communications networks such as, for example, cable networks, public networks (e.g., the Internet), private networks (e.g., frame-relay networks), wireless networks, cellular networks, telephone networks (e.g., a public switched telephone network), or any other suitable private or public packet-switched or circuit-switched networks. Further, such network(s) may have any suitable communication range associated therewith and may include, for example, global networks (e.g., the Internet), metropolitan area networks (MANs), wide area networks (WANs), local area networks (LANs), or personal area networks (PANs). In addition, such network(s) may include communication links and associated networking devices (e.g., link-layer switches, routers, etc.) for transmitting network traffic over any suitable type of medium including, but not limited to, coaxial cable, twisted-pair wire (e.g., twisted-pair copper wire), optical fiber, a hybrid fiber-coaxial (HFC) medium, a microwave medium, a radio frequency communication medium, a satellite communication medium, or any combination thereof.
In an illustrative configuration, the computing device(s) 600 may include one or more processors (processor(s)) 602, one or more memory devices 604 (generically referred to herein as memory 604), one or more input/output (I/O) interfaces 606, one or more network interfaces 608, one or more sensors or sensor interfaces 610, one or more transceivers 612, one or more optional speakers 614, one or more optional microphones 616, and data storage 620. The computing device(s) 600 may further include one or more buses 618 that functionally couple various components of the computing device(s) 600. The computing device(s) 600 may further include one or more antenna(e) 634 that may include, without limitation, a cellular antenna for transmitting or receiving signals to/from a cellular network infrastructure, an antenna for transmitting or receiving Wi-Fi signals to/from an access point (AP), a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) antenna for receiving GNSS signals from a GNSS satellite, a Bluetooth antenna for transmitting or receiving Bluetooth signals, a Near Field Communication (NFC) antenna for transmitting or receiving NFC signals, and so forth. These various components will be described in more detail hereinafter.
The bus(es) 618 may include at least one of a system bus, a memory bus, an address bus, or a message bus, and may permit the exchange of information (e.g., data (including computer-executable code), signaling, etc.) between various components of the computing device(s) 600. The bus(es) 618 may include, without limitation, a memory bus or a memory controller, a peripheral bus, an accelerated graphics port, and so forth. The bus(es) 618 may be associated with any suitable bus architecture including, without limitation, an Industry Standard Architecture (ISA), a Micro Channel Architecture (MCA), an Enhanced ISA (EISA), a Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA) architecture, an Accelerated Graphics Port (AGP) architecture, a Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) architecture, a PCI-Express architecture, a Personal Computer Memory Card International Association (PCMCIA) architecture, a Universal Serial Bus (USB) architecture, and so forth.
The memory 604 of the computing device(s) 600 may include volatile memory (memory that maintains its state when supplied with power) such as random access memory (RAM) and/or non-volatile memory (memory that maintains its state even when not supplied with power) such as read-only memory (ROM), flash memory, ferroelectric RAM (FRAM), and so forth. Persistent data storage, as that term is used herein, may include non-volatile memory. In certain example embodiments, volatile memory may enable faster read/write access than non-volatile memory. However, in certain other example embodiments, certain types of non-volatile memory (e.g., FRAM) may enable faster read/write access than certain types of volatile memory.
In various implementations, the memory 604 may include multiple different types of memory such as various types of static random access memory (SRAM), various types of dynamic random access memory (DRAM), various types of unalterable ROM, and/or writeable variants of ROM such as electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), flash memory, and so forth. The memory 604 may include main memory as well as various forms of cache memory such as instruction cache(s), data cache(s), translation lookaside buffer(s) (TLBs), and so forth. Further, cache memory such as a data cache may be a multi-level cache organized as a hierarchy of one or more cache levels (L1, L2, etc.).
The data storage 620 may include removable storage and/or non-removable storage, including, but not limited to, magnetic storage, optical disk storage, and/or tape storage. The data storage 620 may provide non-volatile storage of computer-executable instructions and other data. The memory 604 and the data storage 620, removable and/or non-removable, are examples of computer-readable storage media (CRSM) as that term is used herein.
The data storage 620 may store computer-executable code, instructions, or the like that may be loadable into the memory 604 and executable by the processor(s) 602 to cause the processor(s) 602 to perform or initiate various operations. The data storage 620 may additionally store data that may be copied to the memory 604 for use by the processor(s) 602 during the execution of the computer-executable instructions. Moreover, output data generated as a result of execution of the computer-executable instructions by the processor(s) 602 may be stored initially in the memory 604, and may ultimately be copied to the data storage 620 for non-volatile storage.
More specifically, the data storage 620 may store one or more operating systems (O/S) 622; one or more database management systems (DBMSs) 624; and one or more program module(s), applications, engines, computer-executable code, scripts, or the like such as, for example, one or more drive bypass module(s) 626. Some or all of these module(s) may be sub-module(s). Any of the components depicted as being stored in the data storage 620 may include any combination of software, firmware, and/or hardware. The software and/or firmware may include computer-executable code, instructions, or the like that may be loaded into the memory 604 for execution by one or more of the processor(s) 602. Any of the components depicted as being stored in the data storage 620 may support functionality described in reference to corresponding components named earlier in this disclosure.
The data storage 620 may further store various types of data utilized by the components of the computing device(s) 600. Any data stored in the data storage 620 may be loaded into the memory 604 for use by the processor(s) 602 in executing computer-executable code. In addition, any data depicted as being stored in the data storage 620 may potentially be stored in one or more datastore(s) and may be accessed via the DBMS 624 and loaded in the memory 604 for use by the processor(s) 602 in executing computer-executable code. The datastore(s) may include, but are not limited to, databases (e.g., relational, object-oriented, etc.), file systems, flat files, distributed datastores in which data is stored on more than one node of a computer network, peer-to-peer network datastores, or the like.
The processor(s) 602 may be configured to access the memory 604 and execute the computer-executable instructions loaded therein. For example, the processor(s) 602 may be configured to execute the computer-executable instructions of the various program module(s), applications, engines, or the like of the computing device(s) 600 to cause or facilitate various operations to be performed in accordance with one or more embodiments of the disclosure. The processor(s) 602 may include any suitable processing unit capable of accepting data as input, processing the input data in accordance with stored computer-executable instructions, and generating output data. The processor(s) 602 may include any type of suitable processing unit including, but not limited to, a central processing unit, a microprocessor, a reduced instruction set computer (RISC) microprocessor, a complex instruction set computer (CISC) microprocessor, a microcontroller, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), a system-on-a-chip (SoC), a digital signal processor (DSP), and so forth. Further, the processor(s) 602 may have any suitable microarchitecture design that includes any number of constituent components such as, for example, registers, multiplexers, arithmetic logic units, cache controllers for controlling read/write operations to cache memory, branch predictors, or the like. The microarchitecture design of the processor(s) 602 may be capable of supporting any of a variety of instruction sets.
Referring now to functionality supported by the various program module(s) depicted in
Referring now to other illustrative components depicted as being stored in the data storage 620, the O/S 622 may be loaded from the data storage 620 into the memory 604 and may provide an interface between other application software executing on the computing device(s) 600 and the hardware resources of the computing device(s) 600. More specifically, the O/S 622 may include a set of computer-executable instructions for managing hardware resources of the computing device(s) 600 and for providing common services to other application programs (e.g., managing memory allocation among various application programs). The O/S 622 may include any operating system now known or which may be developed in the future, including, but not limited to, any server operating system, any mainframe operating system, or any other proprietary or non-proprietary operating system.
The DBMS 624 may be loaded into the memory 604 and may support functionality for accessing, retrieving, storing, and/or manipulating data stored in the memory 604 and/or data stored in the data storage 620. The DBMS 624 may use any of a variety of database models (e.g., relational model, object model, etc.) and may support any of a variety of query languages. The DBMS 624 may access data represented in one or more data schemas and stored in any suitable data repository including, but not limited to, databases (e.g., relational, object-oriented, etc.), file systems, flat files, distributed datastores in which data is stored on more than one node of a computer network, peer-to-peer network datastores, or the like. In those example embodiments in which the computing device(s) 600 is a mobile device, the DBMS 624 may be any suitable lightweight DBMS optimized for performance on a mobile device.
Referring now to other illustrative components of the computing device(s) 600, the I/O interface(s) 606 may facilitate the receipt of input information by the computing device(s) 600 from one or more I/O devices as well as the output of information from the computing device(s) 600 to one or more I/O devices. The I/O devices may include any of a variety of components such as a display or display screen having a touch surface or touchscreen; an audio output device for producing sound, such as a speaker; an audio capture device, such as a microphone; an image and/or video capture device, such as a camera; a haptic unit; and so forth. Any of these components may be integrated into the computing device(s) 600 or may be separate. The I/O devices may further include, for example, any number of peripheral devices such as data storage devices, printing devices, and so forth.
The I/O interface(s) 606 may also include an interface for an external peripheral device connection such as a USB, FireWire, Thunderbolt, Ethernet port or other connection protocol that may connect to one or more networks. The I/O interface(s) 606 may also include a connection to one or more of the antenna(e) 634 to connect to one or more networks via a wireless local area network (WLAN) (such as Wi-Fi) radio, Bluetooth, ZigBee, and/or a wireless network radio, such as a radio capable of communication with a wireless communication network such as a Long Term Evolution (LTE) network, WiMAX network, 3G network, etc.
The computing device(s) 600 may further include one or more network interface(s) 608 via which the computing device(s) 600 may communicate with any of a variety of other systems, platforms, networks, devices, and so forth. The network interface(s) 608 may enable communication, for example, with one or more wireless routers, one or more host servers, one or more web servers, and the like via one or more networks.
The antenna(e) 634 may include any suitable type of antenna depending, for example, on the communications protocols used to transmit or receive signals via the antenna(e) 634. Non-limiting examples of suitable antennae may include directional antennae, non-directional antennae, dipole antennae, folded dipole antennae, patch antennae, multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) antennae, or the like. The antenna(e) 634 may be communicatively coupled to one or more transceivers 612 or radio components to which or from which signals may be transmitted or received.
As previously described, the antenna(e) 634 may include a cellular antenna configured to transmit or receive signals in accordance with established standards and protocols, such as Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), 3G standards (e.g., Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (W-CDMA), CDMA2000, etc.), 4G standards (e.g., LTE, WiMax, etc.), direct satellite communications, or the like.
The antenna(e) 634 may additionally, or alternatively, include a Wi-Fi antenna configured to transmit or receive signals in accordance with established standards and protocols, such as the IEEE 802.11 family of standards, including via 2.4 GHz channels (e.g., 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11n), 5 GHz channels (e.g., 802.11n, 802.11ac), or 60 GHz channels (e.g., 802.11ad). In alternative example embodiments, the antenna(e) 634 may be configured to transmit or receive radio frequency signals within any suitable frequency range forming part of the unlicensed portion of the radio spectrum.
The antenna(e) 634 may additionally, or alternatively, include a GNSS antenna configured to receive GNSS signals from three or more GNSS satellites carrying time-position information to triangulate a position therefrom. Such a GNSS antenna may be configured to receive GNSS signals from any current or planned GNSS such as, for example, the Global Positioning System (GPS), the GLONASS System, the Compass Navigation System, the Galileo System, or the Indian Regional Navigational System.
The transceiver(s) 612 may include any suitable radio component(s) for—in cooperation with the antenna(e) 634—transmitting or receiving radio frequency (RF) signals in the bandwidth and/or channels corresponding to the communications protocols utilized by the computing device(s) 600 to communicate with other devices. The transceiver(s) 612 may include hardware, software, and/or firmware for modulating, transmitting, or receiving—potentially in cooperation with any of antenna(e) 634—communications signals according to any of the communications protocols discussed above including, but not limited to, one or more Wi-Fi and/or Wi-Fi direct protocols, as standardized by the IEEE 802.11 standards, one or more non-Wi-Fi protocols, or one or more cellular communications protocols or standards. The transceiver(s) 612 may further include hardware, firmware, or software for receiving GNSS signals. The transceiver(s) 612 may include any known receiver and baseband suitable for communicating via the communications protocols utilized by the computing device(s) 600. The transceiver(s) 612 may further include a low noise amplifier (LNA), additional signal amplifiers, an analog-to-digital (A/D) converter, one or more buffers, a digital baseband, or the like.
The sensor(s)/sensor interface(s) 610 may include or may be capable of interfacing with any suitable type of sensing device such as, for example, temperature sensors, humidity sensors, and so forth.
The speaker(s) 614 may be any device configured to generate audible sound. The microphone(s) 616 may be any device configured to receive analog sound input or voice data.
It should be appreciated that the program module(s), applications, computer-executable instructions, code, or the like depicted in
It should further be appreciated that the computing device(s) 600 may include alternate and/or additional hardware, software, or firmware components beyond those described or depicted without departing from the scope of the disclosure. More particularly, it should be appreciated that software, firmware, or hardware components depicted as forming part of the computing device(s) 600 are merely illustrative and that some components may not be present or additional components may be provided in various embodiments. While various illustrative program module(s) have been depicted and described as software module(s) stored in the data storage 620, it should be appreciated that functionality described as being supported by the program module(s) may be enabled by any combination of hardware, software, and/or firmware. It should further be appreciated that each of the above-mentioned module(s) may in various embodiments, represent a logical partitioning of supported functionality. This logical partitioning is depicted for ease of explanation of the functionality and may not be representative of the structure of software, hardware, and/or firmware for implementing the functionality. Accordingly, it should be appreciated that functionality described as being provided by a particular module may in various embodiments, be provided at least in part by one or more other module(s). Further, one or more depicted module(s) may not be present in certain embodiments, while in other embodiments, additional module(s) not depicted may be present and may support at least a portion of the described functionality and/or additional functionality. Moreover, while certain module(s) may be depicted and described as sub-module(s) of another module, in certain embodiments, such module(s) may be provided as independent module(s) or as sub-module(s) of other module(s).
One or more operations of the methods, process flows, and use cases of
Although specific embodiments of the disclosure have been described, one of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that numerous other modifications and alternative embodiments are within the scope of the disclosure. For example, any of the functionality and/or processing capabilities described with respect to a particular device or component may be performed by any other device or component. Further, while various illustrative implementations and architectures have been described in accordance with embodiments of the disclosure, one of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that numerous other modifications to the illustrative implementations and architectures described herein are also within the scope of this disclosure.
Certain aspects of the disclosure are described above with reference to block and flow diagrams of systems, methods, apparatuses, and/or computer program products according to example embodiments. It will be understood that one or more blocks of the block diagrams and flow diagrams, and combinations of blocks in the block diagrams and the flow diagrams, respectively, may be implemented by execution of computer-executable program instructions. Likewise, some blocks of the block diagrams and flow diagrams may not necessarily need to be performed in the order presented, or may not necessarily need to be performed at all, according to some embodiments. Further, additional components and/or operations beyond those depicted in blocks of the block and/or flow diagrams may be present in certain embodiments.
Accordingly, blocks of the block diagrams and flow diagrams support combinations of means for performing the specified functions, combinations of elements or steps for performing the specified functions, and program instruction means for performing the specified functions. It will also be understood that each block of the block diagrams and flow diagrams, and combinations of blocks in the block diagrams and flow diagrams, may be implemented by special-purpose, hardware-based computer systems that perform the specified functions, elements or steps, or combinations of special-purpose hardware and computer instructions.
Program module(s), applications, or the like disclosed herein may include one or more software components, including, for example, software objects, methods, data structures, or the like. Each such software component may include computer-executable instructions that, responsive to execution, cause at least a portion of the functionality described herein (e.g., one or more operations of the illustrative methods described herein) to be performed.
A software component may be coded in any of a variety of programming languages. An illustrative programming language may be a lower-level programming language such as an assembly language associated with a particular hardware architecture and/or operating system platform. A software component comprising assembly language instructions may require conversion into executable machine code by an assembler prior to execution by the hardware architecture and/or platform.
Another example programming language may be a higher-level programming language that may be portable across multiple architectures. A software component comprising higher-level programming language instructions may require conversion to an intermediate representation by an interpreter or a compiler prior to execution.
Other examples of programming languages include, but are not limited to, a macro language, a shell or command language, a job control language, a script language, a database query or search language, or a report writing language. In one or more example embodiments, a software component comprising instructions in one of the foregoing examples of programming languages may be executed directly by an operating system or other software component without having to be first transformed into another form.
A software component may be stored as a file or other data storage construct. Software components of a similar type or functionally related may be stored together such as, for example, in a particular directory, folder, or library. Software components may be static (e.g., pre-established or fixed) or dynamic (e.g., created or modified at the time of execution).
Software components may invoke or be invoked by other software components through any of a wide variety of mechanisms. Invoked or invoking software components may comprise other custom-developed application software, operating system functionality (e.g., device drivers, data storage (e.g., file management) routines, other common routines, and services, etc.), or third-party software components (e.g., middleware, encryption, or other security software, database management software, file transfer or other network communication software, mathematical or statistical software, image processing software, and format translation software).
Software components associated with a particular solution or system may reside and be executed on a single platform or may be distributed across multiple platforms. The multiple platforms may be associated with more than one hardware vendor, underlying chip technology, or operating system. Furthermore, software components associated with a particular solution or system may be initially written in one or more programming languages, but may invoke software components written in another programming language.
Computer-executable program instructions may be loaded onto a special-purpose computer or other particular machine, a processor, or other programmable data processing apparatus to produce a particular machine, such that execution of the instructions on the computer, processor, or other programmable data processing apparatus causes one or more functions or operations specified in the flow diagrams to be performed. These computer program instructions may also be stored in a CRSM that upon execution may direct a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to function in a particular manner, such that the instructions stored in the computer-readable storage medium produce an article of manufacture including instruction means that implement one or more functions or operations specified in the flow diagrams. The computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to cause a series of operational elements or steps to be performed on the computer or other programmable apparatus to produce a computer-implemented process.
Additional types of CRSM that may be present in any of the devices described herein may include, but are not limited to, programmable random access memory (PRAM), SRAM, DRAM, RAM, ROM, electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), flash memory or other memory technology, compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), digital versatile disc (DVD) or other optical storage, magnetic cassettes, magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium which can be used to store the information and which can be accessed. Combinations of any of the above are also included within the scope of CRSM. Alternatively, computer-readable communication media (CRCM) may include computer-readable instructions, program module(s), or other data transmitted within a data signal, such as a carrier wave, or other transmission. However, as used herein, CRSM does not include CRCM.
Although embodiments have been described in language specific to structural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understood that the disclosure is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts described. Rather, the specific features and acts are disclosed as illustrative forms of implementing the embodiments. Conditional language, such as, among others, “can,” “could,” “might,” or “may” unless specifically stated otherwise, or otherwise understood within the context as used, is generally intended to convey that certain embodiments could include, while other embodiments do not include, certain features, elements, and/or steps. Thus, such conditional language is not generally intended to imply that features, elements, and/or steps are in any way required for one or more embodiments or that one or more embodiments necessarily include logic for deciding, with or without user input or prompting, whether these features, elements, and/or steps are included or are to be performed in any particular embodiment.
This application claims priority to and benefit of U.S. provisional patent application No. 63/483,066 filed Feb. 3, 2023, which is herein incorporated by reference.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 63483066 | Feb 2023 | US |
