Patent Application
20070045441
The present invention relates generally to digital thermostats, and more particularly to the setup and initial programming of a digital thermostat upon installation in an operating environment.
Occupants of dwellings and commercial structures have long benefited from the inclusion of a heating, ventilating, and air conditioning (HVAC) system that regulates the temperature and humidity within the dwelling or structure. Traditionally, the thermostat that controlled this temperature regulating equipment was a fairly simple electromechanical device that was simply wired to a heating device and/or to a cooling device. Once installed, the user need only move a selector switch between heating and cooling to designate which equipment was desired to be operated, move a selector switch between run and auto for a fan control, and rotate a dial to a desired set point temperature. No other user interface to the thermostat was needed or available.
Advances in control electronics have allowed the development of new, digital thermostats that may be programmed by a user to control the heating and cooling equipment in a much more energy efficient manner than the older electromechanical devices. These modem digital thermostats allow programming that can automatically set back the heat, for example, during periods when the dwelling or structure is not occupied, and can turn up the heat just prior to and during periods of occupation of the dwelling or structure. Indeed, many such digital thermostats allow for different programming options during different days of the week. For example, such a digital thermostat may provide for one programmed operation during the week and a different programmed operation on the weekend, to accommodate the different usage patterns of the occupants of that particular dwelling or structure.
While the advances that are being included in modern digital thermostats greatly enhance the users' comfort level and minimize the energy usage, the overall user experience interfacing with such a digital thermostat has not kept pace. Specifically, the sophisticated electronic programming that can be accommodated, and indeed required, to properly install and setup a modern digital thermostat can be quite a daunting task, particularly for the do-it-yourself consumers who may want to upgrade or replace an existing thermostat. Many such digital thermostats are sold with lengthy and detailed user's manuals that teach a user how to setup the thermostat to enable all of the features that are available and/or required for proper operation of the digital thermostat, and indeed the HVAC system itself.
However, in a society where many digital devices in the home include clocks that continue to flash 12:00 because the user cannot master programming of the simple clock function and cannot take the time to read through the lengthy user's manual, many users never setup their digital thermostat to take advantage of the energy saving and comfort enhancing features provided thereby. As such, these consumers become disenchanted with the digital thermostat.
Similarly, even when such digital thermostats are installed by HVAC installation professionals, the installer must properly setup the thermostat. This process often involves selecting various configuration options on different screens or menus. As thermostats become more complex and configurable, this process can be relatively lengthy and confusing, and can require increased reference to the lengthy installation guide or product manual. Such lengthy and complex setup requirements typically drives up the cost of installation because many such professionals charge on an hourly basis. Further, with such complex programming being required, there is no guarantee that the setup will be done correctly.
There exists, therefore, a need in the art for a configuration setup system for a digital thermostat that allows the end user or installation personnel to simply and completely configure the digital thermostat.
The invention provides such a digital thermostat configuration system. These and other advantages of the invention, as well as additional inventive features, will be apparent from the description of the invention provided herein.
The present invention provides a new and improved digital thermostat. More particularly, the present invention provides a new and improved digital thermostat having a configuration system that allows the end user or installation personnel to simply and completely configure the digital thermostat. Even more particularly, the present invention provides a new and improved configuration system for a digital thermostat that simply and quickly steps the user through all of the required configuration settings. Preferably, the configuration system of the present invention automatically sequences the installer or user through the configuration sequence and allows them to accept or change the default for each required setting.
In one embodiment of the present invention, the configuration system for electronic or digital thermostats is embodied as a thermostat configuration wizard that guides the installer or user through a defined sequence of parameters. In a preferred embodiment, at each sequence the installer or user is shown the existing or default setting, and is allowed to accept or change that setting at each step in the configuration process. When the thermostat is initially powered upon installation, the thermostat recognizes that all settings are factory default settings, and prompts the user if they would like to run the configuration wizard. If the user indicates that they would like to run the configuration wizard, the first configurable setting is displayed, the user makes any adjustments as desired, and then accepts this value to move to the next setting in the configuration process. The installer or user continues in this manner until all of the settings have appeared and have either been accepted or changed. Once all settings have been configured, the configuration wizard concludes. Normal thermostat operation then begins. In a highly preferred embodiment of the present invention, the cycling of power to the thermostat such as, for example, as a result of a power outage in the home or structure, the configuration wizard of the present invention does not run.
In addition to the installation settings, there are many user configurable options on modem digital thermostats that may not typically utilized by a consumer due to the complexity of finding and changing the settings in the overall programming structure of the thermostat itself. Recognizing this, one embodiment of the configuration wizard of the present invention is extended to cover such user configuration options. In such an embodiment, the configuration wizard sequences the user or installer through the various profile or programming options available in the thermostat, e.g., programming of the wake, leave, return, and sleep temperatures in times throughout the day. In a highly preferred embodiment, the configuration wizard of the present invention utilizes natural language prompts to simplify the user interface experience and minimize and/or eliminate the need for the user to refer to the user manual.
Other aspects, objectives and advantages of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
The accompanying drawings incorporated in and forming a part of the specification illustrate several aspects of the present invention and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention. In the drawings:
While the invention will be described in connection with certain preferred embodiments, there is no intent to limit it to those embodiments. On the contrary, the intent is to cover all alternatives, modifications and equivalents as included within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.
An embodiment of a thermostat constructed in accordance with the teachings of the present invention that incorporates the automatic configuration system of the present invention is illustrated in
In addition to the soft keys 104, 106, this embodiment of the thermostat 100 of the present invention also includes adjustment keys 108, 110. These adjustment keys 108, 110 may serve to adjust a currently selected parameter up or down, such as in the case of setting the control temperature at which the thermostat will maintain the ambient environment. Additionally, these keys 108, 110 may scroll through the available data for a selected parameter, such as scrolling through alphanumeric data that may be selected for a given parameter. These keys 108, 110 may also function as soft keys depending on the programmatic state in which the thermostat is operating. When this functionality is provided, the function that will be instituted by selection of key 108 will be provided generally in the upper right hand corner of display 102, while the functionality that will be instituted by selection of key 110 will be displayed generally in the lower right hand corner of user display 102. In addition to the above, other use input means, such as an alphanumeric keypad, user rotatable knob, a touch screen, etc. may be utilized instead of the buttons 104-110 illustrated in the embodiment of
In this embodiment, the thermostat 100 also includes operating mode visual indicators 112, 114, 116. These indicators 112-116 provide a visual indication of the current operating mode of the thermostat. In the embodiment illustrated in
In embodiments of the present invention that do not utilize automated switching control between the heating and cooling modes of operation, these indicators 112-116 may operate as user selectable switches to allow the consumer to select the operating mode of the thermostat 100. For example, during the summer months the consumer may select the cooling mode by depressing indicator 112. In this mode, the furnace will not be turned on even if the interior ambient temperature drops below the set point. To switch from the cooling to the heating mode of operation, the consumer, in this alternate embodiment, would need to select indicator 116 to allow the thermostat 100 to operate the furnace. Consumer selection in this embodiment of indicator 114 would operate the fan continuously, as opposed to its normal automatic operation based upon a call for cooling or heat by the thermostat 100. In a still further embodiment of the present invention, the indicators 112-116 may also be utilized to provide a visual indication of system trouble, or that there is a system reminder message being displayed on user screen 102.
Having discussed the physical structure of one embodiment of a thermostat 100 constructed in accordance with the teachings of the present invention, the discussion will now focus on the automatic configuration setup system which forms an aspect of the present invention. Indeed, while the following discussion will utilize the structure of the thermostat 100 illustrated in
In one embodiment of the present invention, upon initial energization of the thermostat 100, the configuration wizard of the present invention checks to see whether the wizard has ever been run before. This check may be accomplished in various ways, including, e.g., by checking to see whether all of the setup parameters are set to their factory defaults, by checking a setup flag stored in non-volatile memory, etc. This initial check performed in a preferred embodiment of the present invention ensures that the consumer does not have to bother with running the setup wizard again after a simple power interruption at the home. However, if the power outage results in a loss of the time and date information, an abbreviated form of the setup wizard of the present invention may run to prompt and guide the user to reset the clock and/or calendar so that proper operation of the heating and/or cooling system may continue.
Assuming that the system of the present invention determines that the setup wizard should be run, a preferred embodiment of the present invention displays the setup wizard introduction screen 120 as illustrated in
To allow for global application of the setup wizard of the present invention, the select language screen 126 illustrated in
Once the user has selected a desired language, the next step in the configuration process in this embodiment of the present invention is to set the time via screen 134. As with the previous and subsequent screens, the initial factory default setting is highlighted, and may be changed by the consumer by scrolling through the available options via selection keys 108, 110. In this embodiment, initially the hour information 136 may be configured. Once the user has selected the appropriate hour, the consumer would simply depress soft key 106 to the next functionality 130 to proceed to the minute configuration screen 138 illustrated in
In one embodiment of the present invention, the next step in the configuration process is to set the date, beginning with the month via the month date setting screen 142 illustrated in
Recognizing that various people track time in different ways, an embodiment of the configuration wizard of the present invention also allows the user to select the time format via screen 150 illustrated in
Recognizing that different areas of the country observe daylight savings time in different ways, or not at all, one embodiment of the configuration wizard of the present invention provides an auto adjustment for daylight savings time screen 156 as illustrated in
Recognizing that different people use different systems to describe temperature, an embodiment of the configuration wizard of the present invention provides a select temperature scale screen 158 illustrated in
An embodiment of the configuration wizard of the present invention next displays the first stage heating equipment selection screen 160 illustrated in
One of the advanced features of an embodiment of the digital thermostat of the present invention is its ability to track required service intervals for the various components of the heating and cooling system. Once the required interval has lapsed, the digital thermostat may provide the consumer with an indication that some type of service is required to maintain the heating and cooling system in optimal operating condition. Therefore, in an embodiment of the present invention, the configuration wizard provides various configuration screens to allow a user to setup the reminder interval for different equipment in the heating and cooling system.
As illustrated in
In one embodiment of the present invention, the last screen of the configuration wizard includes a done function 176 and a back function 132. In the illustrated embodiment, this last screen is illustrated in
In an embodiment of the present invention, the configuration wizard terminates with an option to enter service contractor contact information via a decision screen 178 illustrated in
While not illustrated in the above figures, an embodiment of the configuration wizard of the present invention also sequences a user through the many user configurable options that may otherwise be un-utilized due to the complexity of finding and changing the settings in the overall menu structure or programming architecture of the thermostat. In one embodiment of the present invention, such user configurable options are included as part of the installation wizard itself, while in another embodiment this user configuration wizard is provided as separate functionality that may be accessed at any time by the user, not simply at initial installation of the thermostat. In one embodiment the user configuration profile wizard walks the user through programming of the thermostat to control the temperature at different levels during different events during the day to increase energy efficiency, for example, wake, leave, return, and sleep temperatures for each day or groupings of days.
As will now be apparent to those skilled in the art, an embodiment of a method of the present invention includes the step of checking to see whether the setup wizard has been run upon application of power to the thermostat. Such check may include analyzing the set options to determine if they were all factory default options, checking a flag stored in non-volatile memory that indicates that the configuration wizard has been run or not, etc. If it is determined that the setup wizard needs to be run, the method of the present invention displays an introduction screen that allows the user to chose whether to run the setup wizard or not. If the user does not wish to run the setup configuration wizard, the method terminates. In an alternate embodiment, the wizard begins to run automatically without first displaying an introduction screen.
If in the first embodiment, however, the user chooses to run the configuration setup wizard, the method of the present invention sequences the user through each of the available setup parameters, preferably via display screens providing the available options to the consumer. In a preferred embodiment of the method of the present invention, the user is also provided with the option to move forward or back through the setup configuration process. Once the user has entered or accepted all of the required parameters in the setup process, the setup configuration wizard terminates and normal operation of the thermostat begins. In an alternate embodiment of the method of the present invention, the user may select to run the configuration wizard at any time. This user initiated configuration may run through the entire setup process, or may simply sequence the user through programming of profile settings for operation of the heating and cooling system.
All references, including publications, patent applications, and patents cited herein are hereby incorporated by reference to the same extent as if each reference were individually and specifically indicated to be incorporated by reference and were set forth in its entirety herein.
The use of the terms “a” and “an” and “the” and similar referents in the context of describing the invention (especially in the context of the following claims) is to be construed to cover both the singular and the plural, unless otherwise indicated herein or clearly contradicted by context. The terms “comprising,” “having,” “including,” and “containing” are to be construed as open-ended terms (i.e., meaning “including, but not limited to,”) unless otherwise noted. Recitation of ranges of values herein are merely intended to serve as a shorthand method of referring individually to each separate value falling within the range, unless otherwise indicated herein, and each separate value is incorporated into the specification as if it were individually recited herein. All methods described herein can be performed in any suitable order unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context. The use of any and all examples, or exemplary language (e.g., “such as”) provided herein, is intended merely to better illuminate the invention and does not pose a limitation on the scope of the invention unless otherwise claimed. No language in the specification should be construed as indicating any non-claimed element as essential to the practice of the invention.
Preferred embodiments of this invention are described herein, including the best mode known to the inventors for carrying out the invention. Variations of those preferred embodiments may become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art upon reading the foregoing description. The inventors expect skilled artisans to employ such variations as appropriate, and the inventors intend for the invention to be practiced otherwise than as specifically described herein. Accordingly, this invention includes all modifications and equivalents of the subject matter recited in the claims appended hereto as permitted by applicable law. Moreover, any combination of the above-described elements in all possible variations thereof is encompassed by the invention unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context.
