In one embodiment, an HVAC system includes an indoor unit having a furnace, an outdoor heat pump unit having a compressor and an outdoor coil, a refrigerant line coupled to the indoor unit and the outdoor heat pump unit, and a valve coupled to the refrigerant line. The HVAC system further includes one or more controllers operable to determine that the outdoor heat pump unit is in operation during an air conditioning cycle. The controllers are further operable to determine an outdoor temperature and compare the outdoor temperature to a predetermined temperature. The controllers are further operable to initiate a closure of the valve coupled to the refrigerant line and initiate operation of the compressor at an end of the air conditioning cycle to pump down a refrigerant to the outdoor coil in response to comparing the outdoor temperature to the predetermined temperature.

The disclosure features various embodiments and aspects of a chest for quenching beverages. The chest can include a tank for holding a chilled mixture of ice and water, an ice maker adapted for making ice having an output for ejecting ice into a conduit in fluid communication with the tank, and a plurality of quench trays disposed above the tank for holding containers of beverages located in first and second positions. The trays can be filled with cold water by way of a conduit in fluid communication with the tank. The quench trays can include a compartment defined by a bottom and a plurality of walls, and defining therein a plurality of rows for aligning and containing a plurality of beverage containers. The drawers can further include at least one drain orifice configured to guide water out of the quench tray.

A driving device drives a motor including a rotor having a neodymium rare earth magnet. The driving device includes an inverter, a first detector that outputs a first detection signal corresponding to a motor driving current supplied to the motor, a protection level setting unit that sets an overcurrent protection level, a second detector that outputs a second detection signal corresponding to a driving state of the motor, and a control device. The control device executes first control of lowering the motor driving current immediately after the motor driving current corresponding to the first detection signal exceeds the overcurrent protection level. When the protection level setting unit lowers the overcurrent protection level to a new current level based on the second detection signal, the control device executes second control of lowering the motor driving current to a level lower than the new current level.

An actively heated or cooled food container can have a lid movable between an open and a closed position and an insulated body to which the lid can be attached. The insulated body can have a sidewall that defines a perimeter of the container body and a base, the sidewall and base defining one or more chambers that can be sealed by the lid. The food container can have a temperature control system that can include one or more heating or cooling elements in thermal communication with one or both of the sidewall and the base and operable to heat or cool one or both of the sidewall and the base to thereby heat or cool the one or more chambers in the food container.

A control system (1) for controlling a cooling system comprising two or more cooling entities (2) is disclosed. The control system comprises a central control unit (3), two or more entity controllers (4), each entity controller (4) being associated with one of the cooling entities (2), and each entity controller (4) being provided with a nearfield communication interface (6) allowing communication between the entity controller (4) and a portable device (7), via a nearfield communication channel, and a secured communication network (5) connecting the central control unit (3) with each of the entity controllers (4). The central control unit (3) is configured to generate blocking signals and/or unblocking signals and communicate the blocking signals and/or unblocking signals to each of the entity controllers (4), via the secured communication network (5). Each of the entity controllers (4) is configured to block and/or unblock the nearfield communication interface (6), in accordance with received blocking signals and/or unblocking signals.

In one embodiment, an HVAC system includes an indoor unit having a furnace, an outdoor heat pump unit having a compressor and an outdoor coil, a refrigerant line coupled to the indoor unit and the outdoor heat pump unit, and an EEV coupled to the refrigerant line. The HVAC system further includes one or more controllers operable to determine an occurrence of a first event, initiate a closure of the EEV, initiate operation of the compressor at a completion of the air conditioning cycle to pump down a refrigerant to the outdoor coil, and cease operation of the compressor when a low-pressure switch is tripped.

The present invention relates to a smart home controller refrigerator and a control method therefor, the smart home controller refrigerator, according to one embodiment of the present invention, comprising: a control unit comprising a control protocol communication unit for receiving control information for controlling a home appliance in a home, an operation protocol communication unit for generating an operation signal calculated from the control information, and a signal transmission unit for transmitting the operation signal to the home appliance; at least one storage space; and at least one door for controlling the opening/closing of the at least one storage space.

A system for transferring heat via a refrigerant between an indoor heat exchange coil and an outdoor heat exchange coil of an HVAC system of a building includes an expansion valve and a compressor. The system includes a compressor discharge refrigerant temperature sensor, an outdoor air temperature source, a controller operatively coupled to the compressor discharge refrigerant temperature sensor and the outdoor air temperature source. The controller identifies a difference between the temperatures indicative of the temperature of the compressed refrigerant at or near the output of the compressor and the measure of outdoor air temperature source, identifies a change in the identified difference over time, and reports a fault when the change in the difference exceeds a threshold.

A monitoring system is disclosed for a heating, ventilation, or air conditioning (HVAC) system of a residential or commercial building. The monitoring system includes an evaporator unit device including a first current sensor that measures current supplied to a circulator blower. The measured current from the first current sensor is used to diagnose a problem with the circulator blower. The monitoring system includes a first temperature sensor that measures refrigerant temperature between a condenser and an expansion valve. The monitoring system includes a second temperature sensor that measures refrigerant temperature between an evaporator and a compressor. The monitoring system includes a condenser unit device that communicates with the evaporator unit device. The condenser unit device includes a second current sensor that measures current supplied to the compressor. The evaporator unit device transmits sensor data to a remote monitoring service over a data network.

An actively heated or cooled food container can have a lid movable between an open and a closed position and an insulated body to which the lid can be attached. The insulated body can have a sidewall that defines a perimeter of the container body and a base, the sidewall and base defining one or more chambers that can be sealed by the lid. The food container can have a temperature control system that can include one or more heating or cooling elements in thermal communication with one or both of the sidewall and the base and operable to heat or cool one or both of the sidewall and the base to thereby heat or cool the one or more chambers in the food container.