Provided herein is a valve with a housing, a thermostatic element of which a first end part of a piston, which axially opposes the end submerged in a thermodilatable material contained in the body of the thermostatic element, is secured to the housing; a return spring; an electrical heating resistance arranged inside the second end part of the piston; electrical connection for feeding the resistance from outside the housing; and a check mechanism for controlling a flow of fluid circulating through the housing, in a direction leading from the first end part towards the second end part of the piston, and connected to the body of the thermostatic element such that the relative movements between the body and the piston, resulting from the dilation and contraction of the thermodilatable material, move the check mechanism in relation to the housing, between closed and open positions affecting the flow of fluid.

A controller for controlling a machine includes a coolant monitoring function. The controller generates and records history information in which the measurement values of a state of a coolant are associated with time information on the time when the measurement values are measured. Then, a rate of change in a measurement value for a state of the coolant is calculated based on the recorded history information, and a state of the coolant and a countermeasure therefore are determined based on the calculated rate of change in the measurement value.

A controller for controlling a machine includes a coolant monitoring function. The controller generates and records history information in which the measurement values of a state of a coolant are associated with time information on the time when the measurement values are measured. Then, a rate of change in a measurement value for a state of the coolant is calculated based on the recorded history information, and a state of the coolant and a countermeasure therefore are determined based on the calculated rate of change in the measurement value.

An electronic thermostat control system may include a control duty determination portion outputting PWM duty signal for controlling the coolant temperature according to a coolant temperature, a rising rate of the coolant temperature, an engine speed, a load and a vehicle speed, a driving portion applying a time condition to the PWM duty signal output by the control duty determination portion for controlling outputting interval, and a fault diagnosis portion diagnosing operations of the electronic thermostat by analyzing the signals output by the driving portion and changes of the coolant temperature.

Thermal management systems incorporating shape memory alloy (SMA) actuators and related methods. A thermal management system includes a heat transfer region, a process fluid conduit, a thermal management fluid conduit, and an SMA actuator assembly. The SMA actuator assembly includes an SMA element coupled to an actuation element, which is configured to assume a position among a plurality of positions defined between a restrictive position and an open position. The position of the actuation element is based, at least in part, on a conformation of the SMA element. A method of passively regulating a temperature of a process fluid includes conveying a process fluid stream in heat exchange relation with an SMA element, transitioning the SMA element to assume a conformation, flowing each of the process fluid stream and a thermal management fluid stream through a heat transfer region, and modulating a flow rate of the thermal management fluid stream.

An air flow controller for an air cleaner and an air cleaner are provided. The air flow controller may include a fan, and a housing, the fan being provided in the housing and the housing being movable from an initial horizontal position in which the air flow controller directs air flow in a vertical direction to an inclined position in which the air flow controller directs air flow in a diagonal direction.

Systems and methods are provided for operating a central air conditioning and/or heating system within a building that includes one or more blowers and ducts communicating from the blower(s) to respective rooms within the building. The system includes a vent in each of the rooms including an actuator for selectively opening and closing the vent, one or more sensors in each room for detecting occupants, and a controller communicating with the actuators and the one or more sensors for directing the actuators to open or close respective vents based at least in part on data from the one or more sensors.

The temperature switch includes a housing, an actuator, a switch, and a force buffer situated between the actuator and the switch. The switch is movable between a first and second state in response to imposition and release of an actuating force F.sub.A. The force buffer transmits the actuating force F.sub.A from the actuator to the switch when compressed a first distance in the first direction by extension of the actuator in response to an increase in temperature T.sub.1. At temperature T.sub.1, the force buffer transmits the force F.sub.A to move the switch from the first state to the second state. The actuator retracts a second distance in the second direction in response to a decrease in temperature T.sub.2. At temperature T.sub.2, the force buffer releases the force F.sub.A and the switch moves from the second state to the first state.

The temperature switch includes a housing, an actuator, a switch, and a force buffer situated between the actuator and the switch. The switch is movable between a first and second state in response to imposition and release of an actuating force F.sub.A. The force buffer transmits the actuating force F.sub.A from the actuator to the switch when compressed a first distance in the first direction by extension of the actuator in response to an increase in temperature T.sub.1. At temperature T.sub.1, the force buffer transmits the force F.sub.A to move the switch from the first state to the second state. The actuator retracts a second distance in the second direction in response to a decrease in temperature T.sub.2. At temperature T.sub.2, the force buffer releases the force F.sub.A and the switch moves from the second state to the first state.

One variation of a method for monitoring cooling units in a store includes: at a robotic system, during a first scan routine, autonomously navigating toward a cooling unit in the store, recording a color image of the cooling unit, and scanning a set of temperatures within the cooling unit; identifying a set of products stocked in the cooling unit based on features detected in the color image; mapping the set of temperatures to the set of products at a first time during the first scan routine based on positions of products in the set of products identified in the color image; and generating a record of temperatures of the set of products stocked in the cooling unit at the first time.