A device such as a smart thermostat is provided for controlling heating and cooling systems. The device is operable to execute an energy control program to control the heating and a cooling systems based upon different control strategies: a first control strategy that compares the at least one temperature setpoint in the programming schedule to the current measured dry bulb temperature to determine whether to engage or disengage the heating and a cooling systems, and a second control strategy that compares the at least one temperature setpoint in the programming schedule to a normalized humidex temperature to determine whether to engage or disengage the heating and a cooling systems, the normalized humidex temperature being the current measured dry bulb temperature modified by historical humidity values to provide an indicator of thermal comfort within the premise.

A first air-supply port and a first air-exhaust port each disposed in a first zone and used to ventilate the first zone are provided. Further, a second air-supply port and a second air-exhaust port each disposed in a second zone and used to ventilate the second zone are provided, and the second zone is adjacent to the first zone. The first air-supply port, the first air-exhaust port, the second air-supply port, and the second air-exhaust port are disposed on one plane. The first air-supply port, the first air-exhaust port, the second air-supply port, and the second air-exhaust port are disposed in order of the first air-exhaust port, the first air-supply port, the second air-supply port, and the second air-exhaust port in one direction, or in order of the first air-supply port, the first air-exhaust port, the second air-exhaust port, and the second air-supply port in one direction.

A method of making a thermal comfort estimation of one or more human occupants in a built space in real-time is presented. The method employs one or more thermographic cameras and one or more red, green, and blue depth (RGB-D) sensors. The method has several steps. In an example, the method involves capturing thermal images of the human occupant(s) via the thermographic camera(s) and capturing RGB-D images of the human occupant(s) via the RGB-D camera(s). The method further involves extracting facial skin temperatures of the human occupant(s) using the captured thermal images and using the captured RGB-D images. And the method involves estimating the thermal comfort of the human occupant(s) using the extracted facial skin temperatures.

An occupancy tracking device configured to receive a plurality of sound samples over a predetermined time period. The device is further configured to compute an audio signature for each sound sample. The device is further configured to populate entries in the voice data log for the sound samples, to identify one or more clusters based on an audio signature that is associated with the populated entries, and to determine a number of clusters that are identified. The device is further configured to determine a predicted occupancy level based on the number of clusters that are identified and to control a Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) system based on the predicted occupancy level.

An occupancy tracking device configured to receive sound samples, to identify voices within the sound samples, and to determine a first occupancy level based on the identified voices. The device is further configured to identify user devices connected to an access point and to determine a second occupancy level based on the user devices that are connected to the access point. The device is further configured to measure a signal strength of a network connection with the access point and to determine a third occupancy level based on the signal strength of the network connection with the access point. The device is further configured to determine a predicted occupancy level based on the first occupancy level, the second occupancy level, and the third occupancy level and to control a Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) system based on the predicted occupancy level.

A sensor mounting device (100) of the present disclosure includes: a power supply unit (110) configured to generate power that is to be supplied to the device; a sensor (120) configured to acquire information of the environment around of the device; a first control unit (130) configured to give an instruction based on the information acquired by the sensor (120); and a second control unit (150) configured to control the device in accordance with the instruction of the first control unit (130) Power to the sensor (120) and the first control unit (130) is directly supplied from the power supply unit (110). Power to the second control unit (150) is supplied from the power supply unit (110) via a switching unit (140) whose ON/OFF state is controlled by the first control unit (130).

A thermostat system for control of an HVAC (Heating, Ventilation and Air-Conditioning) system, the thermostat system comprising a power conversion module, the power conversion module further comprising a power input of either a direct-current voltage or an alternating-current voltage, a battery management system including a battery and a battery management circuit, the battery management circuit configured to select either the battery output voltage or the primary output voltage based on an operating condition, a communication module, a temperature monitor, one or more environmental sensors, a graphical user interface display, and a processor.

A space recommendation method based on an air conditioning system includes: obtaining a user space usage request that includes demand information of a user for a space; and determining a current energy consumption amount of each of a plurality of air conditioning units of the air conditioning system. Each of the plurality of air conditioning units includes a plurality of air conditioning terminal devices, the plurality of air conditioning terminal devices is respectively arranged in a plurality of spaces; determining a candidate space based on the current energy consumption amount; and recommending an available space based on the demand information and the candidate space.

Methods, and systems including computer programs encoded on a computer storage medium, for automated climate control. In one aspect, a monitoring system includes an indoor climate control device that is configured to adjust an indoor climate setting of a property, a sensor that is located at the property and configured to generate sensor data that reflects an attribute of the property, and a monitor control unit. The monitor control unit is configured to receive the sensor data, and receive, from an onboard control unit for a first vehicle associated with the property, data that reflects a status of the first vehicle. Based on the data that reflects the status of the first vehicle and the sensor data, the monitor control unit determines the indoor climate setting for the indoor climate control device, and provides instructions to adjust the indoor climate control device to the indoor climate setting.

A system for air conditioning is provided which comprises a HVAC system suitable to air condition a space. The HVAC system has a heating mode, a cooling mode, and a fan mode. The system further comprises a building space to be air conditioned by the HVAC system, at least two air temperature sensors situated in different locations in the building space, at least one occupancy sensor for detecting the presence of at least one person in the building space and a controller for controlling an operation of the heating, ventilation and air-conditioning system. The controller is configured to make a selection between the heating mode, cooling mode and fan mode based on signals of the at least two air temperature sensors. The system allows the provision of a thermal comfort in the building space of the system at a reduced overall energy consumption and reduced carbon footprint.