Conditional system of climate control

Abstract

A conditional climate control system is presented for maximizing the comfort level of the climate within a building while minimizing the usage of an on-demand energy source. An energy reserve created by an intermittent energy source or sources is monitored, and when it has surpassed a predetermined threshold level the climate conditions of a building are set to more desirable but energy intensive levels from energy-saving levels.

Claims

1. A climate control system, comprising: a location to be heated to at least a minimum required temperature, an intermittent energy source, the energy from which is stored in an energy reserve, wherein the energy reserve has an energy level, an on-demand energy source which is used to supplement the intermittent energy source as necessary to meet climate demands of the location, a hydronic heating system powered by the energy reserve and the on-demand energy source, wherein the hydronic heating system heats the location to be heated, a monitor that measures the energy level of the energy reserve, a conditional thermostat located in the location to be heated, wherein the conditional thermostat has at least a lower and a higher temperature setpoint, wherein, when the energy level of the energy reserve is below a user-determined energy level, the minimum required temperature of the location to be heated is equal to the lower temperature setpoint, and when the energy level of the energy reserve exceeds the user-determined energy level, the minimum required temperature of the location to be heated is equal to the higher temperature setpoint, further comprising: a second location to be heated to at least a second required minimum temperature, a second conditional thermostat located in the second location to be heated, wherein the second conditional thermostat has at least a second lower and a second higher temperature setpoint, wherein the hydronic heating system further heats the second location to be heated, wherein, when the energy level of the energy reserve is below a second user-determined energy level, the second minimum required temperature of the second location to be heated is equal to the second lower temperature setpoint, and when the energy level of the energy reserve exceeds the second user-determined energy level, the second minimum required temperature of the second location to be heated is equal to the second higher temperature setpoint, and wherein the second user-determined energy level corresponds to a higher energy level than the user-determined energy level.

2. The climate control system of claim 1, wherein the energy reserve is a battery, and the monitor measures electrical potential.

3. A climate control system, comprising: a location to be cooled to at least a maximum required temperature, an intermittent energy source, the energy from which is stored in an energy reserve, wherein the energy reserve has an energy level, an on-demand energy source which is used to supplement the intermittent energy source as necessary to meet climate demands of the location, an air conditioner, wherein the air conditioner cools the location to be cooled, a monitor that measures the energy level of the energy reserve, a conditional thermostat located in the location to be cooled, wherein the conditional thermostat has at least a lower and a higher temperature setpoint, wherein, when the energy level of the energy reserve is below a user-determined energy level, the maximum required temperature of the location to be cooled is equal to the higher temperature setpoint, and when the energy level of the energy reserve exceeds the user-determined energy level, the maximum required temperature of the location to be heated is equal to the lower temperature setpoint, further comprising: a second location to be cooled to at least a second required maximum temperature, a second conditional thermostat located in the second location to be cooled, wherein the second conditional thermostat has at least a second lower and a second higher temperature setpoint, wherein the second location to be cooled is cooled by the air conditioner or a second air conditioner, wherein, when the energy level of the energy reserve is below a second user-determined energy level, the second maximum required temperature of the second location to be cooled is equal to the second higher temperature setpoint, and when the energy level of the energy reserve exceeds the second user-determined energy level, the second maximum required temperature of the second location to be cooled is equal to the second lower temperature setpoint, and wherein the second user-determined energy level corresponds to a higher energy level than the user-determined energy level.

4. The climate control system of claim 3, wherein the energy reserve is a battery, and the monitor measures electrical potential.

5. The climate control system of claim 3, further comprising: a second location to be cooled to at least a second required maximum temperature, a second conditional thermostat located in the second location to be cooled, wherein the second conditional thermostat has at least a second lower and a second higher temperature setpoint, wherein the second location to be cooled is cooled by the air conditioner or a second air conditioner, wherein, when the energy level of the energy reserve is below a second user-determined energy level, the second maximum required temperature of the second location to be cooled is equal to the second higher temperature setpoint, and when the energy level of the energy reserve exceeds the second user-determined energy level, the second maximum required temperature of the second location to be cooled is equal to the second lower temperature setpoint, and wherein the second user-determined energy level corresponds to a higher energy level than the user-determined energy level.

6. The climate control system of claim 1, wherein the intermittent energy source is a solar energy panel.

7. The climate control system of claim 3, wherein the intermittent energy source is a solar energy panel.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) The invention disclosed may be more fully understood with the aid of the following drawings together with the detailed description of the drawings. The drawings serve to demonstrate one or more preferred embodiments of the invention and are not to be construed as limiting the scope of the invention. In the drawings,

(2) FIG. 1 illustrates a basic system diagram according to one embodiment of the invention;

(3) FIG. 2 illustrates the way the invention may be used to prioritize rooms within a building;

(4) FIG. 3 illustrates a variation of the system of FIG. 1, where an alternative measurement is used to determine surplus energy conditions;

(5) FIG. 4 illustrates an alternative embodiment of the invention using a different form of intermittent energy;

(6) FIG. 5 illustrates an alternative embodiment of the invention that is directed towards cooling the climate of a building.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(7) The present invention is intended to be implemented in conjunction with systems known to the art that use a combination of intermittent and on-demand energy sources to control the climate of a building.

(8) Referring to FIG. 1, an intermittent energy generator, shown here as thermal solar panel 01, absorbs solar energy and transfers that energy via thermal conductor, shown here as pipes of heated fluid 02, to the thermal energy reserve 03 by means of a heat transfer coil 04. The thermal energy reserve 03 is shown here as a large insulated water tank, but it is recognized that alternative thermal reserve systems are known to the art and could be substituted.

(9) From the thermal energy reserve 03, a hydronic heating system comprising a heat transfer coil 05, pipes of heated fluid 06, a boiler 07, a boiler controller 08, a pump 09, and solenoid 10 is shown to distribute the thermal energy to the building via a heated fluid, although it is recognized that alternative heat distribution systems are known to the art and could be substituted without undue experimentation. In the hydronic heating system, the heat transfer coil 05 heats the fluid within the system which is circulated by means of a pump 09 to solenoid 10. At solenoid 10, the boiler controller 08 determines if the fluid is of sufficient temperature to bypass additional heating, a mechanism that is well known to the art. If the fluid is not of sufficient temperature to bypass the on-demand heating source, shown here as a boiler 07, it is heated by that on-demand heating source.

(10) The heated fluid then travels from the boiler or bypass to solenoid valve 11, which is controlled by conditional thermostat 12. A conditional thermostat is any thermostat that can be programmed to have different setpoint temperatures depending on the status of the intermittent energy reserve. When the conditional thermostat 12 determines that the conditions for heating are met, the solenoid valve 11 is opened to allow the heated fluid to flow to the heat exchanger 13 within a room in the building 14. The heat exchanger may be radiant floor pipes, a radiator, or any other substitutes known to the art. From this heat exchanger 13, the fluid continues through the hydronic heating system loop, through pump 09, and returns to the heat transfer coil 05 to regain thermal energy, and the process is repeated.

(11) The logic by which the conditional thermostat 12 determines the conditions for opening the solenoid valve 11 is a core principal within the invention. Because thermal energy is transferred both into the thermal energy reserve 03 by means of the heat transfer coil 04 and out of the thermal energy reserve 03 by means of the heat transfer coil 05, the temperature of the reserve [T.sub.Reserve] will accordingly rise and fall as a result of the difference of energy transferred into and out of the reserve 03. This change in temperature is monitored by the thermal energy reserve temperature sensor 15, which sends the information to the conditional thermostat 12, a process shown in this embodiment as passing through the boiler controller 08.

(12) Conditional thermostat 12 determines the relationship of T.sub.Reserve to a predetermined threshold temperature [T.sub.Threshold], which should be set by the building manager to be equal to or greater than the temperature that the thermal energy reserve 03 needs to reach to no longer require the operation of the on-demand heating source. Thus, it follows that when T.sub.Reserve is greater than or equal to T.sub.Threshold, the on-demand heating source will not be used to heat the room in the building 14, and there can then reasonably be considered to be surplus energy in the reserve for purposes of heating the building. It should be noted that while the logic is shown here as occurring in conditional thermostat 12, the physical location and device of the computations described may be changed without substantially altering the invented system.

(13) In such instances of surplus energy, the building temperature [T.sub.Room] below which the conditional thermostat 12 instructs the solenoid 11 to open (known as a setpoint temperature) changes from an energy-saving low temperature [T.sub.Conserve] to a more comfortable and higher temperature [T.sub.Surplus]. That is to say, when T.sub.Reserve is less than T.sub.Threshold, the hydronic heating system is only operational when T.sub.Room is less than T.sub.Conserve, whereas when T.sub.Reserve is greater than or equal to T.sub.Threshold, the hydronic heating system is operational when T.sub.Room is less than T.sub.Surplus.

(14) TABLE-US-00001 TABLE 1 Reserve Building Condition Temperature Temperature Heat 1 T.sub.Reserve < T.sub.Threshold T.sub.Room < T.sub.Conserve On 2 T.sub.Reserve < T.sub.Threshold T.sub.Room T.sub.Conserve Off 3 T.sub.Reserve T.sub.Threshold T.sub.Room < T.sub.Conserve On 4 T.sub.Reserve T.sub.Threshold T.sub.Conserve T.sub.Room < On T.sub.Surplus 5 T.sub.Reserve T.sub.Threshold T.sub.Room T.sub.Surplus Off

(15) Table 1 is a table that explicitly shows the logic used by the conditional thermostat 12. Recall that T.sub.Conserve is necessarily set to be a lesser temperature than T.sub.Surplus. In a hydronic heating system, a heat condition of On means that the solenoid valve 11 will be open.

(16) In this embodiment, condition 4 shows the benefit of the invention. In condition 4, although the building temperature is above the conservative temperature point, the building is further heated until either it reaches the surplus temperature point or the condition of the temperature reserve changes. This is in contrast to conventional climate control system, where at any given time the thermostat has a single temperature condition to determine the status of the heating system. Thus, in specific instances of surplus energy in the reserve, the building is automatically heated to a more comfortable temperature.

(17) FIG. 2 demonstrates the way that the invention can be used to prioritize multiple rooms within a building. This in an embodiment of the invention which uses two coordinated sets of energy reserve conditions to show how one room, Room 1, may be prioritized over another room, Room 2, for purposes of climate control. Because FIG. 2 is intended to be a derivative embodiment of the system as shown by FIG. 1, and only modifying a part of the full system, it should be understood that the entire system is not shown for reasons of redundancy and that components of the system that are not displayed are assumed to be equivalent to those in FIG. 1. Although FIG. 2 shows only two rooms prioritized, it should be understood that any number of rooms may be similarly prioritized in this manner by creating multiple levels of limited surplus conditions, as will be subsequently explained.

(18) The thermal energy reserve temperature sensor 15 from FIG. 1 in this embodiment is monitored by both the conditional thermostat 12 in the original room 14 in the building and the conditional thermostat 16 in a second room 17. Conditional thermostat 12 determines the relationship of T.sub.Reserve to a predetermined threshold temperature [T.sub.Threshold1], which should be set to be equal to or greater than the temperature that the thermal energy reserve 03 needs to reach to no longer require the operation of the on-demand heating source for the purposes of heating Room 1 14. Conditional thermostat 16 determines the relationship of T.sub.Reserve to a predetermined threshold temperature [T.sub.Threshold2], which should be set to be greater than T.sub.Threshold1 by several degrees of temperature, and also greater than or equal to the temperature that the thermal energy reserve 03 needs to reach to no longer require the operation of the on-demand heating source for the purposes of heating Room 2 16. This is to ensure that any thermal energy surplus in the thermal energy reserve 03 will first be transferred to the prioritized Room 1 14.

(19) Thus, it follows that when T.sub.Reserve is greater than or equal to T.sub.Threshold1 but less than T.sub.Threshold2, the on-demand heating source would not be used to heat Room 1 14, and there can reasonably be considered to be surplus energy in the reserve only for purposes of heating Room 1 14. When T.sub.Reserve is greater than or equal to T.sub.Threshold2, the on-demand heating source would not be used to heat either Room 1 14 or Room 2 17, and there can reasonably be considered to be surplus energy in the reserve for purposes of heating both rooms. Instances when there is only surplus energy for Room 1 14 but not Room 2 17 will be referred to as limited surplus energy conditions, whereas instances when there is surplus energy for both Room 1 14 and Room 2 17 will be referred to as full surplus energy conditions.

(20) In instances of both limited surplus energy and full surplus energy, the temperature of Room 1 [T.sub.Room1] below which the conditional thermostat 12 instructs the solenoid 11 to open changes from an energy-saving low temperature [T.sub.Conserve1] to a more comfortable and higher temperature [T.sub.Surplus1]. When solenoid 11 is open, heated fluid is allowed to flow to the heat exchanger 13 within Room 1 14. From this heat exchanger 13, the fluid continues within the hydronic heating system loop and returns to the heat transfer coil 05 to regain thermal energy.

(21) In instances of full surplus energy, the temperature of Room 2 [T.sub.Room2] below which the conditional thermostat 16 instructs the solenoid 18 to open changes from an energy-saving low temperature [T.sub.Conserve2] to a more comfortable and higher temperature [T.sub.Surplus2]. When solenoid 18 is open, heated fluid is allowed to flow to the heat exchanger 19 within Room 1 17. From this heat exchanger 19, the fluid continues within the hydronic heating system loop and returns to the heat transfer coil 05 to regain thermal energy, along with the returning fluid from Room 1 14 which also flows under conditions of full surplus energy.

(22) TABLE-US-00002 TABLE 2 Reserve Room 1 Room 2 Heat Heat Condition Temperature Temperature Temperature Room 1 Room 2 1 T.sub.Reserve < T.sub.Room1 < T.sub.Room2 < On On T.sub.Threshold1 T.sub.Conserve1 T.sub.Conserve2 2 T.sub.Reserve < T.sub.Room1 < T.sub.Room2 On Off T.sub.Threshold1 T.sub.Conserve1 T.sub.Conserve2 3 T.sub.Reserve < T.sub.Room1 T.sub.Room2 < Off On T.sub.Threshold1 T.sub.Conserve1 T.sub.Conserve2 4 T.sub.Reserve < T.sub.Room1 T.sub.Room2 Off Off T.sub.Threshold1 T.sub.Conserve1 T.sub.Conserve2 5 T.sub.Threshold1 T.sub.Room1 < T.sub.Room2 < On On T.sub.Reserve < T.sub.Conserve1 T.sub.Conserve2 T.sub.Threshold2 6 T.sub.Threshold1 T.sub.Room1 < T.sub.Room2 On Off T.sub.Reserve < T.sub.Conserve1 T.sub.Conserve2 T.sub.Threshold2 7 T.sub.Threshold1 T.sub.Conserve1 T.sub.Room2 < On On T.sub.Reserve < T.sub.Room1 < T.sub.Conserve2 T.sub.Threshold2 T.sub.Surplus1 8 T.sub.Threshold1 T.sub.Conserve1 T.sub.Room2 On Off T.sub.Reserve < T.sub.Room1 < T.sub.Conserve2 T.sub.Threshold2 T.sub.Surplus1 9 T.sub.Threshold1 T.sub.Room1 T.sub.Room2 < Off On T.sub.Reserve < T.sub.Surplus1 T.sub.Conserve2 T.sub.Threshold2 10 T.sub.Threshold1 T.sub.Room1 T.sub.Room2 Off Off T.sub.Reserve < T.sub.Surplus1 T.sub.Conserve2 T.sub.Threshold2 11 T.sub.Reserve T.sub.Room1 < T.sub.Room2 < On On T.sub.Threshold2 T.sub.Conserve1 T.sub.Conserve2 12 T.sub.Reserve T.sub.Room1 < T.sub.Conserve2 On On T.sub.Threshold2 T.sub.Conserve1 T.sub.Room2 < T.sub.Surplus2 13 T.sub.Reserve T.sub.Room1 < T.sub.Room2 On Off T.sub.Threshold2 T.sub.Conserve1 T.sub.Surplus2 14 T.sub.Reserve T.sub.Conserve1 T.sub.Room2 < On On T.sub.Threshold2 T.sub.Room1 < T.sub.Conserve2 T.sub.Surplus1 15 T.sub.Reserve T.sub.Conserve1 T.sub.Conserve2 On On T.sub.Threshold2 T.sub.Room1 < T.sub.Room2 < T.sub.Surplus1 T.sub.Surplus2 16 T.sub.Reserve T.sub.Conserve1 T.sub.Room2 On Off T.sub.Threshold2 T.sub.Room1 < T.sub.Surplus2 T.sub.Surplus1 17 T.sub.Reserve T.sub.Room1 T.sub.Room2 < Off On T.sub.Threshold2 T.sub.Surplus1 T.sub.Conserve2 18 T.sub.Reserve T.sub.Room1 T.sub.Conserve2 Off On T.sub.Threshold2 T.sub.Surplus1 T.sub.Room2 < T.sub.Surplus2 19 T.sub.Reserve T.sub.Room1 T.sub.Room2 Off Off T.sub.Threshold2 T.sub.Surplus1 T.sub.Surplus2

(23) Table 2 is a table that explicitly shows the logic used by the conditional thermostats 12 and 16. Recall that T.sub.Threshold1 is set below T.sub.Threshold2 to prioritize Room 1 14 over Room 2 17. Moreover, T.sub.Conserve1 necessarily set to a lesser temperature than T.sub.Surplus1, and T.sub.Conserve2 is necessarily set to a lesser temperature than T.sub.Surplus2. In a hydronic heating system, a heat condition of On for Room 1 means that the solenoid valve 11 will be open, and a heat condition of On for Room 2 means that the solenoid valve 18 will be open.

(24) In this embodiment, condition 8 shows the benefit of the invention being implemented to prioritize rooms. In condition 8, although both Room 1 14 and Room 2 17 have temperatures that are at or above their respective conservative temperatures, only Room 1 is further heated until it reaches its surplus temperature. Thus, Room 1 is prioritized above Room 2 in instances of limited surplus energy reserves. Again, it should be noted that this embodiment merely demonstrates two rooms each using the invented system with independent temperature levels, and shows multiple iterations of the invented system used in combination. By using additional temperature levels, increasing numbers of rooms could be prioritized by the building manager.

(25) FIG. 3 demonstrates an alternative method of measuring the thermal energy of the thermal energy reserve 03 and shows a change made to the system of FIG. 1. A temperature sensor 20 monitors the temperature of the heating fluid [T.sub.Fluid] exiting the heat transfer coil 05 within the thermal energy reserve 03 from the embodiment shown by FIG. 1. The information from temperature sensor 20 is relayed to the conditional thermostat 12. Because the exiting temperature of the heating fluid will correspond to the temperature of the thermal energy reserve 03, a measurement of T.sub.Fluid made by the temperature sensor 20 can be considered a measurement of the energy reserve of the intermittent power source, analogous to that made by temperature sensor 15 from FIG. 1. Therefore, in this embodiment, T.sub.Fluid is substituted for T.sub.Reserve in the logic of the conditional thermostat 12 (as explicitly shown by Table 1), and otherwise the operation of the system as shown by FIG. 1 remains the same.

(26) FIG. 4 demonstrates an alternative system using a different form of intermittent energy generator, in this case a wind turbine 21. Electrical current generated by the wind turbine 21 is sent through a resistor 22 within the thermal energy reserve 03 of FIG. 1. Fluid is heated by means of heat transfer coil 05, and the rest of the system operates as in FIG. 1. The purpose of this figure is to demonstrate that alternative intermittent energy sources are compatible with the invention without undue modification.

(27) FIG. 5 demonstrates a configuration by which the invention may be applied to a climate control system that cools rather than heats. Component 23 is a photovoltaic solar panel that generates an electrical current that charges a battery array 24.

(28) When air conditioner 25 is operational, it draws electrical power through the combined charge controller and power manager 26, which in turn draws electrical power from the battery array 24 if available and sufficient or from the on-demand electrical power supply, shown here as the power grid 27, if not. Air conditioner 25 cools the climate of room 28.

(29) The combined charge controller and power manager 26, a device known within the art, charges the battery array 24 with energy supplied by the photovoltaic solar panel 23 whenever the both the battery array 24 is below a full charge and energy is available from the photovoltaic solar panel 23. When the electrical potential energy of battery array 24 [U.sub.Battery] is above a predetermined threshold value [U.sub.Threshold] set by the building manager to be greater than or equal to the electrical capacity needed to fully supply the air conditioner 25, the system will not need to draw power from the on-demand electrical power supply, and thus can be determined to be in a state of surplus energy.

(30) In such instances of surplus energy, the building temperature [T.sub.Room] above which the conditional thermostat 29 instructs air conditioner 25 to operate changes from an energy-saving higher temperature [T.sub.Conserve] to a more comfortable and lower temperature [T.sub.Surplus]. That is to say, when U.sub.Battery is less than U.sub.Threshold, the air conditioner 25 is only operational when T.sub.Room is greater than T.sub.Conserve. However, when U.sub.Battery is equal to or greater than U.sub.Threshold, the air conditioner 25 is operational when T.sub.Room is greater than T.sub.Surplus. This logic should readily be appreciated as being analogous to the logic employed by conditional thermostat 12 of FIG. 1, albeit for a system that cools rather than heats.

(31) TABLE-US-00003 TABLE 3 Electrical Potential Building Air Condition Energy Level Temperature Conditioning 1 U.sub.Battery < U.sub.Threshold T.sub.Room > T.sub.Conserve On 2 U.sub.Battery < U.sub.Threshold T.sub.Room T.sub.Conserve Off 3 U.sub.Battery U.sub.Threshold T.sub.Room > T.sub.Conserve On 4 U.sub.Battery U.sub.Threshold T.sub.Conserve T.sub.Room > On T.sub.Surplus 5 U.sub.Battery U.sub.Threshold T.sub.Room T.sub.Surplus Off

(32) Table 3 is a table that explicitly shows the logic used by the conditional thermostat 29. Recall that T.sub.Conserve is necessarily set to be a higher temperature than T.sub.Surplus.

(33) In this embodiment, condition 4 shows the benefit of the invention. In condition 4, although the building temperature is below the conservative temperature point, the building is further cooled until either it reaches the surplus temperature point or the condition of the temperature reserve changes. This is in contrast to conventional climate control system, where at any given time the thermostat has a single temperature condition to determine the status of the cooling system. Thus, in instances of surplus energy in the reserve, the building is cooled to a more comfortable temperature.

(34) Of course, because the core invention is directed towards implementing a system that manages the reserve energy from an intermittent energy source to control the climate of a building, the fact that the system depicted in FIG. 5 cools a building (whereas the systems of FIGS. 1, 3, 5, and 6 are shown to heat a building) does not disqualify it from including variations as previously disclosed. Because of this, the prioritization of rooms as shown by FIG. 2 should also be apparent with a system that cools, as long as the threshold energy reserve conditions used by conditional thermostats directed towards cooling are appropriately and analogously staggered.

(35) It should be noted that the thermostats as described by this specification are assumed to use conventional methods to detect temperature well known to the art. However, the exact manner by which thermostats detect the temperature should be considered immaterial to the implementation of this invention. Most thermostats switch on at temperatures either above or below the setpoint temperature, depending if their function is within a heating or cooling system, and such thermostats form the basis of this specification. However, it is known that some thermostats combine both heating and cooling systems and are thus triggered to correct either high or low temperatures. In such a manner, the use of a single thermostat that separately controls both a heating system as described by this specification and an independent cooling system as described by this specification would not constitute a new invention but rather a logical implementation of the present one.

(36) Although this specification provides the best known methods of implementing the invention, it is understood that numerous insubstantial changes in configuration, arrangement, or appearance of the elements of the present invention can be made without departing from the intended scope of the present invention. Specifically, although the best mode of the invention is presented here as using solar energy, it is understood that wind, tidal, geothermal, and hydro power, among others, are all renewable energy sources that could be implemented as the intermittent energy sources described herein without undue experimentation. Moreover, multiple energy storage systems exist besides thermal and electrical-potential, such as storage of mechanical potential energy in springs or elevated weights. Usage of such alternative intermittent energy sources or storage systems would not affect the core of the invention. Accordingly, it is intended that the scope of the present invention be determined by the claims as set forth.