I 1111111111111111 11111 lllll 111111111111111 111111111111111 111111111111111111
`US009194597B2
`
`c12) United States Patent
`Steinberg et al.
`
`(10) Patent No.:
`(45) Date of Patent:
`
`US 9,194,597 B2
`*Nov. 24, 2015
`
`(54) SYSTEM, METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR
`IDENTIFYING MANUAL INPUTS TO AND
`ADAPTIVE PROGRAMMING OF A
`THERMOSTAT
`
`(71) Applicant: EcoFactor, Inc., Millbrae, CA (US)
`
`(72)
`
`Inventors: John Douglas Steinberg, Millbrae, CA
`(US); Scott Douglas Hublou, Redwood
`City, CA (US); Leo Cheung, Sunnyvale,
`CA (US)
`
`(56)
`
`(73)
`
`Assignee: EcoFactor, Inc., Redwood City, CA
`(US)
`
`( *) Notice:
`
`Subject to any disclaimer, the term ofthis
`patent is extended or adjusted under 35
`U.S.C. 154(b) by 57 days.
`
`This patent is subject to a terminal dis(cid:173)
`claimer.
`
`EP
`JP
`
`2011/001; F24F 2011/0012; F24F 2011/0013;
`F24F 2011/006; F24F 2011/0061; F24F
`2011/0063; F24F 2011/0075
`USPC ......... 236/1 C, 51, 94; 700/276, 278; 62/161,
`62/163
`See application file for complete search history.
`References Cited
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`(21) Appl. No.: 14/082,675
`
`(22) Filed:
`
`Nov. 18, 2013
`
`(65)
`
`(63)
`
`(60)
`
`(51)
`
`(52)
`
`(58)
`
`Prior Publication Data
`
`US 2014/0188290Al
`Jul. 3, 2014
`Related U.S. Application Data
`
`Continuation of application No. 12/778,052, filed on
`May 11, 2010, now Pat. No. 8,596,550.
`Provisional application No. 61/215,999, filed on May
`12, 2009.
`
`(2006.01)
`(2006.01)
`(2006.01)
`
`Int. Cl.
`F24F 11100
`G0SB 191042
`G05D23/19
`U.S. Cl.
`CPC ........ F24F 1110009 (2013.01); G0SB 1910426
`(2013.01); G0SD 2311904 (2013.01); G05B
`2219/23199 (2013.01); G05B 2219/2614
`(2013.01)
`
`Field of Classification Search
`CPC . F24F 11/0009; F24F 11/001; F24F 11/0012;
`F24F 11/006; F24F 2011/0009; F24F
`
`U.S. Appl. No. 13/861,189, filed Apr. 11, 2013, Steinberg, John
`Douglas et al.
`
`(Continued)
`
`Primary Examiner - Marc Norman
`(74) Attorney, Agent, or Firm - Knobbe, Martens, Olson &
`Bear, LLP
`
`ABSTRACT
`(57)
`Systems and methods are disclosed for incorporating manual
`changes to the setpoint for a thermostatic controller into long(cid:173)
`term programming of the thermostatic controller. For
`example, one or more of the exemplary systems compares the
`actual setpoint at a given time for the thermostatic controller
`to an expected setpoint for the thermostatic controller in light
`of the scheduled programming. A determination is then made
`as to whether the actual setpoint and the expected setpoint are
`the same or different. Furthermore, a manual change to the
`actual setpoint for the thermostatic controller is compared to
`previously recorded setpoint data for the thermostatic con(cid:173)
`troller. At least one rule is then applied for the interpretation
`of the manual change in light of the previously recorded
`setpoint data.
`
`24 Claims, 11 Drawing Sheets
`
`UTILITY
`
`GOOGLE 1001
`
`001
`
`

`

`US 9,194,597 B2
`Page 2
`
`(56)
`
`References Cited
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`

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`
`* cited by examiner
`
`003
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Nov. 24, 2015
`
`Sheet 1 of 11
`
`US 9,194,597 B2
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`U.S. Patent
`
`Nov. 24, 2015
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`Sheet 2 of 11
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`US 9,194,597 B2
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`U.S. Patent
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`Nov. 24, 2015
`Nov.24, 2015
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`Sheet 4 of 11
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`US 9,194,597 B2
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`...J 0
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`
`007
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`007
`
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Nov. 24, 2015
`
`Sheet 5 of 11
`
`US 9,194,597 B2
`
`C
`C
`C
`C
`C
`C
`
`54{1{1
`5§{1{1
`s:::
`TEMPERATURE
`56{1{1
`THERMOSTAT SETTINGS C
`ENERGY BILLS ~ 57{1{1
`
`~ 8 { ) { )
`
`90()
`
`HVAC HARDWARE ~
`~ :
`WEATHER
`s::: gf{l{l{l
`s::: 5/f{l(J
`
`USER
`
`TRANSACTION
`
`PRODUCT & SERVICE ~
`
`FIG. 5
`
`008
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`U.S. Patent
`
`Nov. 24, 2015
`Nov. 24, 2015
`
`Sheet 6 of 11
`Sheet 6 of 11
`
`US 9,194,597 B2
`US 9,194,597 B2
`
`(I)
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`en
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`t,
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`FIG.6A
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`
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`0
`00
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`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Nov. 24, 2015
`
`Sheet 7 of 11
`
`US 9,194,597 B2
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`FIG.6B
`
`::lE a. co
`6PM
`
`C:
`0
`
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`
`
`0
`
`0 ....
`
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`
`0
`00
`
`010
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Nov. 24, 2015
`
`Sheet 8 of 11
`
`US 9,194,597 B2
`
`Start
`
`/002
`
`Retrieve actual
`and scheduled
`setpoint data
`( current and
`immediately prior)
`
`/004
`
`Retrieve
`scheduled
`algorithmic
`changes
`
`/006
`
`Calculate actual
`setpolnt difference
`(dA) (current and
`immediately prior)
`
`1008
`
`Calculate scheduled
`setpoint difference
`(dS) (current and
`immediately prior)
`
`1010
`
`Sum scheduled
`algorithmic
`changes (sC)
`
`/012
`
`SetM=
`dA-dS-Sc
`
`/0/4
`
`Yes
`
`No
`
`1016
`
`Log manual
`override to
`database
`
`Stop
`
`FIG. 7
`
`011
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Nov.24,2015
`
`Sheet 9 of 11
`
`US 9,194,597 B2
`
`//02
`
`//04
`
`//06
`
`//08
`
`///0
`
`Start
`
`Detect
`manual
`override
`
`Retrieve
`rules
`
`Retrieve
`contextual
`data
`
`Retrieve recent
`historical
`override data
`
`Interpret
`override
`
`///2
`
`No
`
`///4
`
`///6
`
`Yes
`
`Revise
`thermostat
`settings
`
`Log
`setting
`change
`
`Stop
`
`FIG. 8
`
`012
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Nov. 24, 2015
`
`Sheet 10 of 11
`
`US 9,194,597 B2
`
`Start
`
`Retrieve
`rules and
`programming
`
`Retrieve recent
`override data
`
`Retrieve
`contextual
`data
`
`Interpret
`overrides
`
`/202
`
`1204
`
`/206
`
`1208
`
`12/0
`
`Yes
`
`/212
`
`Revise
`stored rules
`
`/214
`
`Yes
`
`No
`
`No
`
`Yes 1218
`
`1220
`
`Revise.
`setback
`schedule
`
`Suggest
`change to
`customer
`
`End
`
`FIG. 9
`
`013
`
`

`

`Outside Conditions
`
`1012.1hPa
`Steady
`29.89in/
`1012.1hPa
`Rising
`
`1012.1hPa
`Steady
`
`2.0mph
`3.2kph
`
`2.0mph
`3.2kph
`
`2.0mph
`3.2kph
`
`2009/04/10
`11:01
`
`69.69
`
`54.10
`
`Overcast
`
`74'¾
`0
`
`11:02
`
`69.60
`
`54.10
`
`Overcast
`
`74%
`
`2009/04/10
`11:03
`
`69.70
`
`54.10
`
`Overcast
`
`74%
`
`54.10
`
`Overcast
`
`74%
`
`Overcast
`
`74'¾
`0
`
`I Hold I Schd
`Heat
`Cool
`Direction Setting Setting Mode Setting
`
`Inside Conditions
`
`I
`I Schd I I Schd 11 Hvac 11 Hvac I
`Cool Heat State Mode
`
`SE
`
`80.00
`
`71.00
`
`Off Out/Day
`
`80.00
`
`65.00 Heat Heat
`
`SE
`
`80.00
`
`71.00
`
`Off Out/Day 80.00
`
`65.00 Heat Heat
`
`~
`00
`•
`~
`~
`~
`~
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`=
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`~
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`~
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`z 0
`'" ...
`....
`
`N
`0
`Ul
`
`SE
`
`80.00
`
`71.00
`
`Off Out/Day
`
`80.00
`
`65.00 Heat Heat
`
`rJJ
`
`('D
`('D
`
`=-
`.....
`....
`....
`....
`....
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`0
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`j Time
`Conditions j Humidity' I Pressure I ~~~d Wind
`Outside
`~ Inside
`~-= ~ I 80.00 I I 71.00 11 ~ I 10~ 1180.00 II 65ro II Hem II Hem I
`Temp.
`Temp.
`_,oEJEJ ~ [ : ] 29.89i~
`1012.1hPa
`11:00
`Cloudy
`Steady
`- 01BBB~ 29.89in/ = 0180.ooll ~~ 110u@eyll80ro ll~00IIHem IIHem I
`29.89in/
`1012.1hPa
`Rising
`-,01~BBG;J 2S]Dbv ~= 0
`I aoro I I 11.oo I GJ IOuVDey 1180·00 11 65•0011 He.i 11 Hem I
`29.89in/ = 0 1 80·00 II 11.oo II~ IIOuVDeyl180·00 11 65
`200W0010 BBB~ 1012.1hPa
`1BBB~ 29
`ro I [ ~ 1 IOuVDey I J
`20~~~t0
`10J~~~;a ~~~ 0 1 80·00 11 71
`80ro I I 65
`EJEJEJEJ 29~W ~= 01 80ro II 71.00 11 ~ IIOu@ey llaono 11 65
`
`6970
`11•04
`•
`·
`2oo9/04/10 69 70
`11 :05
`•
`
`5410
`·
`
`11:06
`
`69.80
`
`54.70
`
`Overcast
`
`72%
`
`2009/04/10
`11:07
`
`69.80
`
`54.70
`
`Overcast
`
`72%
`
`70.00
`
`54.70
`
`Overcast
`
`72%
`
`2009/04/10
`11:09
`
`70.00
`
`54.70
`
`Overcast
`
`72%
`
`16f 2~f~~a
`Rising
`
`Steady
`29.89in/
`1012.1hPa
`Rising
`
`.89iN
`29.89in/
`1012.1hPa
`Rising
`
`2.0mph
`3.2kph
`
`2.0mph
`3.2kph
`
`20~~gi1o I
`FIG. 10
`
`0IIHem IIHea1 I
`65.00 Heat
`Heat
`
`•0
`
`00 I I Hem I I Hem I
`
`'
`
`SE
`
`80.00
`
`71.00
`
`Off Out/Day
`
`80.00
`
`SE
`
`80.00
`
`71.00
`
`Off Out/Day
`
`80.00
`
`65.00
`
`Heat
`
`Heat
`
`54.70
`
`Overcast
`
`72%
`
`1~~~;a
`
`00 I I Hem 11 Hem I
`·
`
`014
`
`

`

`US 9,194,597 B2
`
`1
`SYSTEM, METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR
`IDENTIFYING MANUAL INPUTS TO AND
`ADAPTIVE PROGRAMMING OF A
`THERMOSTAT
`
`INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE TO
`RELATED APPLICATIONS
`
`This application hereby incorporates herein by reference
`under 3 7 C.F.R. § 1.57 the entirety of the disclosure of each
`application set forth in the foreign and domestic priority
`sections of the Application Data Sheet filed herewith.
`
`BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
`
`Field of the Invention
`
`2
`the thermostat is likely to annoy many users. And because
`people tend to overshoot the desired temperature when they
`make such manual changes, these overrides are likely to result
`in excessive heating and cooling, and thus unnecessary
`5 energy use. That is, if a person feels uncomfortable on a
`summer afternoon when the setting is 73 degrees, they are
`likely to change it to 68 or 69 rather than 71 or 72 degrees,
`even if 72 degrees might have made enough of a difference.
`It would therefore be advantageous to have a means for
`10 adapting to signaling from occupants in the form of manual
`temperature changes and incorporating the information con(cid:173)
`tained in such gestures into long-term programming. It would
`also be desirable to take into account both outside weather
`conditions and the thermal characteristics of individual
`15 homes in order to improve the ability to dynamically achieve
`the best possible balance between comfort and energy sav(cid:173)
`ings.
`
`BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
`
`Progranmiable thermostats have been available for more
`than 20 years. Programmable thermostats offer two types of
`advantages as compared to non-programmable devices. On 20
`the one hand, programmable thermostats can save energy in
`large part because they automate the process of reducing
`conditioning during times when the space is unoccupied, or
`while occupants are sleeping, and thus reduce energy con(cid:173)
`sumption.
`On the other hand, programmable thermostats can also
`enhance comfort as compared to manually changing setpoints
`using a non-programmable thermostat. For example, during
`the winter, a homeowner might manually turn down the ther(cid:173)
`mostat from 70 degrees F. to 64 degrees when going to sleep 30
`and back to 70 degrees in the morning. The drawback to this
`approach is that there can be considerable delay between the
`adjustment of the thermostat and the achieving of the desired
`change in ambient temperature, and many people find getting
`out of bed, showering, etc. in a cold house unpleasant. A 35
`programmable thermostat allows homeowners to anticipate
`the desired result by programming a pre-conditioning of the
`home. So, for example, if the homeowner gets out of bed at 7
`AM, setting the thermostat to change from the overnight
`setpoint of 64 degrees to 70 at 6 AM can make the house 40
`comfortable when the consumer gets up. The drawback to this
`approach is that the higher temperature will cost more to
`maintain, so the increase in comfort is purchased at the cost of
`higher energy usage.
`But all of the advantages of a programmable thermostat 45
`depend on the match between the preferences of the occu(cid:173)
`pants and the actual settings employed. If, for example, the
`thermostat is set to warm up the house on winter mornings at
`7 AM, but the homeowner gets up at 5:30, the homeowner is
`likely to be dissatisfied. If a homeowner has programmed her 50
`thermostat to cool down the house at 5 PM each afternoon
`based on the assumption that she will come home at 6 PM, but
`her schedule changes and she begins to arrive home at 4:30
`each day, she is likely to be uncomfortable and either make
`frequent manual changes or go through the generally non(cid:173)
`intuitive process of reprogramming the thermostat to match
`her new schedule. Because the limited interface on most
`thermostats, that process may take considerable effort, which
`leads many users to avoid reprogranmiing their thermostats
`for long periods or even to skip doing so entirely.
`But even if a homeowner is able to align her schedule with
`the progranmiing of her thermostat, there are additional dif(cid:173)
`ficulties associated with choosing proper temperatures at
`those times. If the temperatures progranmied into a thermo(cid:173)
`stat do not accurately reflect the preferences of the occupants, 65
`those occupants are likely to resort to manual overrides of the
`programmed settings. The need to correct the "mistakes" of
`
`FIG. 1 shows an example of an overall environment in
`which an embodiment of the invention may be used.
`FIG. 2 shows a high-level illustration of the architecture of
`a network showing the relationship between the major ele-
`25 ments of one embodiment of the subject invention.
`FIG. 3 shows an embodiment of the website to be used as
`part of the subject invention.
`FIG. 4 shows a high-level schematic of the thermostat used
`as part of the subject invention.
`FIG. 5 shows one embodiment of the database structure
`used as part of the subject invention.
`FIGS. 6A and 6B show how comparing inside temperature
`against outside temperature and other variables permits cal(cid:173)
`culation of dynamic signatures.
`FIG. 7 shows how manual inputs can be recognized and
`recorded by the subject invention.
`FIG. 8 shows how the subject invention uses manual inputs
`to interpret manual overrides and make short-term changes in
`response thereto.
`FIG. 9 shows how the subject invention uses manual inputs
`to alter long-term changes to interpretive rules and to setpoint
`scheduling.
`FIG. 10 shows an example of some of the contextual data
`that may be used by the server in order to interpret manual
`overrides.
`
`DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED
`EMBODIMENT
`
`FIG.1 shows an example ofan overall environment 100 in
`which an embodiment of the invention may be used. The
`environment 100 includes an interactive communication net(cid:173)
`work 102 with computers 104 connected thereto. Also con(cid:173)
`nected to network 102 are one or more server computers 106,
`55 which store information and make the information available
`to computers 104. The network 102 allows communication
`between and among the computers 104 and 106.
`Presently preferred network 102 comprises a collection of
`interconnected public and/or private networks that are linked
`60 to together by a set of standard protocols to form a distributed
`network. While network 102 is intended to refer to what is
`now commonly referred to as the Internet, it is also intended
`to encompass variations which may be made in the future,
`including changes additions to existing standard protocols.
`One popular part of the Internet is the World Wide Web.
`The World Wide Web contains a large number of computers
`104 and servers 106, which store HyperText Markup Lan-
`
`015
`
`

`

`US 9,194,597 B2
`
`3
`guage (HTML) and other documents capable of displaying
`graphical and textual information. HTML is a standard cod(cid:173)
`ing convention and set of codes for attaching presentation and
`linking attributes to informational content within documents.
`The servers 106 that provide offerings on the World Wide
`Web are typically called websites. A website is often defined
`by an Internet address that has an associated electronic page.
`Generally, an electronic page is a document that organizes the
`presentation of text graphical images, audio and video.
`In addition to the Internet, the network 102 can comprise a
`wide variety of interactive communication media. For
`example, network 102 can include local area networks, inter(cid:173)
`active television networks, telephone networks, wireless data
`systems, two-way cable systems, and the like.
`Network 102 can also comprise servers 106 that provide
`services other than HTML documents. Such services may
`include the exchange of data with a wide variety of "edge"
`devices, some of which may not be capable of displaying web
`pages, but that can record, transmit and receive information.
`In one embodiment, computers 104 and servers 106 are 20
`conventional computers that are equipped with communica(cid:173)
`tions hardware such as modem or a network interface card.
`The computers include processors such as those sold by Intel
`and AMD. Other processors may also be used, including
`general-purpose processors, multi-chip processors, embed- 25
`ded processors and the like.
`Computers 104 can also be handheld and wireless devices
`such as personal digital assistants (PD As), cellular telephones
`and other devices capable of accessing the network.
`Computers 104 may utilize a browser configured to interact 30
`with the World Wide Web. Such browsers may include
`Microsoft Explorer, Mozilla, Firefox, Opera or Safari. They
`may also include browsers used on handheld and wireless
`devices.
`The storage medium may comprise any method of storing 35
`information. It may comprise random access memory
`(RAM), electronically erasable programmable read only
`memory (EEPROM), read only memory (ROM), hard disk,
`floppy disk, CD-ROM, optical memory, or other method of
`storing data.
`Computers 104 and 106 may use an operating system such
`as Microsoft Windows, Apple Mac OS, Linux, Unix or the
`like.
`Computers 106 may include a range of devices that provide
`information, sound, graphics and text, and may use a variety 45
`of operating systems and software optimized for distribution
`of content via networks.
`FIG. 2 illustrates in further detail the architecture of the
`specific components connected to network 102 showing the
`relationship between the major elements of one embodiment
`of the subject invention. Attached to the network are thermo(cid:173)
`stats 108 and computers 104 of various users. Connected to
`thermostats 108 are HVAC units 110. The HVAC units may be
`conventional air conditioners, heat pumps, or other devices
`for transferring heat into or out of a building. Each user may
`be connected to server 106 via wired or wireless connection
`such as Ethernet or a wireless protocol such as IEEE 802 .11,
`and router and/or gateway or wireless access point 112 that
`connects the computer and thermostat to the Internet via a
`broadband connection such as a digital subscriber line (DSL)
`or other form of broadband connection to the World Wide
`Web. In one embodiment, thermostat management server 106
`is in communication with the network 102. Server 106 con(cid:173)
`tains the content to be served as web pages and viewed by
`computers 104, as well as databases containing information
`used by the servers, and applications used to remotely man(cid:173)
`age thermostats 108.
`
`4
`In the currently preferred embodiment, the website 200
`includes a number of components accessible to the user, as
`shown in FIG. 3. Those components may include a means to
`store temperature settings 202, a means to enter information
`5 about the user's home 204, a means to enter the user's elec(cid:173)
`tricity bills 206, and means to elect to enable the subject
`invention 208.
`FIG. 4 shows a high-level block diagram of thermostat 108
`used as part of the subject invention. Thermostat 108 includes
`10 temperature sensing means 252, which may be a thermistor,
`thermal diode or other means commonly used in the design of
`electronic thermostats. It includes a microprocessor 254,
`memory 256, a display 258, a power source 260, and at least
`one relay 262, which turns the HVAC system on and off in
`15 response to a signal from the microprocessor, and contacts by
`which the relay is connected to the wires that lead to the
`HVAC system. To allow the thermostat to communicate bi(cid:173)
`directionally with the computer network, the thermostat also
`includes means 264 to connect the thermostat to a local com-
`puter or to a wired or wireless network. Such means could be
`in the form of Ethernet, wireless protocols such as IEEE
`802.11, IEEE 802.15.4, Bluetooth, or other wireless proto(cid:173)
`cols. The thermostat may be connected to the computer net(cid:173)
`work directly via wired or wireless Internet Protocol connec-
`tion. Alternatively, the thermostat may connect wirelessly to
`a gateway such as an IP-to-Zigbee gateway, an IP-to-Z-wave
`gateway, or the like. Where the communications means
`enabled include wireless communication, antenna 266 will
`also be included. The thermostat 250 may also include con(cid:173)
`trols 268 allowing users to change settings directly at the
`thermostat, but such controls are not necessary to allow the
`thermostat to function.
`The data used to generate the content delivered in the form
`of the website and to automate control of thermostat 108 is
`stored on one or more servers 106 withi