Patent ID: 9612031
Date: 2017-04-04
CPC Classifications: F24F,G01R

Claim:
1. A thermostat comprising: a plurality of HVAC wire connectors configured to receive a plurality of HVAC wires from an HVAC system, the plurality of HVAC wire connectors comprising at least one call relay wire connector and at least one power return wire connector; one or more solid-state switching elements coupled to the at least one call relay wire connector and the at least one power return wire connector, the one or more solid-state switching elements having a first operating state in which the one or more solid-state switching elements create a connection between the at least one call relay wire connector and the at least one power return wire connector, the one or more solid-state switching elements also having a second operating state in which said connection between the at least one call relay wire connector and the at least one power return wire connector is interrupted; power monitoring circuitry coupled to the one or more solid-state switching elements that measures voltage and/or current characteristics of the one or more solid-state switching elements during times when the one or more solid-state switching elements are operating in the first operating state; processing and control circuitry coupled to the power monitoring circuitry and configured to control at least one HVAC function associated with the at least one call relay wire connector, wherein the processing and control circuitry is further configured to: