Exhibit 1

Case 6:20-cv-00075-ADA Document 1-1 Filed 01/31/20 Page 1 of 16
US008180492B2 

(12) United States Patent (10) Patent No.: US 8,180,492 B2 

Steinberg (45) Date of Patent: May 15, 2012 

(54) SYSTEMAND METHOD FOR USINGA S. A ck AE Ray cal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165,237 4.- : W ams et al. NETWORKED ELECTRONIC DEVICE ASAN 5,314,004 A 5/1994 Strand et al. 

OCCUPANCY SENSOR FOR AN ENERGY 5,462,225. A 10/1995 Massara et al. 

MANAGEMENT SYSTEM 5,544,036 A 8, 1996 Brown et al. 

5,555,927 A 9, 1996 Shah 

(75) Inventor: John Douglas Steinberg, Millbrae, CA 5,572.438 A 1 1/1996 Ehlers et al. (US) 5,682,949 A * 1 1/1997 Ratcliffe et al. .............. 165,209 

5,717,609 A 2f1998 Packa et al. 

5,761,083 A * 6/1998 B tal. ................. TOOf 296 (73) Assignee: EcoFactor, Inc., Millbrae, CA (US) 5,818,347 A 10/1998 SE 

5,977.964 A * 1 1/1999 Williams et al. .............. 71.5/721 

(*) Notice: Subject to any disclaimer, the term of this 6,145,751 A 1 1/2000 Ahmed 

patent is extended or adjusted under 35 6,178,362 B1 1/2001 Woollard et al. 

(Continued) 

(21) Appl. No.: 12/502,064 OTHER PUBLICATIONS 

(22) Filed: Jul. 13, 2009 Wang, D.; Arens, E.; Federspiel, C., Opportunities to Save Energy 

O O and Improve Comfort by Using Wireless Sensor Networks in Build 

(65) Prior Publication Data ings. Energy Systems Laboratory (http://esl.tamu.edu), 2003 

US 2010/028.0667 A1 Nov. 4, 2010 Retrieved Sep. 1, 2011 Downloaded from http://repository.tamu. 

edu/handle/1969.1/5210.* 

Related U.S. Application Data (Continued) 

(60) Provisional application No. 61/134,714, filed on Jul. 

14, 2008. Primary Examiner — Dave Robertson 

(74) Attorney, Agent, or Firm — Knobbe, Martens, Olson & 

(51) Int. Cl. Bear, LLP 

G05B I5/00 (2006.01) 

G05D 23/00 (2006.01) (57) ABSTRACT 

(52) U.S. Cl. ........ ...- - - - - - 700/276; 700/299; 236/46 R The invention comprises systems and methods for detecting 

(58) Field of Classification Search .................. 700/276, the use of networked consumer electronics devices as indica 

700,278, 295, 296; 62/1766, 236/46 R tions of occupancy of a structure for purposes of automati 

See application file for complete search history. cally adjusting the temperature setpoint on a thermostatic 

HVAC control. At least one thermostat is located inside a (56) References Cited 

U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS 

4,136,732 A 1/1979 Demaray et al. 

4,341,345 A 7, 1982 Hammer et al. 

4,403,644 A 9, 1983 Hebert 

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5,244,146 A 9, 1993 Jefferson et al. 

receive message indicating activity 

Retrieve setting iformation 

for database 

Austratic adjustment 

eabed? 

Transmitmessage 

to use? requesting actio to chose or sect change 

32 Y 1ser accept 

changs 

st 

Update 

database 

structure and is used to control an HVAC system in the struc 

ture. At least one networked electronic device is used to 

indicate the state of occupancy of the structure. The state of 

occupancy is used to alter the setpoint on the thermostatic 

HVAC control to reduce unneeded conditioning of unoccu 

pied spaces. 

18 Claims, 8 Drawing Sheets 

- 302 

r so 

Éces curren / 306 -Yes-X setting as occupied setting? 

- 3 or 

- 3 & Adjust 

temperature setting Yes 

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Page 2 

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CBS R 2583 NS 1 2007/0045431 A1* 3/2007 Chapman et al. ........... 236,46 C 6.437,692 B 82002 E. It al. 2007/0146126 A1* 6/2007 Wang ............................ 340,517 6.478,233 B1 1/2002 se 2008, 0083234 A1 4/2008 Krebs et al. 

6,480.803 B1 11/2002 Pi 1 2008/0281472 A1* 1 1/2008 Podgorny et al. ............. 7OO/276 

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6,671,586 B2 12/2003 Davis et al. OTHER PUBLICATIONS 

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6,726, 113 B2 4/2004 Guo Johnson Controls T600HCX-3 Single-Stage Thermostats Installation 

6,731,992 B1 5/2004 Ziegler Instructions T600HCN-3, T600HCP-3 Part No. 24-9890-560, 

6,734.806 B1 5/2004 Cratsley Rev. Issued Sep. 20, 2006.* 

6,772,052 B1 8/2004 Amundsen Emerson Climate Technologies. Network Thermostat for E2 Build 

6,785,592 B1 8, 2004 Smith ing Controller Installation and Operation Manual. 026-1721 Rev 0 

6,785,630 B2 8, 2004 Kolk Oct. 30, 2007. 

6,789,739 B2 9, 2004 Rosen - W 

6,853,959 B2 2/2005 Ikeda et al. text Estable Thermostat Owner's Guide, www. 

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7,205,892 B2 4/2007 Luebke et al. and Demand Response: Framework Concepts and a New Construc 

7,215,746 B2 5/2007 Iggulden et al. tion Study Case in New York, Proceedings of the 2006 ACEEE 

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7,260,823 B2 * 8/2007 Schlacket al. . trol of HVAC Systems", 2002. 

7.354,005 B2 * 4/2008 Carey et al. ................. 236,46R Pier, Southern California Edision, Deman Responsive Control of Air 

7,356,384 B2 4/2008 Gull et al. Conditioning via Programmable Communicating Thermostats Draft 

7.483,964 B1* 1/2009 Jackson et al. ................ TO9,221 Report. 

7.565,225 B2 * 7/2009 Dushane et al. .............. 7OO/276 Proliphix. Thermostat Brochure. 

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7,784,704 B2 8, 2010 Harter Improve Comfort by Using Wireless Sensor networks in Buildings.” 

7,802,618 B2* 9/2010 Simon et al. .................. 165,254 (2003), Center for Environmental Design Research. 

7,848,900 B2 12/2010 Steinberg et al. Wetter, Wright. A comparision of deterministic and probabilistic 

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2005/0288822 A1 12/2005 Rayburn * cited by examiner 

 

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U.S. Patent May 15, 2012 Sheet 1 of 8 US 8,180,492 B2 

 

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U.S. Patent May 15, 2012 Sheet 2 of 8 US 8,180,492 B2 

Database 

Database 

Utility Deraand Reduction 

Service Servers 

 

 

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U.S. Patent May 15, 2012 Sheet 4 of 8 US 8,180,492 B2 

F. Cure 

Microprocessor 

2.5 1S 2. 2S- 2 (O 

 

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U.S. Patent May 15, 2012 Sheet 5 of 8 US 8,180,492 B2 

Figure S 

HoO 

C Temperature O 

Thermostat Settings So O 

O C Energy Bills &C) 

HVAC Hardware 7 OO 

Weather st SOO 

Product & Service OO 

 

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U.S. Patent May 15, 2012 Sheet 7 of 8 US 8,180,492 B2 

Fig 7 

Receive message 1 (3o 2 indicating activity 

Retrieve setting 

information 

fron database 

- 3o 

Does Current 1 foe 

setting it occupied setting? 

Yes 

Automatic 

adjustment 

enabled? 

Transmit message to user requesting 

action to choose 

or reject change 

/ is 6 

Adjust 

temperature 

setting 

Update 

database 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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U.S. Patent May 15, 2012 Sheet 8 of 8 

Fig 8 

Transmit / O1 

Content data 

Retrieve logged 

program 

preference data 

Retrieve logged 

user data 

Match Content 

data to user 

- I - O 

/ 106 

Transmit matching 

query to user 

ls actual user = identified user? 

Retrieve temperature settings for 

identified user 

Write programming and matching data 

to database 

US 8,180,492 B2 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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US 8, 180,492 B2 

1. 

SYSTEMAND METHOD FOR USINGA 

NETWORKED ELECTRONIC DEVICE ASAN 

OCCUPANCY SENSOR FOR AN ENERGY 

MANAGEMENT SYSTEM 

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED 

APPLICATIONS 

This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Appli 

cation No. 61/134,714, filed Jul. 14, 2008, the entirety of 

which is incorporated herein by reference and is to be con 

sidered part of this specification. 

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 

Field of the Invention 

This invention relates to the use of thermostatic HVAC and 

other energy management controls that are connected to a 

computer network. More specifically, the present invention 

pertains to the use of user interactions with an interface Such 

as a personal computer or an Internet-enabled television as 

signal related to occupancy to inform an energy management 

system. 

Heating and cooling systems for buildings (heating, venti 

lation and cooling, or HVAC systems) have been controlled 

for decades by thermostats. At the most basic level, a thermo 

stat includes a means to allow a user to set a desired tempera 

ture, a means to sense actual temperature, and a means to 

signal the heating and/or cooling devices to turn on or offin 

order to try to change the actual temperature to equal the 

desired temperature. The most basic versions of thermostats 

use components such as a coiled bi-metallic spring to mea 

Sure actual temperature and a mercury Switch that opens or 

completes a circuit when the spring coils or uncoils with 

temperature changes. More recently, electronic digital ther 

mostats have become prevalent. These thermostats use solid 

state devices Such as thermistors orthermal diodes to measure 

temperature, and microprocessor-based circuitry to control 

the Switch and to store and operate based upon user-deter 

mined protocols for temperature Vs. time. 

These programmable thermostats generally offer a very 

restrictive user interface, limited by the cost of the devices, 

the limited real estate of the small wall-mounted boxes, and 

the inability to take into account more than two variables: the 

desired temperature set by the user, and the ambient tempera 

ture sensed by the thermostat. Users can generally only set 

one series of commands per day, and in order to change one 

parameter (e.g., to change the late-night temperature) the user 

often has to cycle through several other parameters by repeat 

edly, pressing one or two buttons. 

Because the interface of programmable thermostats is so 

poor, the significant theoretical savings that are possible with 

them (sometimes cited as 25% of heating and cooling costs) 

are rarely realized. In practice, studies have found that more 

than 50% of users never program their thermostats at all. 

Significant percentages of the thermostats that are pro grammed are programmed Sub-optimally, in part because, 

once programmed, people tend to not to re-invest the time 

needed to change the settings very often. 

A second problem with standard programmable thermo 

stats is that they represent only a small evolutionary step 

beyond the first, purely mechanical thermostats. Like the first 

thermostats, they only have two input signals—ambient tem 

perature and the preset desired temperature. The entire 

advance with programmable thermostats is that they can shift 

10 

15 

25 

30 

35 

40 

45 

50 

55 

60 

65 

2 

between multiple present temperatures at different times 

without real-time involvement of a human being. 

Because most thermostats control HVAC systems that do 

not offerinfinitely variable output, traditional thermostats are 

designed to permit the temperature as seen by the thermostat 

to vary above and below the setpoint to prevent the HVAC 

system from constantly and rapidly cycling on and off, which 

is inefficient and harmful to the HVAC system. The tempera 

ture range in which the thermostat allows the controlled envi 

ronment to drift is known as both the dead Zone and, more 

formally, the hysteresis Zone. The hysteresis Zone is fre 

quently set at +/-1 degree Fahrenheit. Thus if the setpoint is 

68 degrees, in the heating context the thermostat will allow 

the inside temperature to fall to 67 degrees before turning the 

heating system on, and will allow it to rise to 69 degrees before turning it off again. 

As energy prices rise, more attention is being paid to ways of reducing energy consumption. Because energy consump 

tion is directly proportional to setpoint—that is, the further a 

given setpoint diverges from the balance point (the inside 

temperature assuming no HVAC activity) in a given house 

under given conditions, the higher energy consumption will 

be to maintain temperature at that setpoint), energy will be 

saved by virtually any strategy that over a given time frame 

lowers the average heating setpoint or raises the cooling set 

point. Conventional programmable thermostats allow home 

owners to save money and energy by pre-programming set 

point changes based upon comfort or schedule. For example, 

in the Summer, allowing the setpoint to rise by several degrees 

(or even shutting off the air conditioner) when the home is 

unoccupied will generally save significantly on energy. But 

such thermostats have proven to be only minimally effective 

in practice. Because they have Such primitive user interfaces, 

they are difficult to program, and so many users never bother 

at all, or set them up once and do not alter the programming 

even if their schedules change. 

In the hotel industry, the heating and cooling decisions 

made in hundred or even thousands of individual rooms with 

independently controlled HVAC systems are aggregated into 

a single energy bill, so hotel owners and managers are sensi 

tive to energy consumption by those systems. Hotel guests 

often turn the air conditioner to a low temperature setting and 

then leave the room for hours at a time, thereby wasting considerable energy. An approach commonly used outside of 

the United States to combat this problem is to use a keycard to 

control the HVAC system, such that guests place the keycard 

into a slot mounted on the wall near the door of the room 

which then triggers the lights and HVAC system to power up, 

and turn them off when the guest removes the card upon 

leaving the room. However, because most hotels give each 

guest two cards, it is easy to simply leave the extra card in the 

slot, thus defeating the purpose of the system. Recently, sys 

tems have been introduced in which a motion sensor is con 

nected to the control circuitry for the HVAC system. If no 

motion is detected in the room for some predetermined inter 

val, the system concludes that the room is unoccupied, and 

turns off or alters the setpoint of the HVAC system to a more 

economical level. When the motion sensor detects motion 

(which is assumed to coincide with the return of the guest), the HVAC system resets to the guest’s chosen setting. Adding occupancy detection capability to residential 

HVAC systems could also add considerable value in the form 

of energy savings without significant tradeoff in terms of 

comfort. But the systems used in hotels do not easily transfer 

to the single-family residential context. Hotel rooms tend to 

be small enough that a single motion sensor is sufficient to 

determine with a high degree of accuracy whether or not the 

Case 6:20-cv-00075-ADA Document 1-1 Filed 01/31/20 Page 12 of 16
US 8, 180,492 B2 

3 

room is occupied. A single motion sensor in the average home 

today would have limited value because there are likely to be 

many places one or more people could be home and active yet 

invisible to the motion sensor. The most economical way to 

include a motion sensor in a traditional programmable ther 

mostat would be to build it into the thermostat itself. But 

thermostats are generally located in hallways, and thus are 

unlikely to be exposed to the areas where people tend to spend 

their time. Wiring a home with multiple motion sensors in 

order to maximize the chances of detecting occupants would 

involve considerable expense, both for the sensors them 

selves and for the considerable cost of installation, especially in the retrofit market. Yet if control is ceded to a single-sensor 

system that cannot reliably detect presence, the resulting 

errors would likely lead the homeowner to reject the system. 

It would thus be desirable to provide a system that could 

detect occupancy without requiring the installation of addi 

tional hardware; that could accurately detect occupancy 

regardless of which room in the house is occupied, and could 

optimize energy consumption based upon dynamic and indi 

vidually configurable heuristics. 

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 

In one embodiment, the invention comprises a thermostat 

attached to an HVAC system, a local network connecting the 

thermostatto a larger network Such as the Internet, and one or 

more computers attached to the network, and a server in 

bi-directional communication with a plurality of such ther 

mostats and computers. The server pairs each thermostat with 

one or more computers or other consumer electronic devices 

which are determined to be associated with the home in which 

the thermostat is located. The server logs the ambient tem 

perature sensed by each thermostat vs. time and the signals 

sent by the thermostats to their HVAC systems. The server 

also monitors and logs activity on the computers or other consumer electronic devices associated with each thermostat. 

Based on the activity patterns evidenced by keystrokes, cur 

sor movement or other inputs, or lack thereof, the server 

instructs the thermostat to change temperature settings 

between those optimized for occupied and unoccupied States. 

At least one embodiment of the invention comprises the 

steps of determining whether one or more networked elec 

tronic devices inside a structure are in use; determining 

whether said use of said networked electronic devices indi 

cates occupancy of said structure; and adjusting the tempera 

ture setpoint on athermostatic controller for an HVAC system 

for said structure based upon whether or not said structure is 

deemed to be occupied. 

At least one embodiment of the invention comprises at 

least one said thermostat having at least one temperature setting associated with the presence of one or more occupants 

in said structure, and at least one temperature setting associ 

ated with the absence of occupants in said structure; one or 

more electronic devices having at least a user interface; where 

said electronic devices and said thermostat are connected to a 

network; where said setpoint on said thermostat is adjusted 

between said temperature setting associated with the pres 

ence of one or more occupants in said structure and said 

temperature setting associated with the absence of occupants 

in said structure based upon the use of said user interface for 

said electronic device. 

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 

FIG. 1 shows an example of an overall environment in 

which an embodiment of the invention may be used. 

10 

15 

25 

30 

35 

40 

45 

50 

55 

60 

65 

4 

FIG. 2 shows a high-level illustration of the architecture of 

a network showing the relationship between the major ele 

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. 

FIG. 6 shows the browser as seen on the display of the 

computer used as part of the Subject invention. 

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the steps involved in the 

operation of one embodiment of the subject invention. 

FIG. 8 is a flowchart that shows how the invention can be 

used to select different HVAC settings based upon its ability 

to identify which of multiple potential occupants is using the 

computer attached to the system. 

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED 

EMBODIMENT 

FIG. 1 shows an example of an overall environment 100 in 

which an embodiment of the invention may be used. The 

environment 100 includes an interactive communication net 

work 102 with computers 104 connected thereto. Also con 

nected to network 102 are one or more server computers 106, 

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 

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. 

When a user of the subject invention wishes to access 

information on network 102, the buyer initiates connection 

from his computer 104. For example, the user invokes a 

browser, which executes on computer 104. The browser, in 

turn, establishes a communication link with network 102. 

Once connected to network 102, the user can direct the 

browser to access information on server 106. 

One popular part of the Internet is the World Wide Web. 

The World WideWeb contains a large number of computers 

104 and servers 106, which store HyperText Markup Lan 

guage (HTML) documents capable of displaying graphical 

and textual information. HTML is a standard coding conven 

tion 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 

active television networks, telephone networks, wireless data 

systems, two-way cable systems, and the like. 

In one embodiment, computers 104 and servers 106 are 

conventional computers that are equipped with communica 

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 

ded processors and the like. 

Case 6:20-cv-00075-ADA Document 1-1 Filed 01/31/20 Page 13 of 16
US 8, 180,492 B2 

5 

Computers 104 can also be handheld and wireless devices 

Such as personal digital assistants (PDAs), cellular telephones 

and other devices capable of accessing the network. Comput 

ers 104 can also be microprocessor-controlled home enter 

tainment equipment including advanced televisions, televi 

sions paired with home entertainment/media centers, and 

wireless remote controls. 

Computers 104 may utilize a browser configured to interact 

with the World Wide Web. Such browsers may include 

Microsoft Explorer, Mozilla, Firefox, Opera or Safari. They 

may also include browsers or similar Software used on hand 

held, home entertainment and wireless devices. The storage medium may comprise any method of storing 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, opti 

cal 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 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 

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 is 

connected to the server 106 via wired or wireless connection 

such as Ethernet or a wireless protocol such as IEEE 802.11, 

a gateway 110 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 WideWeb. Server 106 contains the content to be 

served as web pages and viewed by computers 104, as well as 

databases containing information used by the servers. 

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 

enter temperature settings 202, a means to enter information 

about the user's home 204, a means to enter the user's elec 

tricity bills 206, means to calculate energy savings that could 

result from various thermostat-setting strategies 208, and 

means to enable and choose between various arrangements 

210 for demand reduction with their electric utility provider 

as intermediated by the demand reduction service provider. 

FIG. 4 shows a high-level block diagram of thermostat 108 

used as part of the subject invention. Thermostat 108 includes 

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, a relay 262, 

which turns the HVAC system on an and off in 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 thermostatto communicate bi-directionally with 

the computer network, the thermostat also includes means 

264 to connect the thermostat to a local computer or to a 

wireless network. Such means could be in the form of Ether 

net, wireless protocols such as IEEE 802.11, IEEE 802.15.4, 

Bluetooth, cellular systems such as CDMA, GSM and GPRS, 

or other wireless protocols. The thermostat 250 may also 

include controls 266 allowing users to change settings 

10 

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25 

30 

35 

40 

45 

50 

55 

60 

65 

6 

directly at the thermostat, but Such controls are not necessary 

to allow the thermostatto function. 

The data used to generate the content delivered in the form 

of the website is stored on one or more servers 106 within one 

or more databases. As shown in FIG. 5, the overall database 

structure 300 may include temperature database 400, thermo 

stat settings database 500, energy bill database 600, HVAC 

hardware database 700, weather database 800, user database 

900, transaction database 1000, product and service database 

1100 and such other databases as may be needed to support 

these and additional features. 

The website 200 will allow users of connected thermostats 

250 to create personal accounts. Each user's account will 

store information in database 900, which tracks various 

attributes relative to users of the site. Such attributes may include the make and model of the specific HVAC equipment 

in the user's home; the age and square footage of the home, 

the solar orientation of the home, the location of the thermo 

stat in the home, the user's preferred temperature settings, 

whether the user is a participant in a demand reduction pro 

gram, etc. 

As shown in FIG.3, the website 200 will permit thermostat 

users to perform through the web browser substantially all of 

the programming functions traditionally performed directly 

at the physical thermostat, such as temperature set points, the 

time at which the thermostat should be at each set point, etc. 

Preferably the website will also allow users to accomplish 

more advanced tasks Such as allow users to program in Vaca 

tion settings for times when the HVAC system may be turned 

off or run at more economical settings, and set macros that 

will allow changing the settings of the temperature for all 

periods with a single gesture such as a mouse click. 

FIG. 6 represents the screen of a computer or other device 

104 using a graphical user interface connected to the Internet. 

The screen shows that a browser 1200 is displayed on com 

puter 104. In one embodiment, a background application 

installed on computer 104 detects activity by a user of the 

computer, Such as cursor movement, keystrokes or otherwise, 

and signals the application running on server 106 that activity 

has been detected. Server 106 may then, depending on con 

text, (a) transmit a signal to thermostat 108 changing setpoint 

because occupancy has been detected at a time when the 

system did not expect occupancy; (b) signal the background 

application running on computer 104 to trigger a software 

routine that instantiates a pop-up window 1202 that asks the 

user if the server should change the current setpoint, alter the 

overall programming of the system based upon a new occu 

pancy pattern, etc. The user can respond by clicking the 

cursor on “yes” button 1204 or “No” button 1206. Equilvalent 

means of signalling activity may be employed with interac 

tive television programming, gaming Systems, etc. 

FIG.7 represents a flowchart showing the steps involved in 

the operation of one embodiment of the subject invention. In 

step 1302, computer 104 transmits a message to server 106 

via the Internet indicating that there is user activity on com 

puter 104. This activity can be in the form of keystrokes, 

cursor movement, input via a television remote control, etc. In 

step 1304 the application queries database 300 to retrieve 

setting information for the HVAC system. In step 1306 the 

application determines whether the current HVAC program is 

intended to apply when the home is occupied or unoccupied. 

If the HVAC settings then in effect are intended to apply for an 

occupied home, then the application terminates for a specified 

interval. If the HVAC settings then in effect are intended to 

apply when the home is unoccupied, then in step 1308 the 

application will retrieve from database 300 the user's specific 

preferences for how to handle this situation. If the user has 

Case 6:20-cv-00075-ADA Document 1-1 Filed 01/31/20 Page 14 of 16
US 8, 180,492 B2 

7 

previously specified (at the time that the program was initially 

set up or subsequently modified) that the user prefers that the 

system automatically change settings under Such circum 

stances, the application then proceeds to step 1316, in which 

it changes the programmed setpoint for the thermostat to the 

setting intended for the house when occupied. If the user has 

previously specified that the application should not make 

such changes without further user input, then in step 1310 the 

application transmits a command to computer 104 directing 

the browser to display a message informing the user that the 

current setting assumes an unoccupied house and asking the 

user in step 1312 to choose whether to either keep the current 

settings or revert to the pre-selected setting for an occupied 

home. If the user selects to retain the current setting, then in 

step 1314 the application will write to database 300 the fact 

that the users has so elected and terminate. If the user elects to 

change the setting, then in step 1316 the application transmits 

the revised setpoint to the thermostat. In step 1314 the appli 

cation writes the updated setting information to database 300. 

FIG. 8 is a flowchart that shows how the invention can be 

used to select different HVAC settings based upon its ability 

to identify which of multiple potential occupants is using the 

computer attached to the system. In step 1402 computer 104 

transmits to server 106 information regarding the type of 

activity detected on computer 104. Such information could 

include the specific program or channel being watched if, for 

example, computer 104 is used to watch television. The infor 

mation matching, for example, TV channel 7 at 4:00 PM on a 

given date to specific content may be made by referring to 

Internet-based or other widely available scheduling sources 

for such content. In step 1404 server 106 retrieves from data 

base 300 previously logged data regarding viewed programs. 

In step 1406 server 106 retrieves previously stored data 

regarding the residents of the house. For example, upon ini 

tiating the service, one or more users may have filled out 

online questionnaires sharing their age, gender, schedules, 

viewing preferences, etc. In step 1408, server 106 compares 

the received information about user activity to previously 

stored information retrieved from database 300 about the 

occupants and their viewing preferences. For example, if 

computer 104 indicates to server 106 that the computer is 

being used to watch golf, the server may conclude that an 

adult male is watching; if computer 104 indicates that it is 

being used to watch children's programming, server 106 may 

conclude that a child is watching. In step 1410 the server 

transmits a query to the user in order to verify the match, 

asking, in effect, “Is that you. Bob?' In step 1412, based upon 

the user's response, the application determines whether the 

correct user has been identified. If the answer is no, then the 

application proceeds to step 1416. If the answer is yes, then in 

step 1414 the application retrieves the temperature settings 

for the identified occupant. In step 1416 the application writes 

to database 300 the programming information and informa 

tion regarding matching of users to that programming. 

In an alternative embodiment, the application running on 

computer 104 may respond to general user inputs (that is, 

inputs not specifically intended to instantiate communication 

with the remote server) by querying the user whether a given 

action should be taken. For example, in a system in which the 

computer 104 is a web-enabled television or web-enabled 

set-top device connected to a television as a display, Software 

running on computer 104 detects user activity, and transmits 

a message indicating Such activity to server 106. The trigger 

for this signal may be general. Such as changing channels or 

adjusting Volume with the remote control or a power-on 

event. Upon receipt by server 104 of this trigger, server 104 

10 

15 

25 

30 

35 

40 

45 

50 

55 

60 

65 

8 

transmits instructions to computer 104 causing it to display a 

dialog box asking the user whether the user wishes to change 

HVAC settings. 

What is claimed is: 

1. A method for varying temperature setpoints for an 

HVAC system comprising: 

storing at least a first HVAC temperature setpoint associ 

ated with a structure that is deemed to be non-occupied 

and at least a second HVAC temperature setpoint asso 

ciated with said structure deemed to be occupied; determining whether one or more networked electronic 

devices inside said structure are in use, wherein said 

networked electronic devices comprise a graphic user 

interface comprising a display, wherein said networked 

electronic devices receive input from one or more users 

and wherein use of said networked electronic devices 

comprises at least one of cursor movement, keystrokes or other user interface actions intended to alter a state of 

one or more of said networked electronic devices by one or more users; 

in response to use of said one or more networked devices, determining that said HVAC system is set to said first 

HVAC temperature setpoint indicating that said struc 

ture is deemed to be non occupied; determining that said one or more users has previously 

indicated a preference that said user's input be obtained 

before automatically changing said first HVAC tempera 

ture setpoint to said second HVAC temperature setpoint 

indicating that said structure is deemed to be occupied; 

prompting said one or more users based on said determin 

ing that said one or more of said user's input should be 

obtained, wherein said prompting sends a message to at 

least one of said networked electronic devices that said 

first HVAC system is set for a non-occupied structure 

and whether to change said first HVAC temperature setpoint to said second HVAC temperature setpoint 

associated with occupancy of said structure; 

in response to said prompting, receiving input from said 

one or more users to keep said first HVAC temperature setpoint; and 

keeping said first HVAC temperature setpoint based upon 

said input from said one or more users. 

2. The method of claim 1 in which at least one of said 

networked electronic devices is a television. 

3. The method of claim 1 in which at least one of said 

networked electronic devices is a personal computer. 

4. The method of claim 1 in which at least one of said 

networked electronic devices is connected to the Internet. 

5. The method of claim 1 in which programming being 

watched or listened to using at least one of said networked 

electronic devices is used to determine which occupant of 

said structure is likely to be present, and the second HVAC 

temperature setpoint for said thermostatic controller is 

selected based upon the preferences of the occupant, deter 

mined to be using said at least one networked electronic 

device. 

6. The method of claim 1 in which at least one of said 

networked electronic devices is a game console. 

7. The method of claim 1 in which at least one of said 

networked electronic devices communicates with a remote 

SeVe. 

8. The method of claim 1 further comprising adjusting said 

temperature setpoint with a remote computer. 

9. The method of claim 1 in which said first HVAC tem 

perature setpoint is varied automatically based on said input 

from said one or more users. 

Case 6:20-cv-00075-ADA Document 1-1 Filed 01/31/20 Page 15 of 16
US 8, 180,492 B2 

10. A system for altering the setpoint on a thermostat for 

space conditioning of a structure comprising: 

at least one thermostat having at least a first temperature setpoint associated with a non-occupied structure, and at 

least a second temperature setpoint associated with the 

existence of occupants in said structure; 

one or more electronic devices having at least a graphic 

user interface comprising a display wherein said elec 

tronic devices receive input from one or more users and 

wherein use of said electronic devices comprises at least 

one of cursor movement, keystrokes or other user inter 

face actions intended to alter a state of one or more of 

said electronic devices by one or more users wherein 

activity of one or more networked electronic devices 

indicates whether said thermostat should be changed from said first temperature setpoint to said second tem 

perature setpoint; 

wherein said electronic devices and said thermostat are 

connected to a network; 

an application comprising one or more computer proces 

sors in communication with said network, wherein said 

application determines whether said one or more elec 

tronic devices are in use and in response, whether said 

thermostat is set to said first temperature setpoint that 

indicates said structure is not occupied, said application determining that said one or more users 

has previously indicated a preference that said user's 

input be obtained before automatically changing said 

first HVAC temperature setpoint to said second HVAC 

temperature setpoint indicating that said structure is 

deemed to be occupied; 

said application prompting said one or more users based on 

said determining that said one or more of said users 

input should be obtained, 

10 

15 

25 

30 

10 

wherein said application provides electronic notice to one or more of said users of said electronic devices that said 

thermostat is set for a non-occupied structure and 

whether to keep said first temperature setpoint or change 

to said second temperature setpoint; and 

wherein said application in response to said prompting, 

receives input from said one or more users to keep said 

first HVAC temperature setpoint; and 

wherein said thermostat is kept at said first temperature setpoint based upon said input from said one or more USCS. 

11. The system of claim 10 in which at least one of said 

electronic devices is a television. 

12. The system of claim 10 in which at least one of said 

electronic devices is a personal computer. 

13. The system of claim 10 in which at least one of said 

electronic devices is connected to the Internet. 

14. The system of claim 10 in which the programming 

being watched or listened to using said electronic devices is 

used to determine which occupant of said structure is likely to 

be using at least one of said electronic devices, and the set 

point for said thermostatic controller is selected based upon the preferences of the occupant determined to be using said at 

least one electronic device. 

15. The system of claim 10 in which at least one of said 

electronic devices is a game console. 

16. The system of claim 10 in which at least one of said 

electronic devices communicates with a remote server. 

17. The system of claim 10 further comprising a remote 

computer that varies said first temperature setpoint. 

18. The system of claim 10 in which said first temperature setpoint is varied automatically based on said input from said Ole O O USS. 

Case 6:20-cv-00075-ADA Document 1-1 Filed 01/31/20 Page 16 of 16