Smart ac controller with engery measurement capability

Abstract

Systems and methods for remotely controlling infrared (“IR”) enabled appliances via a networked device are described. The technology enables one or multiple users to control, monitor, and manage their appliances (e.g., air conditioners, television sets, multimedia systems, window curtains, etc.) both locally and remotely, irrespective of the users' location or their line of sight. In various embodiments, the technology includes a device with integrated Wi-Fi and IR subsystems connected via a cloud platform to a user application interface that can control appliances, generate analytics, schedule automatic operation, and perform smart learning operation. The networked device, also known as smart AC controller, or smart AC controller, reports measures and reports energy consumption the user using the onboard energy measurement unit to show the actual usage statistics and relevant costs to the user. After collecting data on user behavior and habits, the smart AC controller can operate in a smart-mode to save energy.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A network-based remote control device for controlling and measuring energy consumption of at least one appliance, comprising:
 a control circuitry configured to be coupled to a power source;   the control circuitry comprising:
 a processing module configured to process control commands received over a communication network; 
 a communication module coupled to the processing unit for receiving said control commands; 
 an infrared (“IR”) circuit assembly configured to transmit said processed control commands to the least one appliance and to receive control commands from an infrared (“IR”) remote control device; 
 an environmental sensor assembly coupled to the processing unit; an energy measurement module configured to measure energy consumption of the appliance; 
   and a housing containing the control circuitry.   
     
     
         2 . The remote control device of  claim 1 , wherein the communication module comprises a Wi-Fi transceiver. 
     
     
         3 . The remote control device of  claim 1  wherein the infrared circuit assembly comprises a plurality of IR transceivers oriented in different directions, such that a combination of the plurality of IR transceivers are substantially omnidirectional. 
     
     
         4 . The remote control device of  claim 1  wherein the IR transceiver assembly comprises an IR emitter and an IR receiver. 
     
     
         5 . The remote control device of  claim 1  wherein the environmental sensor assembly comprises at least one of temperature, humidity, and proximity sensors. 
     
     
         6 . The remote control device of  claim 1 , further comprising at least one of an LED status indicator, and a display for displaying operating status of the remote control device. 
     
     
         7 . The remote control device of  claim 1  wherein the memory is configured to store computer-executable instructions configured to receive appliance control commands via the Wi-Fi module, and to transmit IR signals to control operation of an appliance via the IR transmitter. 
     
     
         8 . The remote control device of  claim 1  wherein the device is (may be or can be) configured to control a plurality of appliances. 
     
     
         9 . The remote control device of  claim 1  wherein the memory is configured to store schedule information, and wherein the device is further configured to transmit IR signals to control operation of an appliance via the IR transceiver at scheduled times based on the stored schedule information. 
     
     
         10 . The remote control device of  claim 1  wherein the memory is configured to store information about each operation of the appliance and information about the status of the device. 
     
     
         11 . The remote control device of  claim 1  wherein the device is configured to communicate with a remote server via the Wi-Fi module. 
     
     
         12 . The remote control device of  claim 1  wherein the device is configured to obtain, from the remote server, appliance IR control codes. 
     
     
         13 . The remote control device of  claim 1  wherein the device is configured to transmit, to the remote server, information about each operation of the appliance and information about the status of the device. 
     
     
         14 . The remote control device of  claim 1  wherein the device is configured to receive, from a user-operated remote control, IR signals to the appliance, and wherein the device is further configured to transmit, to the remote server, information about the received IR signals. 
     
     
         15 . A method in a networked control system for remotely controlling an infrared (“IR”) enabled appliance, the method comprising:
 determining a list of online remote control devices associated with a user profile; 
 displaying the list of online remote control devices on a user communication device; 
 receiving, from the user communication device, a command to operate a IR-enabled appliance associated with a selected one of the online remote control devices; 
 transmitting to the IR-enabled appliance, an IR code to operate the IR-enabled appliance; 
 and periodically measuring a energy consumption of the IR-enabled appliance. 
 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 15 , further comprising:
 receiving, from the remote control device, an acknowledgment that the remote control device transmitted the IR code; and transmitting, to the user computing device, a message indicating that the remote control device transmitted the IR code.   
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 15 , further comprising:
 transmitting the energy consumption measurements to a remote server for storing and analysis.   
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 15 , further comprising:
 automatically switching the IR-enabled device to operate in an energy saving mode if cumulative energy consumption measurements of other appliance exceed a predefined threshold.   
     
     
         19 . A remote control system for controlling at least one infrared (“IR”) enabled appliance, the system comprising:
 a first application executable in at least one user computing device, the first application configured to generate a user interface component for receiving a user control command targeting the at least one appliance; 
 a remote control device configured to transmit a signal to the at least one IR-enabled appliance in response to the user control command received from the first application, the remote control device further configured to transmit data to and receive data from at least a second application executing on a server computing device, wherein the transmitted data comprises energy consumption measurements of the at least one infrared appliance, and the received data comprises IR codes associated with a manufacturer and type of the IR-enabled appliance. 
 
     
     
         20 . The remote control system of  claim 19 , wherein the at least one IR-enabled appliance is selected from a group consisting of an air conditioner, a set top box, and a television.