Monitor for hvac system

Abstract

Systems and methods for monitoring the performance of an HVAC unit are disclosed. These systems may include a suite of indwelling sensors that are placed within the HVAC unit. The sensors themselves are battery-powered, have energy-efficient components, and communicate wirelessly with a sensor controller. The sensor controller controls the sensors and bridges between local wireless communication with the sensors and wide-area wireless communication to report sensor data to a monitoring station. Control methods for these sensors include instructing them to take and report data only at defined intervals.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A monitoring system, comprising:
 at least one indwelling sensor adapted to measure one or more characteristics of an HVAC unit, the at least one sensor having
 a sensor transceiver, and 
 a battery; and 
   a sensor controller having a first transceiver and a second transceiver, the first transceiver being adapted to communicate wirelessly with the sensor transceiver.   
     
     
         2 . The monitoring system of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one indwelling sensor further comprises:
 a peripheral board, the peripheral board having the sensor transceiver and being connected to the battery; and   one or more probes connected to the peripheral board.   
     
     
         3 . The monitoring system of  claim 2 , wherein the one or more probes comprise a temperature probe, a liquid pressure probe, an air pressure probe, or an electric current probe. 
     
     
         4 . The monitoring system of  claim 2 , wherein the peripheral board further comprises at least one permanent magnet adapted to attach the peripheral board within the HVAC unit. 
     
     
         5 . The monitoring system of  claim 1 , wherein the sensor transceiver and the first transceiver are adapted to create a local area network for the at least one sensor and the second transceiver is adapted to communicate with a wide area network. 
     
     
         6 . The monitoring system of  claim 5 , wherein the local area network uses BLUETOOTH™ communication protocols and the wide area network is a cellular network. 
     
     
         7 . A method for controlling an indwelling network of sensors in an HVAC unit, comprising:
 establishing a communication channel with a first sensor;   accepting a first data point from the first sensor; and   instructing the first sensor to obtain a next data point at a first defined time and to report the next data point at a second defined time, the second defined time being different than the first defined time; and   causing or allowing the first sensor to wait without communicating or gathering data until the first defined time.   
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 7 , wherein the first defined time includes a first offset representing a sensor instruction time period. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 8 , further comprising:
 establishing a communication channel with a second sensor;   accepting a second data point from the second sensor; and   instructing the second sensor to obtain a second next data point at a third defined time and to report the second next data point at a fourth defined time, the fourth defined time being different than the third defined time, the third defined time including a second offset, different from the first offset, representing the sensor instruction time period.   
     
     
         10 . A method of gathering data from an HVAC unit, comprising:
 establishing a communication channel with a sensor controller;   reporting a first data point to the sensor controller;   accepting a unique defined time at which to gather a second data point;   waiting without communicating or gathering data until the unique defined time; and   gathering the second data point at the unique defined time.   
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 10 , further comprising reporting the second data point to the sensor controller at a second time different from the unique defined time. 
     
     
         12 . A method for monitoring an HVAC system, comprising:
 causing or allowing a sensor controller to gather data at a defined interval from one or more indwelling sensors installed within the HVAC system, the sensor controller further causing or allowing the one or more indwelling sensors to wait without communicating or gathering data during the defined interval, the one or more indwelling sensors communicating with the sensor controller wirelessly via a local area network;   receiving the data from the sensor controller over a wide area network different from the local area network; and   processing the data to determine a status of the HVAC system.   
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 12 , further comprising determining the source of a fault in the HVAC system. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 13 , wherein said determining comprises comparing multiple metrics within the processed data with baseline values for the multiple metrics. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 14 , further comprising establishing an interface that allows a user to access the processed data, view at least some of the multiple metrics, view the status of the HVAC system, and receive alerts related to the determined fault. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 12 , wherein the sensor controller is an indwelling component installed within the HVAC system. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 12 , wherein the one or more indwelling sensors are battery powered. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 12 , further comprising determining a new defined interval and communicating the new defined interval to the sensor controller.