阅读说明：本技术 用于控制建筑物的一部分中的室内气候的方法和设备 (Method and apparatus for controlling indoor climate in a part of a building ) 是由 本特·林道夫 佩尔·罗森 雅各布·斯科格斯特罗姆 弗雷德里克·罗森奎斯特 海伦·卡尔斯特罗姆 于 2020-04-17 设计创作，主要内容包括：提出了一种用于控制建筑物(100)的一部分(102)中的室内气候的方法。该方法包括：根据基于无线通信的定位功能来识别(S402)存在于该建筑物(100)的该部分(102)中的电子设备(204a,204b,204c)；针对每个识别的电子设备确定该识别的电子设备是否与使用者相关联；基于与相应的识别的电子设备所关联的相应使用者相关联的散热量来确定(S406)存在于该建筑物(100)的该部分(102)中的估计总散热量；以及基于存在于该建筑物(100)的该部分(102)中的该估计总散热量来控制(S408)该建筑物(100)的该部分(102)中的室内气候。还提出了一种用于进行该控制的服务器(106)和系统。(A method for controlling an indoor climate in a portion (102) of a building (100) is proposed. The method comprises the following steps: identifying (S402) electronic devices (204a, 204b, 204c) present in the portion (102) of the building (100) according to a wireless communication based positioning function; determining, for each identified electronic device, whether the identified electronic device is associated with a user; determining (S406) an estimated total heat dissipation present in the portion (102) of the building (100) based on heat dissipation associated with respective users associated with respective identified electronic devices; and controlling (S408) an indoor climate in the portion (102) of the building (100) based on the estimated total heat dissipated present in the portion (102) of the building (100). A server (106) and a system for performing the control are also presented.)

1. A method for controlling an indoor climate in a portion (102) of a building (100), the method comprising:

identifying (S402) electronic devices (204a, 204b, 204c) present in the portion (102) of the building (100) according to a wireless communication based positioning function;

determining, for each identified electronic device, whether the identified electronic device is associated with a user;

determining (S406) an estimated total heat dissipation present in the portion (102) of the building (100) based on heat dissipation associated with respective users associated with respective identified electronic devices; and

controlling (S408) an indoor climate in the portion (102) of the building (100) based on the estimated total heat dissipated present in the portion (102) of the building (100).

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

identifying the corresponding user; and

determining (S406) the estimated total heat dissipation present in the portion (102) of the building (100) based on a summation of heat dissipation associated with each uniquely identified user.

3. The method of claim 1 or 2, further comprising:

for each identified electronic device:

determining (S404) a heat dissipation amount associated with the identified electronic device; and

adding a heat dissipation amount associated with the identified electronic device to the estimated total heat dissipation amount present in the portion (102) of the building (100).

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the step of determining, for each identified electronic device, a heat dissipation amount associated with the identified electronic device comprises:

a type of the electronic device is determined and a database is accessed that includes information related to heat dissipation associated with different types of electronic devices.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the step of identifying the electronic device (204a, 204b, 204c) present in the portion (102) of the building (100) comprises:

identifying the electronic devices (204b, 204c) that are wirelessly connected to a wireless access point (202) associated with the portion (102) of the building (100) and/or identifying electronic devices (204a) that are within range of the wireless access point (202) associated with the portion (102) of the building (100).

6. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the step of controlling the indoor climate in the portion (102) of the building (100) comprises controlling heating and/or cooling of the portion (102) of the building (100).

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the step of controlling the indoor climate in the portion of the building comprises controlling ventilation of the portion (102) of the building (100).

8. A method for individually controlling an indoor climate in each of a plurality of sections (102) of a building (100), the method comprising:

-performing the method according to any one of claims 1 to 7 for each portion (102) of the building (100).

9. A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium including program code portions recorded thereon, which when executed on a device having processing capabilities are configured to perform the method of any one of claims 1-8.

10. A server (106) configured to control an indoor climate in a portion (102) of a building (100), the server (106) comprising:

control circuitry (304) configured to perform:

an electronic device identification function (310) configured to identify electronic devices present in the portion (102) of the building (100) according to a wireless communication based positioning function,

a heat dissipation estimation function (312) configured to determine an estimated total heat dissipation amount present in the portion (102) of the building (100) based on a summation of heat dissipation amounts associated with users associated with the electronic devices identified as present in the portion (102) of the building (100),

an indoor climate control function (314) configured to generate an indoor climate control signal, wherein the indoor climate control signal is based on the estimated total heat dissipation present in the portion (102) of the building (100); and

a transceiver (302) configured to transmit the indoor climate control signal to an indoor climate control assembly (104) associated with the portion (102) of the building (100).

11. The server of claim 10, wherein the heat dissipation estimation function (312) is further configured to determine the estimated total heat dissipation present in the portion (102) of the building (100) based on a summation of heat dissipation associated with identified electronic devices.

12. A building management system comprising:

a plurality of indoor climate control assemblies (104) each associated with a separate portion (102) of the building (100); and

a server (106) configured to individually control indoor climate in individual sections (102) of the building (100), the server (106) comprising:

control circuitry (304) configured to perform:

an electronic device identification function (310) configured to identify electronic devices present in each individual part (102) of the building (100) according to a wireless communication based positioning function,

a heat dissipation estimation function (312) configured to determine an estimated total heat dissipation amount present in each individual portion (102) of the building (100) based on a summation of heat dissipation amounts associated with users associated with the electronic devices identified as being present in the individual portion (102) of the building (100),

an indoor climate control function (314) configured to generate an indoor climate control signal for each individual portion (102) of the building (100), wherein each indoor climate control signal is based on the estimated total heat dissipation present in the individual portion (102) of the building (100); and

a transceiver (302) configured to transmit the indoor climate control signals to respective ones of indoor climate control assemblies (104) associated with individual portions (102) of the building (100).

13. The building management system of claim 12, wherein the heat dissipation estimation function (312) is further configured to determine the estimated total heat dissipation present in the individual portion (102) of the building (100) based on a summation of heat dissipation associated with the electronic devices identified as present in the individual portion (102) of the building (100).

14. The building management system according to claim 12 or 13, further comprising a plurality of wireless access points (202), wherein each wireless access point (202) is associated with each individual part (102) of the building (100), wherein the electronic device identification function (310) is configured to identify electronic devices present in an individual part (102) of the building (100) by identifying electronic devices (204b, 204c) wirelessly connected to the wireless access point (202) associated with an individual part (102) of the building (100) and/or identifying electronic devices (204a) within range of the wireless access point (202) associated with the part (102) of the building (100).

15. The building management system according to any one of claims 12-14, wherein each of the plurality of indoor climate control assemblies (104) comprises one or more of: a heating device configured to heat an individual portion of the building associated with the indoor climate control assembly, a cooling device configured to cool an individual portion of the building associated with the indoor climate control assembly, and a ventilation device configured to ventilate an individual portion of the building.

Technical Field

The present invention relates generally to controlling indoor climate in a portion of a building.

Background

Today, it is common practice to control the indoor climate in buildings using building management systems. However, control of the indoor climate is often cumbersome, as the indoor climate depends on many parameters such as outdoor climate, building type, activities in the building, etc. Outdoor climate and building type are parameters for which relevant information is fairly easy to obtain. However, information about activities in the building is difficult to obtain. Therefore, there is a need to be able to better control the indoor climate in buildings.

By improving the indoor climate in a building, the happiness of the users of the building can be increased. Further, energy can be saved by improving the indoor climate in the building.

Disclosure of Invention

It is an object to mitigate, alleviate or eliminate one or more of the above-identified deficiencies in the art and disadvantages singly or in any combination and solves at least partly the above mentioned problems.

According to a first aspect, a method for controlling an indoor climate in a portion of a building is provided. The method comprises the following steps: identifying an electronic device present in the portion of the building according to a wireless communication based location function; determining, for each identified electronic device, whether the identified electronic device is associated with a user; determining an estimated total heat dissipation amount present in the portion of the building based on heat dissipation amounts associated with respective users associated with respective identified electronic devices; and controlling an indoor climate in the portion of the building based on the estimated total heat dissipated present in the portion of the building.

By means of the inventive method, the indoor climate in a part of a building can be controlled and optimized based on the fact that a user of an electronic device is identified as being present in that particular part of the building. By identifying not only the electronic devices present in parts of a building but also users, e.g. people, associated with these electronic devices, a safer and more accurate way of controlling the indoor climate in a building is achieved. Further, by identifying, for example, a smartphone as being present in a portion of a building, the smartphone itself does not contribute much to the estimated total heat dissipation in the portion of the building, however, users associated with the smartphone may. Further, identifying a user, e.g., a person, present in a portion of a building by identifying an electronic device associated with the user provides a dynamic method for identifying the presence of the user in the portion of the building. This is because users tend to move around in buildings or even enter or leave buildings with their electronic devices.

Thus, by determining whether a user is associated with an electronic device, the user's contribution to heat dissipation may be taken into account when controlling the indoor climate in a portion of a building. Therefore, the indoor climate can be controlled more accurately. Further, the inventive method provides less integrity problems as compared to e.g. methods based on determining the presence of a person using a camera. Furthermore, the inventive method does not require a person to perform any action, as compared to door access reader-based methods of determining the presence of a person in a building.

It is preferable to dynamically identify the electronic device because electronic devices tend to move around and may therefore contribute differently to heat dissipation at different points in time.

The method may further comprise: determining, for each identified electronic device, a heat dissipation amount associated with the identified electronic device; and adding a heat dissipation amount associated with the identified electronic device to the estimated total heat dissipation amount present in the portion of the building.

Today, there are often more things inside a building than people contribute to heat dissipation in the building. As an example, different electronic devices such as computers, projectors, robots, etc. also contribute to heat dissipation. Further, both people and electronic devices present in buildings tend to move around, and may therefore contribute differently to heat dissipation at different points in time. By the inventive method, the indoor climate in a part of a building can be controlled and optimized based on the electronic device being identified as present in that particular part of the building. By identifying the electronic devices present in the portion of the building, the contribution of the electronic devices present in the portion of the building to the heat dissipation in the portion of the building may be taken into account when controlling the indoor climate. Thus, non-human thermal devices may be considered in determining an estimated total heat dissipation in a portion of a building. Therefore, the indoor climate can be controlled more accurately.

The step of determining, for each identified electronic device, a heat dissipation amount associated with the identified electronic device may include determining a type of the identified electronic device and accessing a database including information related to heat dissipation associated with different types of electronic devices. In this context, the term "type" should be interpreted as different electronic devices, such as a smartphone, a laptop, a projector, a robot, etc. Electronic devices typically have different amounts of heat dissipation depending on the type of electronic device. By taking into account the type of electronic equipment, the heat dissipation in parts of the building can be better estimated. Therefore, the indoor climate can be controlled more accurately.

The step of determining an estimated total heat dissipation present in the portion of the building may comprise summing the determined heat dissipation associated with the identified electronic devices.

Further, respective users may be identified, and only the heat dissipation associated with each uniquely identified user may be added to the estimated total heat dissipation present in the portion of the building. The estimated total heat dissipation in the portion of the building can be better estimated. This is because a particular user may only contribute once to the estimated total heat dissipation in a portion of the building.

The step of identifying electronic devices present in the portion of the building may include identifying the electronic devices that are wirelessly connected to a wireless access point associated with the portion of the building. An efficient way of identifying electronic devices in a portion of a building is provided. Further, an efficient way of dividing the building into sections is also provided.

The step of identifying electronic devices present in the portion of the building may include identifying electronic devices that are within range of the wireless access point associated with the portion of the building. An efficient way of identifying electronic devices in a portion of a building is provided. Further, an efficient way of dividing the building into sections is also provided.

The step of controlling the indoor climate in the portion of the building may comprise controlling heating of the portion of the building. The step of controlling the indoor climate in the portion of the building may comprise controlling cooling of the portion of the building. The step of controlling the indoor climate in the portion of the building may comprise controlling ventilation of the portion of the building.

According to a second aspect, a method for individually controlling the indoor climate in each of a plurality of sections of a building is presented. The method comprises the following steps: the method according to the first aspect is performed for each part of the building.

The above features of the method of the first aspect apply also to this second aspect, where applicable. To avoid excessive repetition, reference is made to the above.

According to a third aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable recording medium is provided. The non-transitory computer-readable recording medium includes program code portions recorded thereon, which, when executed on a device having processing capabilities, are configured to perform the method according to the first aspect and/or the second aspect. The above features of the methods of the first and second aspects apply also to this third aspect, where applicable. To avoid excessive repetition, reference is made to the above.

According to a fourth aspect, there is provided a server configured to control an indoor climate in a portion of a building. The server includes: a control circuit configured to perform: an electronic device identification function configured to identify an electronic device present in the portion of the building in accordance with a wireless communication based location function; a heat dissipation estimation function configured to determine an estimated total heat dissipation amount present in the portion of the building based on a summation of heat dissipation amounts associated with users associated with the electronic devices identified as present in the portion of the building; and an indoor climate control function configured to generate an indoor climate control signal, wherein the indoor climate control signal is based on the estimated total heat dissipation present in the portion of the building; and a transceiver configured to transmit the indoor climate control signal to an indoor climate control component associated with the portion of the building. The above features of the methods of the first and second aspects apply also to this fourth aspect, where applicable. To avoid excessive repetition, reference is made to the above.

The heat dissipation estimation function may be further configured to determine the estimated total heat dissipation present in the portion of the building based on a summation of heat dissipation associated with the identified electronic devices.

According to a fifth aspect, a building management system is provided. The building management system includes: a plurality of indoor climate control assemblies each associated with a separate portion of the building; and a server configured to individually control indoor climates in individual portions of the building. The server includes: a control circuit configured to perform: an electronic device identification function configured to identify electronic devices present in each individual portion of the building according to a wireless communication based location function; a heat dissipation estimation function configured to determine an estimated total heat dissipation amount present in each individual portion of the building based on a summation of heat dissipation amounts associated with users associated with the electronic devices identified as being present in the individual portion of the building; and an indoor climate control function configured to generate an indoor climate control signal for each individual portion of the building, wherein each indoor climate control signal is based on the estimated total heat dissipation present in an individual portion of the building; and a transceiver configured to transmit the indoor climate control signals to respective ones of the indoor climate control assemblies associated with individual portions of the building.

The heat dissipation estimation function may be further configured to determine the estimated total heat dissipation present in the individual portion of the building based on a summation of heat dissipation associated with the electronic devices identified as present in the individual portion of the building.

The building management system may further comprise a plurality of wireless access points, wherein each wireless access point is associated with each individual part of the building, wherein the electronic device identification functionality is configured to identify electronic devices present in an individual part of the building by identifying electronic devices that are wirelessly connected to the wireless access point associated with an individual part of the building and/or identifying electronic devices that are within range of the wireless access point associated with the part of the building.

Each of the plurality of indoor climate control assemblies may include one or more of: a heating device configured to heat an individual portion of the building associated with the indoor climate control assembly, a cooling device configured to cool an individual portion of the building associated with the indoor climate control assembly, and a ventilation device configured to ventilate an individual portion of the building.

The above features of the methods of the first and second aspects apply also to this fifth aspect, where applicable. To avoid excessive repetition, reference is made to the above.

Further areas of applicability of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description provided hereinafter. It should be understood, however, that the detailed description and the specific examples, while indicating preferred embodiments of the invention, are given by way of illustration only, since various changes and modifications within the scope of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from this detailed description.

It is to be understood, therefore, that this invention is not limited to the particular details of the illustrated apparatus or steps of the illustrated method, as such apparatus and methods may vary. It is also to be understood that the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only, and is not intended to be limiting. It must be noted that, as used in this specification and the appended claims, the articles "a," "an," "the," and "said" are intended to mean that there are one or more of the elements, unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Thus, for example, reference to "a unit" or "the unit" may include several devices, and the like. Furthermore, the words "comprising", "including", "containing" and similar words do not exclude other elements or steps.

Drawings

These and other aspects of the invention will now be described in more detail, with reference to the appended drawings showing embodiments of the invention. The drawings are provided to illustrate the general structure of embodiments of the invention. Like numbers refer to like elements throughout.

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a building comprising a plurality of sections.

Fig. 2 is a schematic view of a portion of the building of fig. 1.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of a server configured to control indoor climate in portions of the building of FIG. 1.

Fig. 4 is a flow chart illustrating a method for controlling indoor climate in a portion of a building.

Detailed Description

The present invention now will be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which presently preferred embodiments of the invention are shown. This invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art.

Fig. 1 generally illustrates a building 100 including a building management system. The building 100 may be any type of building such as a residential building, a commercial or office building, an apartment building, an independent house, or an industrial building. The building management system is configured to control and monitor the mechanical and electrical equipment of the building 100. Mechanical and electrical equipment may be used, for example, to control the indoor environment of the building 100. The building management system may be configured to individually control the indoor climate in each section 102 of the building 100. The portion 102 of the building may be a room of the building 100, where the room is a building space bounded by a floor, a ceiling, and walls. However, the portion 102 of the building 100 may include multiple rooms. Alternatively, the portion 102 of the building 100 may be a portion of an open space of the building 100. Thus, the open space of the building 100 may be divided into a plurality of sections 102. The indoor climate in each section 102 of the building 100 may be controlled individually. Thus, the indoor climate in the portion 102 of the building 100 may be controlled separately from the other portions 102 of the building 100. Building 100 includes a plurality of sections 102. The indoor climate of each section 102 may be controlled by an indoor climate control assembly 104. Thus, each portion 102 may be associated with a particular indoor climate control assembly 104. The indoor climate control assembly 104 forms part of a building management system. Each indoor climate control assembly 104 may include a heating device configured to heat the portion 102 of the building 100 associated with the indoor climate control assembly 104. Alternatively or in combination, each indoor climate control assembly 104 may include a cooling device configured to cool the portion 102 of the building 100 associated with the indoor climate control assembly 104. Alternatively or in combination, each indoor climate control assembly 104 may include a ventilation device configured to ventilate the portion 102 of the building 100.

The building management system further includes a server 106. The server 106 is configured to control the indoor climate control assembly 104. The server 106 may be configured to individually control the indoor climate control assembly 104. The server 106 may be located inside the building 100. Alternatively, the server 106 may be located outside the building 100. In particular, the server 106 may form part of a federated server that controls multiple buildings.

Fig. 2 illustrates a portion 102 of the building 100 illustrated in fig. 1. In addition to what has been discussed above, each portion 102 of building 100 may be associated with a wireless access point 202. Wireless access point 202 may be configured to communicate with server 106. Wireless access point 202 may provide wireless connection accessibility to portion 102 of the building. The wireless connection may be made using any suitable connection protocol. Examples of such wireless connection protocols are Wi-Fi and bluetooth. Through wireless connection accessibility, wireless access point 202 may provide access to a network, such as the internet, for electronic devices connected thereto.

One or more electronic devices 204a, 204b, 204c may be present in the portion 102 of the building 100. The electronic devices 204a, 204b, 204c are electronic devices with wireless communication capabilities. Examples of electronic devices are smart phones, laptop computers, stationary computers and projectors, and robots. One or more electronic devices 204a, 204b, 204c have wireless communication capabilities and can wirelessly connect to the wireless access point 202. Alternatively or in combination, one or more electronic devices 204a, 204b, 204c may connect to the cellular network through a cellular radio base station 208. The connection to the cellular network may be made using any suitable connection protocol. Examples of such cellular network connection protocols are 3G, 4G and 5G.

In the example illustrated in fig. 2, two electronic devices 204b, 204c are wirelessly connected to wireless access point 202, thereby providing wireless connection accessibility to portion 102 of building 100. Further, in the example illustrated in fig. 2, one electronic device 204a is wirelessly connected to the cellular network through a cellular radio base station 208.

For electronic devices that are wirelessly connected to wireless access point 202, it can be said that the electronic devices are present in portion 102 of building 100 that is associated with wireless access point 202. Wireless access point 202 can determine which electronic device is wirelessly connected to it (electronic devices 204b, 204c in the case of fig. 2). This may be monitored by software in wireless access point 202. Wireless access point 202 can thus report to server 106 which electronic devices are wirelessly connected to the wireless access point. Wireless access point 202 may also send information about the type of electronic device to server 106. This information may be received by wireless access point 202 from an electronic device wirelessly connected thereto. Wireless access point 202 can report to server 106 when a new electronic device is wirelessly connected to the wireless access point. Wireless access point 202 can report to server 106 when the electronic device is disconnected. Thus, the server 106 can obtain information about the electronic devices connected to the wireless access point 202. From this information, it can be identified which electronic devices are identified as being present in the portion 102 of the building 100 associated with the wireless access point 202.

As mentioned above, the electronic device may be wirelessly connected to the cellular network through the cellular radio base station 208. The presence of such electronic devices in the portion 102 of the building 100 may also be determined in the event that such devices are not wirelessly connected to the wireless access point 202. According to one example, an electronic device wirelessly connected to a cellular network via a cellular radio base station 208 is installed with an application that monitors the cellular radio base station and wireless access points that the electronic device can currently detect. The monitoring may be a global cell identification unique to each cellular radio base station and a MAC address unique to each wireless access point. Each time an update of a new cellular radio base station and/or a new wireless access point within radio range of the electronic device is detected, an application within the electronic device reports the change (new wireless access point, new cellular radio base station, lost/dropped wireless access point, lost/dropped cellular radio base station, etc.) to a server belonging to the wireless communication based positioning function. The server, in turn, has knowledge of the wireless access point 202 associated with the portion 102 of the building 100, e.g., knowledge of the MAC address of the wireless access point 202 associated with the portion 102 of the building 100. The server, which is part of the wireless communication based positioning function, monitors incoming MAC addresses reported from the electronic devices on which the applications are installed and checks whether the incoming MAC addresses reported from the electronic devices on which the applications are installed match the MAC addresses of the wireless access points 202 associated with the portion 102 of the building 100. Once a match is detected, the server belonging to the wireless communication based positioning function reports the electronic device on which the application is installed to the server 106 as present in the part 102 of the building 100. If no match is detected, nothing is reported to the server 106. Similarly, if the electronic device on which the application is installed is no longer within range of the wireless access point 202 associated with the portion 102 of the building 100, this will be reported to the server belonging to the wireless communication based location function, which will report this to the server 106. Thus, the server 106 will now obtain information that the electronic device on which the application is installed is no longer identified as being present in the portion 102 of the building 100.

The functionality discussed above for determining whether an electronic device is located in the portion 102 of the building 100 is two different examples of wireless communication based positioning functionality. However, any wireless communication based positioning function may be used to determine which electronic devices are present in the portion 102 of the building 100. Further, it should be appreciated that one or more wireless communication-based positioning functions may be used to determine the location of a particular electronic device.

Each electronic device may be given a heat dissipation property. Heat dissipation can contribute to changes in indoor climate. The amount of heat dissipated may be associated with the type of electronic device. The total heat dissipated in the portion 102 of the building 100 may significantly change the indoor climate in that portion 102. For example, a laptop computer may output 40-50W, while a robot may output 200W. The heat dissipation value associated with a particular type of electronic device may be stored in a database. The server 106 may access such a database.

Further, a user 206 (typically a human user but also an animal user) may be associated with the electronic device. The heat dissipation of such associated users 206 may contribute to the total heat dissipation in the portion 102 of the building 100. Typically, human heat dissipation is 80-100W.

Based on the information about the electronic devices, the server 106 may identify the electronic devices that are present in the particular portion 102 of the building 100. For each identified electronic device, a heat dissipation amount associated therewith may be determined. The server 106 may determine the amount of heat dissipated associated with each identified electronic device by accessing a database that includes heat dissipation values associated with particular types of electronic devices. From the individual contributions of heat dissipation from the identified electronic devices, an estimated total amount of heat dissipation present in the portion 102 of the building 100 may be determined.

Alternatively or in addition to the electronic devices 204a, 204b, 204c, a person or other type of user 206 present in the portion 102 of the building 100 may affect the indoor climate by dissipating heat therefrom. However, the user 206 cannot be directly identified as being present in the portion 102 of the building 100 by means of the wireless communication based positioning function. Instead of directly detecting the presence of the user 206, it may be checked whether the electronic device identified as being present in the portion 102 of the building 100 is associated with the user 206. If an electronic device identified as present in a portion of the building 100 is associated with a user, the user's heat dissipation contribution may be added to the estimated total heat dissipation present in the portion 102 of the building 100. For example, if the electronic device is detected as a smartphone, it may be assumed to be associated with a user. It may be further checked whether two or more electronic devices identified as being present in the portion 102 of the building 100 are associated with the same user. This may be accomplished by accessing a database (e.g., SIM card subscription) using an association between the electronic device and the user. If so, the user will only contribute once to the estimated total heat dissipation present in the portion 102 of the building 100. Further, it may be checked whether a user of a particular electronic device is currently logged into the electronic device and only when the user is logged into the electronic device determines that the user is present in the portion 102 of the building 100. This is particularly useful for, for example, laptop computers. In conjunction with this, if the laptop is already locked, the user is determined not to be logged into the laptop. Another example that is useful, for example, for a computer is to detect whether the amount of data transmitted with a wireless access point is above a predetermined threshold (e.g., above a threshold for ping data). If the amount of data is above a predetermined threshold, it can be assumed that the user is using the computer.

The server 106 may then generate an indoor climate control signal to be sent to the indoor climate control assembly 104 of the particular portion 102 of the building 100. The indoor climate control signal is based on an estimated total heat dissipation present in a particular portion 102 of the building 100. Based on the indoor climate control signal, the indoor climate control assembly 104 will control the indoor climate by increasing or decreasing heating, cooling, or ventilation in the portion 102 of the building 100.

As an example, if one or more electronic devices are newly present in the portion 102 of the building, the indoor climate control signal will indicate an increase in heat dissipation in the portion 102 of the building 100. The indoor climate control assembly 104 may then be set to reduce heating in the portion 102 of the building, increase cooling in the portion 102 of the building 100, and/or increase ventilation in the portion 102 of the building 100.

As another example, if one or more electronic devices have recently left the portion 102 of the building 100, the indoor climate control signal will indicate a reduction in heat dissipation in the portion 102 of the building 100. The indoor climate control assembly 104 may then be set to reduce cooling in the portion 102 of the building, increase heating in the portion 102 of the building 100, and/or reduce ventilation in the portion 102 of the building 100.

The server 106 will be discussed in more detail in connection with FIG. 3. The server 106 includes a transceiver 302, a control circuit 304, and a memory 308.

The transceiver 302 is configured to communicate with indoor climate control components 104 associated with different portions 102 of the building 100. Transceiver 302 is further configured to communicate with non-access points 202 associated with different portions 102 of building 100. The communication may include data transfer, etc. Data transfer may include, but is not limited to, downloading and/or uploading data and receiving and sending messages. The data may be processed by the server 106. Processing may include storing data in a memory (e.g., memory 308 of server 106), performing operations or functions, and so on.

The control circuitry 304 is configured to exercise overall control over the operations and functions of the server 106. The control circuit 304 may include a processor 306, such as a Central Processing Unit (CPU), microcontroller, or microprocessor. The processor 306 is configured to execute program code stored in the memory 308 to carry out the operations and functions of the server 106.

The memory 308 may be one or more of a buffer, flash memory, hard drive, removable media, volatile memory, non-volatile memory, Random Access Memory (RAM), or other suitable device. In a typical arrangement, the memory 308 may include non-volatile memory for long-term data storage and volatile memory for use as system memory for the control circuitry 304. The memory 308 may exchange data with the control circuit 304 via a data bus. Accompanying control lines and address buses may also exist between the memory 308 and the control circuit 304.

The operations and functions of the server 106 may be implemented in the form of executable logic routines (e.g., lines of code, software programs, etc.) that are stored on a non-transitory computer-readable recording medium (e.g., memory 308) of the server 106 and executed by the control circuitry 304 (e.g., using the processor 306). Further, the operations and functions of the server 106 may be a stand-alone software application or form part of a software application that carries out additional tasks related to the server 106. The operations and functions described may be considered a method that the corresponding device is configured to carry out. Also, while operations and functions described may be implemented in software, such functions may also be carried out via dedicated hardware or firmware, or some combination of hardware, firmware, and/or software.

The control circuitry 304 is configured to perform an electronic device identification function 310. The electronic device identification function 310 is configured to identify electronic devices present in the portion 102 of the building 100. The electronic device identification function 310 uses one or more wireless communication-based location functions to identify the presence of an electronic device in a particular portion 102 of the building 100. The wireless communication based positioning functionality is discussed in more detail above in connection with fig. 2. To avoid excessive repetition, reference is made to the above.

The control circuitry 304 is further configured to perform a heat dissipation estimation function 312. The heat dissipation estimation function 312 is configured to determine an estimated total heat dissipation present in a particular portion 102 of the building 100. The estimated total heat dissipated present in the particular portion 102 of the building 100 may be based on the heat dissipated associated with the electronic devices identified as being present in the particular portion 102 of the building 100. Accordingly, the heat dissipation estimation function 312 may be configured to determine a total amount of heat dissipation associated with electronic devices identified as being present in a particular portion 102 of the building 100. The heat dissipation estimation function 312 may be configured to determine a total heat dissipation by determining, for each electronic device identified as being present in a particular portion 102 of the building 100, a heat dissipation associated with the identified electronic device. This may be done, for example, by accessing a database that includes heat dissipation values associated with particular types of electronic devices. The database may be a database 320 stored in the memory 308 of the server 106. Alternatively, the database may be external to the server 106 but accessible by the server 106. By identifying the type of the identified electronic device and accessing the database, the heat dissipation estimation function 312 may estimate the heat dissipation of the identified electronic device. The heat dissipation estimation function 312 may be further configured to sum the heat dissipation contributions from the identified electronic devices to determine an estimated total heat dissipation present in the particular portion 102 of the building 100. As mentioned in connection with the discussion of fig. 2, the user 206 of the electronic device may also contribute to the estimated total heat dissipation present in a particular portion 102 of the building 100. Accordingly, the heat dissipation estimation function 312 may be configured to determine a total heat dissipation based on heat dissipation contributions from users present in a particular portion 102 of the building 100. The heat dissipation estimation function 312 may then be configured to check whether the electronic device identified as being present in the portion 102 of the building 100 is associated with the user 206. If the electronic equipment identified as present in the portion 102 of the building 100 is associated with a user, the heat dissipation estimation function 312 may add the user's heat dissipation contribution to the estimated total heat dissipation present in the portion 102 of the building 100. The heat dissipation estimation function 312 may be further configured to check whether two or more electronic devices identified as being present in the portion 102 of the building 100 are associated with the same user. If so, the heat dissipation estimation function 312 will add only one user's contribution to the estimated total heat dissipation present in the portion 102 of the building 100. Further, the heat dissipation estimation function 312 may check whether a user of a particular electronic device is currently logged into the electronic device. The presence of a user in the portion 102 of the building 100 is determined only when the user is logged into the electronic device. This is particularly useful for, for example, laptop computers. In conjunction with this, if the laptop is already locked, the user is determined not to be logged into the laptop.

The control circuitry 304 is further configured to perform an indoor climate control function 314. The indoor climate control function 314 is configured to generate an indoor climate control signal. The indoor climate control signal is to be sent to an indoor climate control assembly 104 associated with the portion 102 of the building 100. The indoor climate control signal is based on an estimated total heat dissipation present in a particular portion 102 of the building 100.

Thus, by identifying the electronic devices 204a, 204b, 204c present in the portion 102 of the building 100 and by analyzing what type of electronic device the identified electronic device is, the server 106 can control the indoor climate in the portion 102 of the building 100. The identification of the electronic devices present in the portion 102 of the building 100 is made in accordance with a wireless communication based location function.

In connection with fig. 4, a method 400 for controlling an indoor climate in a portion of a building will be discussed. The steps of method 400 may be performed in any suitable order. The method 400 includes the following steps.

Electronic devices present in a portion of a building are identified S402. The step S402 of identifying the electronic devices present in the part of the building is performed according to a positioning function based on wireless communication. These functions are discussed in conjunction with fig. 2. To avoid excessive repetition, reference is made to the above.

For each identified electronic device, a heat dissipation amount associated with the identified electronic device may be determined S404. Step S404 may include determining a type of the identified electronic device and determining an amount of heat dissipation associated with the identified electronic device based on the type. The identified type of electronic device may be included in the information sent from the electronic device. The amount of heat dissipated associated with a particular type of electronic device may be determined by accessing a database that includes information related to heat dissipation associated with different types of electronic devices.

The heat dissipation amount associated with the identified electronic device may then be used to determine S406 an estimated total heat dissipation amount present in the portion of the building. The step of determining S406 an estimated total heat dissipation amount present in the portion of the building may comprise summing the determined heat dissipation amounts associated with the electronic devices identified as being present in the portion of the building. Thus, the estimated total heat dissipation present in the portion of the building may include a sum of the determined heat dissipation amounts associated with the electronic devices identified as being present in the portion of the building. The step of determining S406 an estimated total heat dissipation amount present in the portion of the building may comprise determining, for each electronic device identified as present in the portion of the building, whether the electronic device is associated with a user, and adding the heat dissipation amount associated with the user to the estimated total heat dissipation amount present in the portion of the building when the electronic device is associated with the user. Thus, the estimated total heat dissipation present in the portion of the building may include heat dissipation associated with a user of the electronic device identified as present in the portion of the building. Further, respective users may be identified, and the heat dissipation associated with the user may be added to the estimated total heat dissipation present in the portion of the building only for each uniquely identified user. Thus, the estimated total heat dissipation present in the portion of the building may include the heat dissipation associated with each uniquely identified user of the electronic device identified as being present in the portion of the building. Thus, the estimated total heat dissipated present in the portion of the building may include heat dissipated associated with the electronic devices identified as being present in the portion of the building as well as persons or other users associated with the electronic devices identified as being present in the portion of the building.

Controlling S408 an indoor climate in a portion of the building based on the estimated total heat dissipated present in the portion of the building. Controlling S408 an indoor climate in a portion of a building may include controlling heating in the portion of the building. Controlling S408 an indoor climate in a portion of a building may include controlling cooling in the portion of the building. Controlling S408 an indoor climate in a portion of a building may include controlling ventilation of the portion of the building.

The method 400 for controlling indoor climate in a portion of a building may be performed separately for each of a plurality of portions of the building.

The person skilled in the art realizes that the present invention by no means is limited to the preferred embodiments described above. On the contrary, many modifications and variations are possible within the scope of the appended claims.

For example, information regarding the heat dissipation of a particular electronic device may be transmitted from the particular electronic device itself. For example, wireless access point 202 may relay such information to server 106.

Further, the indoor climate control assembly 104 may include a humidity control device configured to control humidity in a portion of the building. The indoor climate control signal may then comprise information on how to control the humidity in the part of the building. The server may be configured to generate humidity information in the indoor climate control signal based on an estimated total heat dissipation in a portion of the building.

In addition, variations to the disclosed embodiments can be understood and effected by those skilled in the art in practicing the claimed invention, from a study of the drawings, the disclosure, and the appended claims.