Patents by Inventor John S. Grace

John S. Grace has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Publication number: 20230235906
    Abstract: Methods, controllers, and the like are disclosed that can include determining an occurrence of an event (where the occurrence of the event is determined by a controller of a heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system, and the HVAC system controls a temperature of air in an environment by controlling a setpoint temperature of conditioned air provided by the HVAC system to the environment). Such methods, controllers, and the like can further include, in response to a determination that the event has occurred, altering the temperature of the air in the environment by executing a sleep profile, where the sleep profile is executed by the controller and execution of the sleep profile adjusts the setpoint temperature as a function of time over a time period, such that the temperature of the air in the environment leads an occupant in the environment into a sleep state or a wakeful state.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 5, 2023
    Publication date: July 27, 2023
    Inventors: Christopher Blake Smith, John S. Grace
  • Patent number: 11668480
    Abstract: Improvements to an HVAC thermostat include a sleep-enhancing feature which regulates the target temperature of the HVAC system according to a temperature profile which complements the natural changes in body temperature of a person during sleep. The timing of the temperature profile is advanced to cause room temperature to decrease before the natural decrease in body temperature is expected to occur, thereby helping lead a person into sleep without the use of pharmaceuticals or other artificial sleeping aids. The temperature profile causes room temperature to increase towards the end of the sleep period, thus avoiding disruptions of sleep when body temperature is lowest or during REM stages of sleep when the human body's ability to thermo-regulate is diminished. The rate of change of the target environment temperature is controlled to further enhance the quality and duration of sleep.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 8, 2017
    Date of Patent: June 6, 2023
    Assignee: Trane International Inc.
    Inventors: Christopher Blake Smith, John S. Grace
  • Publication number: 20180073760
    Abstract: Improvements to an HVAC thermostat include a sleep-enhancing feature which regulates the target temperature of the HVAC system according to a temperature profile which complements the natural changes in body temperature of a person during sleep. The timing of the temperature profile is advanced to cause room temperature to decrease before the natural decrease in body temperature is expected to occur, thereby helping lead a person into sleep without the use of pharmaceuticals or other artificial sleeping aids. The temperature profile causes room temperature to increase towards the end of the sleep period, thus avoiding disruptions of sleep when body temperature is lowest or during REM stages of sleep when the human body's ability to thermo-regulate is diminished. The rate of change of the target environment temperature is controlled to further enhance the quality and duration of sleep.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 8, 2017
    Publication date: March 15, 2018
    Applicant: Trane International Inc.
    Inventors: Christopher Blake Smith, John S. Grace