Patents Assigned to TPI Corporation
  • Patent number: 9261283
    Abstract: A system and method of heating or cooling a room of a building provides supplemental warmer or cooler air to the room with an inline duct supplemental heating and cooling device mounted along an air duct that supplies the room with air from a main furnace and/or cooling unit associated with the building. A thermostat is used to set a desired temperature for the room, and a controller of the supplemental heating and cooling device is in communication with the thermostat, and activates an electric heater and/or fan as appropriate to warm or cool the room as needed. When the device is used to cool the room, the fan may be operated to draw cooled air through the duct from the main cooling unit and/or from other areas in the building that are linked via ductwork.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 15, 2014
    Date of Patent: February 16, 2016
    Assignee: TPI Corporation
    Inventor: Eric P. Mulder
  • Patent number: 8837922
    Abstract: A method of heating or cooling a room of a building includes providing supplemental warmer or cooler air to the room with an inline duct supplemental heating and cooling device mounted along an air duct that supplies the room with air from a main furnace and/or cooling unit associated with the building. A thermostat is used to set a desired temperature for the room, and a controller of the supplemental heating and cooling device is in communication with the thermostat, and activates an electric heater and/or fan as appropriate to warm or cool the room as needed. When the device is used to cool the room, the fan may be operated to draw cooled air through the duct from the main cooling unit and/or from other areas in the building that are linked via ductwork.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 21, 2013
    Date of Patent: September 16, 2014
    Assignee: TPI Corporation
    Inventor: Eric P. Mulder
  • Patent number: 8787738
    Abstract: An inline duct supplemental heating and cooling device is mounted along an air duct that supplies a room of a building with supplemental warmer or cooler air to the room. The air duct also supplies the room with air from a main furnace and/or cooling unit associated with the building. A thermostat is used to set a desired temperature for the room, and a controller of the supplemental heating and cooling device is in communication with the thermostat, and activates an electric heater and/or fan as appropriate to warm or cool the room as needed. When the device is used to cool the room, the fan may be operated to draw cooled air through the duct from the main cooling unit and/or from other areas in the building that are linked via ductwork.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 21, 2013
    Date of Patent: July 22, 2014
    Assignee: TPI Corporation
    Inventor: Eric P. Mulder
  • Publication number: 20140041847
    Abstract: An inline duct supplemental heating and cooling device is mounted along an air duct that supplies a room of a building with supplemental warmer or cooler air to the room. The air duct also supplies the room with air from a main furnace and/or cooling unit associated with the building. A thermostat is used to set a desired temperature for the room, and a controller of the supplemental heating and cooling device is in communication with the thermostat, and activates an electric heater and/or fan as appropriate to warm or cool the room as needed. When the device is used to cool the room, the fan may be operated to draw cooled air through the duct from the main cooling unit and/or from other areas in the building that are linked via ductwork.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 21, 2013
    Publication date: February 13, 2014
    Applicant: TPI Corporation
    Inventor: Eric P. Mulder
  • Publication number: 20140041849
    Abstract: A method of heating or cooling a room of a building includes providing supplemental warmer or cooler air to the room with an inline duct supplemental heating and cooling device mounted along an air duct that supplies the room with air from a main furnace and/or cooling unit associated with the building. A thermostat is used to set a desired temperature for the room, and a controller of the supplemental heating and cooling device is in communication with the thermostat, and activates an electric heater and/or fan as appropriate to warm or cool the room as needed. When the device is used to cool the room, the fan may be operated to draw cooled air through the duct from the main cooling unit and/or from other areas in the building that are linked via ductwork.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 21, 2013
    Publication date: February 13, 2014
    Applicant: TPI Corporation
    Inventor: Eric P. Mulder
  • Patent number: 8625976
    Abstract: A method of heating or cooling a room of a building includes providing supplemental warmer or cooler air to the room with an inline duct supplemental heating and cooling device mounted along an air duct that supplies the room with air from a main furnace or cooling unit associated with the building. A thermostat is used to set a desired temperature for the room, and a controller of the supplemental heating and cooling device is in communication with the thermostat, and activates an electric heater and/or fan as appropriate to warm or cool the room as needed. When the device is used to cool the room, the fan may be operated to draw cooled air through the duct from the main cooling unit and/or from other areas in the building that are linked via ductwork.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 8, 2012
    Date of Patent: January 7, 2014
    Assignee: TPI Corporation
    Inventor: Eric Peter Mulder
  • Publication number: 20130032308
    Abstract: A method of heating or cooling a room of a building includes providing supplemental warmer or cooler air to the room with an inline duct supplemental heating and cooling device mounted along an air duct that supplies the room with air from a main furnace or cooling unit associated with the building. A thermostat is used to set a desired temperature for the room, and a controller of the supplemental heating and cooling device is in communication with the thermostat, and activates an electric heater and/or fan as appropriate to warm or cool the room as needed. When the device is used to cool the room, the fan may be operated to draw cooled air through the duct from the main cooling unit and/or from other areas in the building that are linked via ductwork.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 8, 2012
    Publication date: February 7, 2013
    Applicant: TPI CORPORATION
    Inventor: TPI CORPORATION
  • Patent number: 8285127
    Abstract: An inline duct supplemental heating and cooling device provides heated and/or cooled air to a room in a building to supplement the heating provided by the existing furnace or the cooling provided by the existing cooling unit in the building. The device includes an electric heater and fan that are activated and deactivated individually by a controller, which receives room temperature data from a thermostat. The device may include one or more separate safety devices to prevent overheating of heater air or of the device itself. Optionally, a vibration-insulating sleeve may be used to couple the device to an existing ventilation duct of the building.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 29, 2008
    Date of Patent: October 9, 2012
    Assignee: TPI Corporation
    Inventor: Eric P Mulder
  • Publication number: 20120193437
    Abstract: A wireless thermostat adapter system (10) includes a thermostat interface (11) and an HVAC interface (12). A two-way wireless communication is effected between the thermostat interface and the HVAC interface through a conventional RF signal. The thermostat interface also includes an electrical circuit (26) with an antenna (27), a set of six flexible thermostat coupling wires (28) which are coupled to the thermostat, and a short range RF transceiver (29). The HVAC interface includes an electrical circuit 38 which is adapted to be coupled to a HVAC systems (14). The HVAC interface circuit includes an antenna (39) and a set of six HVAC wire terminals (40) which coupled the HVAC interface with the HVAC. The HVAC interface also includes a short range RF transceiver (41) coupled to the antenna (39).
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 31, 2011
    Publication date: August 2, 2012
    Applicant: TPI CORPORATION
    Inventors: Robert E. Henry, JR., Daniel Libby, Terry K. Sams
  • Patent number: 5315281
    Abstract: A housing (10), (54) defines a well which holds a diaphragm assembly (12). The diaphragm assembly has a stud portion (14) that extends through an aperture in the housing and is biased into the housing by a spring (16). The stud portion defines a channel (18) which is received in a slot between arms of a calibration plate (20). Movement of the calibration plate transverse to the axis of the stud portion engages a cam surface (24) to position the diaphragm, more particularly a dielectric button (34) which engages a switch control member (50). As a fluid in a bulb (32) expands, it causes the diaphragm to expand, moving the control member (50) and one end of control spring portion (48) causing contacts (46, 52) to open. When the temperature of the bulb reaches the temperature set by the calibration plate, the control spring portion flexes opening the contacts. To reset the switch and close the contacts, a reset member (92) is depressed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 21, 1993
    Date of Patent: May 24, 1994
    Assignee: TPI Corporation
    Inventor: Mason B. Mount