Method and system for estimating outside air temperature

Abstract

Embodiments of the disclosure describe a method and a system for estimating OAT for a first device. The method includes receiving, from the first device, a request to obtain an estimate of OAT at a first location of the first device. The method includes identifying a HVAC device(s) equipped with an OAT sensor disposed within a predefined threshold distance from the first device. The method includes obtaining one or more current temperature values associated with the HVAC device(s), wherein each of the one or more current temperature values, associated with a respective HVAC device(s) of the HVAC device(s), is measured at a respective second location of the corresponding HVAC device(s). The method includes estimating the OAT for the first device based on the one or more current temperature values measured at the respective second location of each of the HVAC device(s).

1 . A method of estimating outside air temperature for a first device, the method comprising:
 receiving, from the first device, a request to obtain an estimate of outside air temperature at a first location of the first device;   identifying at least one heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) device disposed within a predefined threshold distance from the first device, wherein each of the at least one HVAC device is equipped with an outside air temperature sensor;   obtaining one or more current temperature values associated with the at least one HVAC device, wherein each of the one or more current temperature values, associated with a respective HVAC device of the at least one HVAC device, is measured at a respective second location of the corresponding HVAC device; and   estimating the outside air temperature for the first device based on the one or more current temperature values measured at the respective second location of each of the at least one HVAC device.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the first device is an HVAC device without an outside air temperature sensor. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the outside air temperature sensor is a thermistor. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 transmitting the estimated outside air temperature to the first device, wherein the estimated outside air temperature corresponds to a real-time temperature of the first location associated with the first device.   
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein obtaining the current temperature comprises:
 transmitting, in real-time, a request to one or more of the at least one HVAC device to obtain a corresponding current temperature value of the one or more current temperature values; and   receiving the corresponding current temperature value from the one or more HVAC devices based on a real-time measurement of temperature using a respective outside air temperature sensor associated with each of the one or more HVAC devices.   
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein obtaining the one or more current temperature values comprises:
 obtaining the one or more current temperature values of the at least one HVAC device stored at a database, wherein the one or more current temperature values are received within a predefined period of time measured from a time of receiving the request.   
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 receiving, over a predefined period of time, the one or more current temperature values measured at respective second locations of each of the at least one HVAC device, wherein the at least one HVAC device comprises a first HVAC device and a second HVAC device;   correlating the one or more current temperature values measured at respective second locations of the first HVAC device and the second HVAC device with respect to a predefined threshold value; and   determining that the outside air temperature sensor associated with one of the first HVAC device and the second HVAC device is malfunctioning based on the output of the correlating step.   
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 7 , further comprising:
 discarding the current temperature measured by the outside air temperature sensor of the HVAC device that is determined to be malfunctioning,   wherein the estimating step comprises estimating the outside air temperature for the first device based on the current temperature value measured at the second location of the HVAC device other than the HVAC device that is determined to be malfunctioning.   
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein:
 identifying the at least one HVAC device comprises identifying two or more HVAC devices within the predefined distance of the first device;   obtaining the one or more current temperature values comprises obtaining two or more current temperature values associated with each identified HVAC device; and   the method further comprises:
 determining an average of the obtained two or more current temperature values; and 
 estimating the outside air temperature for the first device based on the determined average. 
   
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein:
 identifying the at least one HVAC device comprises identifying two or more HVAC devices within the predefined distance of the first device;   obtaining the one or more current temperature values comprises obtaining two or more current temperature values associated with each identified HVAC device;   the method further comprises:
 determining a weighted average of the obtained two or more current temperature values by applying a weight on the obtained two or more current temperature values associated with each identified HVAC device based on a distance of each identified HVAC device from the first device and calculating an average of the weighted temperature values; and 
 estimating the outside air temperature for the first device based on the calculated weighted average. 
   
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein:
 identifying the at least one HVAC device comprises identifying two or more HVAC devices within the predefined distance of the first device;   obtaining the one or more current temperature values comprises obtaining two or more current temperature values associated with each identified HVAC device;   the method further comprises:   identifying a characteristic of each identified HVAC device and the first device by applying a machine learning (ML) model;   determining a weighted average of the obtained two or more current temperature values by assigning a weight to the obtained two or more current temperature values associated with each identified HVAC device based on the identified characteristic and determining the average of the weighted temperature values; and   estimating the outside air temperature for the first device based on the determined weighted average.   
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 determining whether at least one HVAC device is located within the predefined threshold distance from the first device, wherein each of the at least one HVAC device is equipped with an outside air temperature sensor;   obtaining one or more current temperature values from at least one non-HVAC device in response to determining that no HVAC device is located within the predefined threshold distance from the first device;   estimating the outside air temperature for the first device based on the one or more current temperature values measured at the non-HVAC device.   
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein:
 identifying the at least one HVAC device comprises identifying two or more HVAC devices within the predefined distance of the first device;   obtaining the one or more current temperature values comprises obtaining two or more current temperature values associated with each identified HVAC device;   the method further comprises:
 determining whether a user input is received to prioritize at least one HVAC device from the two or more identified HVAC devices to estimate the outside temperature for the first device; and 
 determining a weighted average of the obtained two or more current temperature values by assigning a weight to the obtained two or more current temperature values associated with each identified HVAC device, wherein a weight assigned to the prioritized HVAC device is higher than another weight assigned to non-prioritized HVAC identified devices; and 
 estimating the outside air temperature for the first device based on the determined weighted average. 
   
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising:
 receiving a user input at the first device to configure a temperature offset at a first location of the first device; 
 obtaining the one or more current temperature values associated with the at least one HVAC device; and 
 estimating the outside air temperature for the first device based on the one or more obtained current temperature values and the temperature offset. 
 
     
     
         15 . A system of estimating outside air temperature for a first device, the system comprising:
 a receiving module configured to receive, from the first device, a request to obtain an estimate of outside air temperature at a first location of the first device;   an HVAC identifier configured to identify at least one heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) device disposed within a predefined threshold distance from the first device, wherein each of the at least one HVAC device is equipped with an outside air temperature sensor;   an obtaining module configured to obtain one or more current temperature values associated with the at least one HVAC device, wherein each of the one or more current temperature values, associated with a respective HVAC device of the at least one HVAC device, is measured at a respective second location of the corresponding HVAC device; and   an estimating module configured to estimate the outside air temperature for the first device based on the one or more current temperature values measured at the respective second location of each of the at least one HVAC device.   
     
     
         16 . The system of  claim 15 , further comprising:
 a transmitting module configured to transmit the estimated outside air temperature to the first device, wherein the estimated outside air temperature corresponds to a real-time temperature of the first location associated with the first device.   
     
     
         17 . The system of  claim 15 , wherein to obtain the current temperature, the obtaining module is further configured to:
 transmit, in real-time, a request to one or more of the at least one HVAC device to obtain a corresponding current temperature value of the one or more current temperature values; and   receive the corresponding current temperature value from the one or more HVAC devices based on a real-time measurement of temperature using a respective outside air temperature sensor associated with each of the one or more HVAC devices.   
     
     
         18 . The system of  claim 15 , wherein to obtain the one or more current temperature values, the obtaining module is further configured to:
 obtain the one or more current temperature values of the at least one HVAC device stored at a database, wherein the one or more current temperature values are received within a predefined period of time measured from a time of receiving the request.   
     
     
         19 . The system of  claim 15 , further comprising a processing module configured to:
 receive, over a predefined period of time, the one or more current temperature values measured at respective second locations of each of the at least one HVAC device, wherein the at least one HVAC device comprises a first HVAC device and a second HVAC device;   correlate the one or more current temperature values measured at respective second locations of the first HVAC device and the second HVAC device with respect to a predefined threshold value;   determine that the outside air temperature sensor associated with one of the first HVAC device and the second HVAC device is malfunctioning based on the output of the correlation; and   discard the current temperature measured by the outside air temperature sensor of the HVAC device that is determined to be malfunctioning,   wherein the estimation module is further configured to estimate the outside air temperature for the first device based on the current temperature value measured at the second location of the HVAC device other than the HVAC device that is determined to be malfunctioning.   
     
     
         20 . A system for estimating outside air temperature for a first device, the system comprising:
 at least one heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) device;   a server configured to:
 receive, from the first device, a request to obtain an estimate of outside air temperature at a first location of the first device; 
 identify the at least one HVAC device within a predefined threshold distance from the first device, wherein each of the at least one HVAC device is equipped with an outside air temperature sensor; 
 obtain a current temperature measured at a second location of each of the at least one HVAC device; and 
 estimate the outside air temperature for the first device based on the current temperature measured at the second location of each of the at least one HVAC device.