Air conditioner control system and method of use

Abstract

An air conditioner unit and method of operation thereof. The air conditioner unit includes a thermostat, a fan motor, a compressor, and a controller. The controller converts direct current to an alternating current to drive the compressor and fan motor based on signals from the thermostat. The fan motor selectively switches between high and low speeds and the compressor selectively switches between a first mode and a second mode based on signals from the thermostat. In the second mode, the controller reduces or prevents drawing of current from the direct current source when the thermostat senses a desired temperature. The controller may include a soft start function that gradually ramps up voltage applied to the compressor for a pre-determined number of seconds until reaching 100% of the alternating current voltage. The compressor may also include a defrost function controlled by indoor and/or outdoor coil temperature sensors.

1 . An air conditioner unit comprising:
 a thermostat;   a compressor driven by an alternating current voltage; and   a controller configured to receive control signals from the thermostat and direct current voltage from a direct current source, wherein the controller has an inverter function configured to:
 convert the direct current voltage to the alternating current voltage, and 
 based on the control signals received from the thermostat, selectively switch the compressor between a first mode in which the alternating current voltage is provided to the compressor and second mode in which the controller prevents or reduces drawing of current from the direct current source when the thermostat senses a desired temperature. 
   
     
     
         2 . The air conditioner unit of  claim 1 , wherein in the second mode the controller reduces the drawing of current from the direct current source to a value that is less than the drawing of current from the direct current source when the controller is operating the compressor in the first mode. 
     
     
         3 . The air conditioner unit of  claim 1 , further comprising a fan motor driven by the alternating current voltage. 
     
     
         4 . The air conditioner unit of  claim 3 , wherein the fan motor is configured to switch between two different speeds based on the control signals received by the controller from the thermostat. 
     
     
         5 . The air conditioner unit of  claim 3 , wherein the controller includes a soft start function configured to first activate the fan motor to rotate and then activate the compressor to run after a predetermined period of delay. 
     
     
         6 . The air conditioner unit of  claim 5 , wherein the soft start function is further configured to gradually ramp up voltage applied to the compressor for a pre-determined number of seconds until reaching 100% of the alternating current voltage that drives the compressor. 
     
     
         7 . The air conditioner unit of  claim 3 , further comprising at least one of an indoor coil temperature sensor and an outdoor coil temperature sensor, wherein the controller includes a defrost function configured to stop operation of the compressor or reduce a speed of the fan motor when a frosting temperature is reached by at least one of the indoor coil temperature sensor and the outdoor coil temperature sensor. 
     
     
         8 . The air conditioner unit of  claim 7 , wherein the defrost function is further configured to resume operation of the compressor or increase the speed of the fan motor when a defrosting temperature is reached by at least one of the indoor coil temperature sensor and the outdoor coil temperature sensor. 
     
     
         9 . The air conditioner unit of  claim 1 , wherein the direct current voltage is in a range of 9.5 VDC to 58 VDC and the alternating current voltage is in a range of 108 VAC to 132 VAC. 
     
     
         10 . The air conditioner unit of  claim 1 , further comprising a reversing valve driven by the alternating current voltage, wherein the reversing valve is a heat pump reversing valve configured to selectively reverse a flow of refrigerant within the air conditioner unit, switching the air conditioner unit from a cooling mode to a heating mode. 
     
     
         11 . An air conditioner unit comprising:
 a thermostat;   a fan motor driven by an alternating current voltage:   a compressor driven by the alternating current voltage; and   a controller configured to receive control signals from the thermostat and direct current voltage from a direct current source, wherein the controller has an inverter function configured to:
 convert the direct current voltage to the alternating current voltage, 
 based on the control signals received from the thermostat, selectively switch the fan motor to a high speed or a low speed that is less than the high speed, and 
 based on the control signals received from the thermostat, selectively switch the compressor between a first mode in which the alternating current voltage is provided to the compressor and a second mode in which the controller reduces or prevents drawing of current from the direct current source when the thermostat senses a desired temperature. 
   
     
     
         12 . The air conditioner unit of  claim 11 , wherein the controller includes a soft start function configured to first activate the fan motor to begin rotating and then activate the compressor to run after a predetermined period of delay. 
     
     
         13 . The air conditioner unit of  claim 11 , wherein the controller includes a silicon-controlled rectifier (SCR) and a soft start function configured to gradually increase the trigger angle of the SCR to ramp up voltage applied to the compressor for a pre-determined number of seconds until reaching 100% of the alternating current voltage that drives the compressor. 
     
     
         14 . The air conditioner unit of  claim 11 , further comprising at least one of an indoor coil temperature sensor and an outdoor coil temperature sensor, wherein the controller includes a defrost function configured to stop operation of the compressor or reduce a speed of the fan motor when a frosting temperature is reached by at least one of the indoor coil temperature sensor and the outdoor coil temperature sensor. 
     
     
         15 . The air conditioner unit of  claim 14 , wherein the defrost function is further configured to resume operation of the compressor or increase the speed of the fan motor when a defrosting temperature is reached by at least one of the indoor coil temperature sensor and the outdoor coil temperature sensor. 
     
     
         16 . A method of operating an alternating current air conditioner unit with a direct current power source, the method comprising:
 receiving a direct current voltage from a direct current source;   converting the received direct current voltage to an alternating current voltage that selectively drives a compressor of the alternating current air conditioner unit;   using a thermostat associated with the alternating current air conditioner unit to generate control signals;   and   based on the control signals generated by the thermostat, selectively switching the compressor between a first mode in which the converted alternating current voltage is provided to drive the compressor and a second mode in which the drawing of current from the direct current source is prevented or reduced.   
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 16 , further comprising, using a controller of the alternating current air conditioner unit to receive the direct current voltage from the direct current source, using an inverter function of the controller to convert the received direct current voltage to an alternating current, using the controller to receive the control signals generated by the thermostat, using the controller to selectively switch a fan motor of the alternating current air conditioner between a high speed and a low speed based on the control signals generated by the thermostat, and using the controller to selectively switch the compressor between the first mode when the thermostat senses a need for cooling and the second mode when the thermostat senses that a desired temperature has been reached, wherein in the second mode the controller reduces an amount of current drawn from the direct current source to a value that is less than an amount of current drawn from the direct current source when the controller is operating the compressor in the first mode. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 16 , further comprising, via a soft start function of the controller, instructing the fan motor to begin rotating and then activating the compressor to run after a predetermined period of delay and gradually ramping up voltage applied to the compressor for a pre-determined number of seconds until reaching 100% of the alternating current voltage that drives the compressor. 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 16 , further comprising stopping or reducing operation of the compressor or reducing a speed of the fan motor when a frosting temperature is reached by at least one of an indoor coil temperature sensor of the alternating current air conditioner and an outdoor coil temperature sensor of the alternating current air conditioner. 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 19 , further comprising resuming operation of the compressor or increasing the speed of the fan motor when a defrosting temperature is reached by at least one of the indoor coil temperature sensor and the outdoor coil temperature sensor.