Electric Fireplace with Integrated Air Conditioner

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 18/902,789 entitled “ELECTRIC FIREPLACE WITH INTEGRATED AIR CONDITIONER” and filed on Jan. 3, 2023 for Benjamin Larry Becksted, et al, which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63/296,468 entitled “HVAC (Heating Ventilation Air Conditioning) AC Heat Pump Electric Fireplace” and filed on Jan. 4, 2022 for Benjamin Larry Beckstead, et al., which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety for all purposes.

This invention relates to electric fireplaces and more particularly relates to electric fireplaces with air conditioning.

Electric fireplaces can be convenient, easy to install, and aesthetically pleasing. However, in areas where air conditioning is also desirable, air-conditioning units may not be as aesthetically pleasing, typically comprising large plastic boxes installed in a window or on a wall.

Apparatuses for an electric fireplace with an integrated air conditioner are presented. In one embodiment, an electronic display is configured to display one or more flame visualizations. A heat source, in some embodiments, is coupled to an electronic display and configured to heat a surrounding environment. A cooling source, in a further embodiment, is coupled to an electronic display and configured to cool a surrounding environment. An electronic display, a heat source, and a cooling source, in certain embodiments, share a single power source.

Systems for an electric fireplace with an integrated air conditioner are presented. An electric fireplace, in one embodiment, includes an electronic display configured to display one or more flame visualizations, a heat source coupled to the electronic display and configured to heat a surrounding environment, and a cooling source coupled to the electronic display and configured to cool the surrounding environment. An electronic display, a heat source, and a cooling source, in some embodiments, share a single electric power source. One or more head units, in certain embodiments, are spatially offset from an electric fireplace. One or more head units, in one embodiment, comprise an additional heat source configured to heat a surrounding environment and an additional cooling source configured to cool the surrounding environment.

Computer program products are disclosed comprising computer program code stored on a non-transitory computer readable storage medium. Computer program code, in certain embodiments, is executable by a processor to perform operations. An operation, in one embodiment, includes displaying one or more flame visualizations on an electronic display. An operation, in a further embodiment, includes selectively heating a surrounding environment using a heat source coupled to an electronic display. An operation, in some embodiments, includes selectively cooling a surrounding environment using a cooling source coupled to an electronic display. An electronic display, a heat source, and a cooling source, in one embodiment, share a single power source.

Aspects of the present invention are described herein with reference to system diagrams, flowchart illustrations, and/or block diagrams of methods, apparatuses, systems, and computer program products according to embodiments of the invention. It will be understood that blocks of the flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in the flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, can be implemented by computer readable program instructions.

depicts one embodiment of a systemfor an electric fireplacewith an integrated air conditioner. The system, in the depicted embodiment, includes an electric fireplace, a head unit, one or more controllers, a buildingwith a cabinet, a data network, a computing device, and an outdoor unit.

In general, the electric fireplaceand/or the separate head unitof the systemmay comprise both a heat source and a cooling source (e.g., a heat pump configured to alternatively heat and/or cool a surrounding environment in different modes, or the like). The electric fireplace, in the depicted embodiment, comprises an electronic display, configured to display one or more flame visualizationsand/or other visualizations. In this manner, in certain embodiments, the systemmay provide both heating and cooling from the same electric fireplace, behind an attractive, aesthetically pleasing displaywith a dynamic visualization, instead of requiring a separate plastic box of an air conditioning unit on a wall or in a window.

The electric fireplace, in the depicted embodiment, includes an electronic displaywith a flame visualization, a return vent, a supply vent, and a controller. In one embodiment, the electronic displaycomprises an illuminated display such that the flame visualizationand/or one or more other visualizations are illuminated. For example, in various embodiments, the electronic displaymay comprise one or more light bulbs, a light-emitting diode (LED) screen, a liquid-crystal display (LCD) screen, a plasma screen, an organic LED (OLED) screen, an electroluminescent display screen, a quantum-dot LED screen, an electronic ink screen, or the like.

In some embodiments, the electronic displayis configured to display a dynamic and/or animated flame visualization(e.g., with moving and/or animated flames, or the like). In other embodiments, electronic displayand/or the flame visualizationmay be substantially static (e.g., a drawing, painting, stamp, photo, print, cutout, streamers, foil or mirror and/or another reflective material, an artificial log, a log set, stone and/or rocks, crystals, glass, a three dimensional display, a flat two dimensional display, or the like) and one or more electronic lights, fans/blowers, or the like may actuate and/or give an appearance of movement to the substantially static flame visualization(e.g., lights blinking and/or moving, a fan/blower moving illuminated streamers, or the like).

In certain embodiments, instead of or in addition to a flame visualization, the electronic displaymay display one or more other visualizations (e.g., a wind visualization, an ocean visualization, an outdoor landscape visualization, a sunrise or sunset visualization, a photo slideshow visualization, or the like). The electronic display, in a further embodiment, may comprise a television and/or display monitor, or the like, with one or more video and/or audio inputs (e.g., HDMI, DVI, DisplayPort, VGA, RCA, coaxial, or the like), a broadcast television antenna, or the like.

As described in greater detail below, in some embodiments, the controllermay dynamically customize and/or adjust the flame visualizationbased on a mode of the electric fireplace(e.g., a heating mode, a cooling mode, or the like). For example, the electronic displaymay display a flame visualizationcomprising a warm color hue (e.g., one or more of a yellow, orange, and/or red hue, or the like) during a heating mode, may display a flame visualizationcomprising a cool color hue (e.g., one or more of a blue, green, and/or magenta hue, or the like) during a cooling mode, or the like. In certain embodiments, the controllermay also play one or more sounds associated with a mode of the electric fireplaceusing one or more speakers associated with the electronic display(e.g., sounds of a crackling fire during a heating mode, sounds of wind and/or a storm in a cooling mode, or the like).

In certain embodiments, the electric fireplaceincludes a return ventand a supply vent. In the depicted embodiment, the return ventand the supply ventare both disposed in a surface of the electronic display(e.g., a front surface through which the electronic displayis visible, through which the flame visualization is visible, or the like such as a glass surface, a plastic or other polymer surface, or the like). The electric fireplacemay comprise one or more fans, blowers, or the like to draw air in through one or more supply ventsand to force the air (e.g., after the electric fireplacehas heated or cooled the air) out through one or more return vents

By disposing one or more ventsin a front surface of the electric fireplaceand/or the electronic display, in some embodiments, the electric fireplacemay be installed flush and/or substantially flush with a wall of the building, or the like. In other embodiments, one or more ventsmay be disposed in one or more side surfaces (e.g., a top surface, a bottom surface, a left surface, a right surface, or the like) of the electric fireplace, perpendicular to the front surface and/or the electronic display, and the electric fireplacemay be installed extending at least partially out from a wall of the building(e.g., instead of being flush) to accommodate the one or more vents.

The electric fireplaceand/or the head unit, in certain embodiments, include both a heat source and a cooling source. Both a heat source and a cooling source, in one embodiment, may be mechanically coupled to (e.g., within a single housing, mounted behind, or the like) the electronic displayof the electric fireplace

In one embodiment, the heat source and the cooling source comprise a single heat pump (e.g., a split system air conditioner, a direct-current (DC) inverter heat pump, or the like) configured to both heat the surrounding environment in a heating mode and to cool the surrounding environment in a cooling mode. For example, the electric fireplaceand/or the head unitmay comprise an indoor unit (e.g., with an evaporator coil, an expansion valve, a fan, or the like) in fluid communication (e.g., through one or more refrigerant lines) with an outdoor unit(e.g., with a compressor, condenser coil, fan, or the like).

In some embodiments, a reversing valve is disposed between the electric fireplaceand/or the head unitand the outdoor unit, to reverse the flow of refrigerant between them to switch between a heating mode and a cooling mode (e.g., in response to a signal from a controller, or the like). The heat source and/or the cooling source, in various embodiments, may include a DC inverter heat pump, an air-source heat pump, a ground-source and/or geothermal heat pump, an absorption heat pump, a closed-loop heat pump, an open-loop heat pump, a reverse cycle chiller, a cold climate heat pump, or the like.

In one embodiment, the electronic display, the heat source, and the cooling source share a single power source, such as an electric power source or the like (e.g., without requiring a combustible fuel source to heat the surrounding environment, or the like). In some embodiments, an electric fireplaceand/or a head unitmay also comprise a secondary heat source (e.g., supplemental heating, electric heating coils, a backup burner, or the like) to temporarily heat and/or defrost coils in response to the reversing valve switching modes, or the like.

In some embodiments, a single outdoor unitmay be in communication with (e.g., through one or more refrigerant lines) and/or otherwise connect to multiple electric fireplacesand/or head units. In another embodiment, a systemmay include multiple outdoor unitsfor multiple electric fireplacesand/or head units

In certain embodiments, one or more controllersmay be configured to govern and/or control one or more operations of the system(e.g., of an electric fireplace, a head unit, a computing device, or the like). For example, in some embodiments, a controllermay comprise logic hardware such as one or more of a processor (e.g., a CPU, a microcontroller, firmware, microcode, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic, or the like), a volatile memory, non-volatile computer readable storage medium, a network interface, a printed circuit board, or the like. A controller, in further embodiments, may include computer program code stored on a non-transitory computer readable storage medium, executable by a processor to perform one or more of the operations described herein with regard to the electric fireplaceand/or the head unit, or the like.

A controller, in one embodiment, may be in communication with one or more of a heat source, a cooling source, an electronic display, or the like (e.g., and may send one or more control signals, commands, or the like). In some embodiments, a controllermay be configured to display one or more flame visualizationson the electronic display(e.g., a first flame visualizationduring a heating mode, a second flame visualization during a cooling mode, a warm color hue such as yellow/orange/red during a heating mode, a cool color hue such as blue/green/magenta during a cooling mode, or the like).

A controller, in certain embodiments, may determine a mode for an electric fireplaceand/or a head unit(e.g., a heating mode, a cooling mode, a temperature setting, or the like) based on user input. For example, a controllermay receive user input from a thermostat disposed on a wall of the building, from a remote control device (e.g., an infrared remote control, a radio frequency remote control, a Bluetooth® remote control, or the like), from a user interface of a computing deviceover a data network(e.g., a mobile computing device such as a smartphone, a smart watch, a tablet, a laptop, or the like; a desktop computer; a gaming device; a set-top box; and/or another computing devicecomprising a processor and a memory). In some embodiments, a controllermay actuate a reversing valve of a heat pump to turn on a heat source in a heating mode in response to a temperature being at or below a heating threshold, may actuate a reversing valve of a heat pump to turn on a cooling source in a cooling mode in response to a temperature being at or above a cooling threshold, or the like.

The system, in one embodiment, includes multiple electric fireplacesand/or head units(e.g., spatially offset in different rooms and/or other locations of the building, or the like), each with an additional heat source and/or cooling source (e.g., a heat pump, or the like). In the depicted embodiment, multiple electric fireplacesand/or head unitsare connected to the same outdoor unit. Multiple controllers, in some embodiments, may communicate and/or coordinate to share one or more settings, statuses, thermometer and/or other sensor readings, or the like.

In the depicted embodiment, a head unitis disposed in a cabinet(e.g., above a refrigerator). In other embodiments, a head unitmay be installed and/or disposed in a ceiling, in a kitchen island, in a closet, in a cupboard, on a wall, in a window, or the like. Multiple electric fireplacesand/or head unitsmay be strategically disposed in different locations around the buildingto provide a complete distributed heating and/or cooling solution, either as a retrofit solution or as the buildingis being newly constructed.

The data network, in one embodiment, includes a digital communication network that transmits digital communications. The data networkmay include a wireless network, such as a wireless cellular network, a local wireless network, such as a Wi-Fi network, a Bluetooth® network, a near-field communication (NFC) network, an ad hoc network, or the like. The data networkmay include a wide area network (WAN), a local area network (LAN), an optical fiber network, the internet, or other digital communication network. The data networkmay include a combination of two or more networks. The data networkmay include one or more servers, routers, switches, and/or other networking equipment.

One or more electric fireplaces, head units, and/or computing devicesmay be in communication over a data network, either directly or through a backend server computing device, or the like. A controllerexecuting on a computing device(e.g., computer executable program code, an installable application, a mobile application, or the like), in some embodiments, may provide a user interface for a user to perform one or more actions for one or more electric fireplacesand/or head units. For example, a controllermay present a graphical user interface on a display screen of a computing deviceenabling a user to set a desired temperature for a surrounding environment (e.g., a room, a floor, or other location) of the building, to set a mode (e.g., a heating mode, a cooling mode, a combined heating and cooling mode, or the like), to select a visualization, to set a timer for heating and/or cooling, or the like.

depicts one embodiment of a systemfor an electric fireplacewith integrated air-conditioning. The electric fireplaceof, in some embodiments, may be substantially similar to the electric fireplacedescribed above with regard to. In the depicted embodiment, the electric fireplaceincludes an electronic displaywith a flame visualizationand one or more vents-, a heat source, a cooling source, a duct, an outside unit interface, and a power source interface.

In one embodiment, as described above with regard to, a heat sourceand a cooling sourcemay be combined/integrated as a single heat pump. In other embodiments, a heat sourcemay comprise an electric heating coil, a forced air furnace (e.g., with a combustible fuel source), or the like and a cooling sourcemay comprise a central air conditioner (e.g., a ducted system), a hybrid and/or dual fuel air conditioner, or the like.

In one embodiment, a ductis disposed to direct air between the supply vent, past the heat sourceand/or the cooling source, and out the return vent, or the like. The ductmay comprise a channel, a guide, a cavity, and/or another opening providing fluid communication between one or more vents-and the heat sourceand/or the cooling source. The ductmay comprise a durable material, such as a metal, a plastic or other polymer, a ceramic, a glass, a composite material, or the like. In some embodiments, the ductmay comprise a plastic or other polymer material rather than a metal, as the heat sourcemay not be configured to reach as high a temperature as a furnace and/or burner that uses a combustible fuel source, or the like.

In one embodiment, an outside unit interfacemay comprise one or more tubes and/or pipes in communication with an outside unit(e.g., in fluid communication to transport refrigerant, or the like). An outside unit interfacemay be in communication with a compressor, an expansion device, a reversing valve, or the like (e.g., either as part of an electric fireplace, a head unit, an outside unit, or the like). In one embodiment, a power source interfacemay comprise an electrical interface such as an electrical plug, an electrical cord, a hard-wired electrical interface, or the like. In other embodiments, a power source interfacemay comprise a gas line or other interface to a combustible fuel source (e.g., a non-electric fuel source, as a supplement and/or backup to an electric power source, in place of an electric power source, or the like).

depicts one embodimentof a cutaway front view of an electric fireplacewith integrated air-conditioning anddepicts one embodimentof a cutaway side view of an electric fireplace. The electric fireplaceofand/or of, in some embodiments, may be substantially similar to one or more of the electric fireplaceofand/or the electric fireplaceof. The depicted embodimentofcomprises a cutaway front view with the electronic displayremoved and the depicted embodimentofcomprises a cutaway side view.

The electric fireplaceincludes a combined heat sourceand cooling sourcethat comprises a heat pump with a fan, blower, or other air mover (e.g., that sucks air through the supply vent, into the duct, and out the return vent) and an evaporator coil or other heat exchanger that heats the air in a heating mode and cools the air in a cooling mode (e.g., depending on a state of a reversing valve, a compressor, or the like as commanded by the controller).

depicts one embodiment of a methodfor an electric fireplacewith integrated air-conditioning. The methodbegins and a controllerdisplaysone or more flame visualizationson an electronic display.

A controllerdetermineswhether or not to initiate a heating mode (e.g., based on user input, a temperature satisfying a heating threshold, a setting, a reading from a thermometer or other temperature sensor, or the like). If the controllerdeterminesto initiate a heating mode, the controllerselectively heatsa surrounding area using a heat sourcecoupled to the electronic display.

A controllerdetermineswhether or not to initiate a cooling mode (e.g., based on user input, a temperature satisfying a cooling threshold, a setting, a reading from a thermometer or other temperature sensor, or the like). If the controllerdeterminesto initiate a cooling mode, the controllerselectively coolsa surrounding area using a cooling sourcecoupled to the electronic display. The methodcontinues, with a controllercontinuing to determine,when to initiate heating and/or cooling modes.

Reference throughout this specification to “one embodiment,” “an embodiment,” or similar language means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment. Thus, appearances of the phrases “in one embodiment,” “in an embodiment,” and similar language throughout this specification may, but do not necessarily, all refer to the same embodiment, but mean “one or more but not all embodiments” unless expressly specified otherwise. The terms “including,” “comprising,” “having,” and variations thereof mean “including but not limited to” unless expressly specified otherwise. An enumerated listing of items does not imply that any or all of the items are mutually exclusive and/or mutually inclusive, unless expressly specified otherwise. The terms “a,” “an,” and “the” also refer to “one or more” unless expressly specified otherwise.

Furthermore, the described features, advantages, and characteristics of the embodiments may be combined in any suitable manner. One skilled in the relevant art will recognize that the embodiments may be practiced without one or more of the specific features or advantages of a particular embodiment. In other instances, additional features and advantages may be recognized in certain embodiments that may not be present in all embodiments. These features and advantages of the embodiments will become more fully apparent from the following description and appended claims or may be learned by the practice of embodiments as set forth hereinafter.

As will be appreciated by one skilled in the art, aspects of the present invention may be embodied as a system, method, and/or computer program product. Accordingly, aspects of the present invention may take the form of an entirely hardware embodiment, an entirely software embodiment (including firmware, resident software, micro-code, etc.) or an embodiment combining software and hardware aspects that may all generally be referred to herein as a “circuit,” “module,” or “system.” Furthermore, aspects of the present invention may take the form of a computer program product embodied in one or more computer readable medium(s) having program code embodied thereon.

Many of the functional units described in this specification have been labeled as modules to emphasize their implementation independence more particularly. For example, a module may be implemented as a hardware circuit comprising custom very large scale integrated (“VLSI”) circuits or gate arrays, off-the-shelf semiconductor circuits such as logic chips, transistors, or other discrete components. A module may also be implemented in programmable hardware devices such as an FPGA, programmable array logic, programmable logic devices or the like.

Modules may also be implemented in software for execution by various types of processors. An identified module of program code may, for instance, comprise one or more physical or logical blocks of computer instructions which may, for instance, be organized as an object, procedure, or function. Nevertheless, the executables of an identified module need not be physically located together but may comprise disparate instructions stored in different locations which, when joined logically together, comprise the module and achieve the stated purpose for the module.

Indeed, a module of program code may be a single instruction, or many instructions, and may even be distributed over several different code segments, among different programs, and across several memory devices. Similarly, operational data may be identified and illustrated herein within modules and may be embodied in any suitable form and organized within any suitable type of data structure. The operational data may be collected as a single data set or may be distributed over different locations including over different storage devices, and may exist, at least partially, merely as electronic signals on a system or network. Where a module or portions of a module are implemented in software, the program code may be stored and/or propagated on in one or more computer readable medium(s).

The computer program product may include a computer readable storage medium (or media) having computer readable program instructions thereon for causing a processor to carry out aspects of the present invention.

The computer readable storage medium can be a tangible device that can retain and store instructions for use by an instruction execution device. The computer readable storage medium may be, for example, but is not limited to, an electronic storage device, a magnetic storage device, an optical storage device, an electromagnetic storage device, a semiconductor storage device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. A non-exhaustive list of more specific examples of the computer readable storage medium includes the following: a server, cloud storage (which may include one or more services in the same or separate locations), a hard disk, a solid state drive (“SSD”), an SD card, a random access memory (“RAM”), a read-only memory (“ROM”), an erasable programmable read-only memory (“EPROM” or Flash memory), a static random access memory (“SRAM”), a Blu-ray disk, a memory stick, and any suitable combination of the foregoing. A computer readable storage medium, as used herein, is not to be construed as being transitory signals per se, such as radio waves or other freely propagating electromagnetic waves, electromagnetic waves propagating through a waveguide or other transmission media (e.g., light pulses passing through a fiber-optic cable), or electrical signals transmitted through a wire.

Computer readable program instructions described herein can be downloaded to respective computing/processing devices from a computer readable storage medium or to an external computer or external storage device via a network, for example, the Internet, a local area network, a wide area network, a personal area network, a wireless mesh network, and/or a wireless network. The network may comprise copper transmission cables, optical transmission fibers, wireless transmission, routers, firewalls, switches, gateway computers and/or edge servers. A network adapter card or network interface in each computing/processing device receives computer readable program instructions from the network and forwards the computer readable program instructions for storage in a computer readable storage medium within the respective computing/processing device.

Computer readable program instructions for carrying out operations of the present invention may be assembler instructions, instruction-set-architecture (“ISA”) instructions, machine instructions, machine dependent instructions, microcode, firmware instructions, state-setting data, or either source code or object code written in any combination of one or more programming languages, including an object oriented programming language such as Smalltalk, C++ or the like, and conventional procedural programming languages, such as the C programming language or similar programming languages.

The computer readable program instructions may execute entirely on the user's computer, partly on the user's computer, as a stand-alone software package, partly on the user's computer and partly on a remote computer or service or entirely on the remote computer or server or set of servers. In the latter scenario, the remote computer may be connected to the user's computer through any type of network, including the network types previously listed. Alternatively, the connection may be made to an external computer (for example, through the Internet using an Internet Service Provider). In some embodiments, electronic circuitry including, for example, programmable logic circuitry, FPGA, or programmable logic arrays (“PLA”) may execute the computer readable program instructions by utilizing state information of the computer readable program instructions to personalize the electronic circuitry to perform aspects of the present invention.

These computer readable program instructions may be provided to a processor of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, such that the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing apparatus, create means for implementing the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks. These computer readable program instructions may also be stored in a computer readable storage medium that can direct a computer, a programmable data processing apparatus, and/or other devices to function in a particular manner, such that the computer readable storage medium having instructions stored therein comprises an article of manufacture including instructions which implement aspects of the function/act specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks.

The computer readable program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer, other programmable data processing apparatus, or other device to cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer, other programmable apparatus or other device to produce a computer implemented process, such that the instructions which execute on the computer, other programmable apparatus, or other device implement the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks.

The schematic flowchart diagrams and/or schematic block diagrams in the Figures illustrate the architecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementations of apparatuses, systems, methods, and computer program products according to various embodiments of the present invention. In this regard, each block in the schematic flowchart diagrams and/or schematic block diagrams may represent a module, segment, or portion of code, which comprises one or more executable instructions of the program code for implementing the specified logical functions.