Thermostat with a plurality of ranked levels of access control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current thermostats lack a robust access control system that allows multiple users with varying levels of permission to access different sets of functions, potentially leading to improper configuration of HVAC systems by less skilled users.
Innovation Solution
A hierarchical passcode system that distinguishes users by their entered passcodes, providing access to basic, lower tier, and upper tier functions, with higher ranking users able to limit the accessibility of lower ranking users and determine the home screen displayed, ensuring that control signals for the HVAC system are based on the settings made by authorized users.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a single passcode system is used to restrict access to thermostat functions, then system security is improved, but user accessibility and ease of operation deteriorate because multiple users with different skill levels cannot access appropriate functions
Solution Approach 1:
The access control system is segmented into multiple hierarchical levels (e.g., administrator, technician, user levels) with distinct passcodes. Each level grants access to specific subsets of thermostat functions, allowing less skilled users to access basic functions while protecting critical configuration settings from unauthorized modification.
Solution Approach 2:
Different passcodes provide different qualities of access to different parts of the thermostat interface. The administrator passcode provides full access to all functions including critical HVAC configuration, while user-level passcodes provide limited access to basic temperature control functions only.
2Ease of operation
If all thermostat functions are accessible to all users, then ease of operation is improved, but system reliability deteriorates because less skilled users may make detrimental changes to HVAC configuration settings
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary access verification by requiring users to enter appropriate passcodes before accessing specific functions. Critical HVAC configuration settings are protected in advance by restricting access to administrator-level passcodes only, preventing less skilled users from making erroneous changes before they can occur.
Solution Approach 2:
The passcode system acts as an intermediary layer between users and thermostat functions. It mediates access by verifying user credentials and granting or denying access to specific functions based on the user's authorized level, thus protecting system integrity while maintaining usability.
3Reliability
If multiple passcode levels are implemented, then system security and configuration protection are improved, but device complexity increases due to the hierarchical access control structure
Solution Approach 1:
The thermostat system maintains a universal interface design that adapts to different user levels. The same physical or virtual buttons and display elements serve multiple functions depending on the user's passcode level, avoiding the need for separate interfaces for each user type and thereby limiting the increase in complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
A system and method for configuring an HVAC thermostat provides multiple users of varying rank with different levels of permission to access different sets of thermostat functions. The thermostat distinguishes users by the passcodes they enter. In some examples, a cascade hierarchy enables multiple levels of higher ranking users to limit the function accessibility of lower ranking users. In some examples, higher ranking users determine which home screen is presented to users that do not enter a passcode.