Automated condensate drain line cleaning system, method and kit
Contents
1. 12 United States Patent Pearson US008646474B2 US 8 646 474 B2 Feb 11 2014 10 Patent No 45 Date of Patent 54 75 73 21 22 65 62 51 52 58 56 AUTOMATED CONDENSATE DRAIN LINE CLEANING SYSTEM METHOD AND KIT Inventor Steven L Pearson Austin TX US Assignee Visionex Holdings LLC Austin TX US Notice Subject to any disclaimer the term of this patent is extended or adjusted under 35 U S C 154 b by 435 days Appl No 12 951 987 Filed Nov 22 2010 Prior Publication Data US 2011 0061745 A1 Mar 17 2011 Related U S Application Data Division of application No 12 006 325 filed on Dec 31 2007 now Pat No 7 857 004 Int Cl B08B 3 00 U S CI USPE iactare o eee 137 15 04 137 240 Field of Classification Search USPC 137 1 624 11 624 12 204 15 04 137 15 05 488 240 238 See application file for complete search history 2006 01 References Cited U S PATENT DOCUMENTS 3 048 186 A 3 411 225 A 4 063 317 A 4 937 559 A 4 962 778 A 8 1962 11 1968 12 1977 6 1990 10 1990 Roberts Barras Santore Meacham et al Driskill AUTOMATED CONDENSATE DRAIN LINE CLEANING SYSTEM 5 069 042 A 12 1991 Stuchlik III 5 151 685 A 9 1992 Spicer et al 5 271 237 A 12 1993 Popelka et al 137 112 5 293 894 A 3 1994 Fleischmann 137 135 5 366 004 A 11 1994 Garner et al 5 416 92. applications As another option a general purpose processor capable of executing software may be used as the controller In the description and claims the terms coupled and connected along with their derivatives may be used It should be understood that these terms are not intended as synonyms for each other Rather in particular embodiments connected may be used to indicate that two or more ele ments are in direct physical or electrical contact with each other Coupled may mean that two or more elements are in direct physical or electrical contact However coupled may US 8 646 474 B2 5 also mean that two or more elements are not in direct contact with each other but yet still co operate or interact with each other There are different approaches for activating or initiating the automated condensate drain line cleaning system and method FIG 3A illustrates one approach FIG 3B illustrates another approach FIG 3A is a block diagram of a controller 330 of an automated condensate drain line cleaning system according to embodiments of the invention The controller has a mate rial removal time and or cleaning time determination logic and or unit 350 The material removal time determination logic and or unit may perform a determination or automated determination of a time to perform the automated introduc tion of the fluid into the condensate drain line There are literally numerous different ways
3. controller 430 with the second control or check valve 465 is dashed to indicate that it is optional for example it may be omitted in the case of a check valve The controller may be as previously described The con troller is electrically coupled with the first water supply line control valve By way of example the valve may represent any of various types of mechanical devices capable of start ing substantially stopping adjusting in degrees or otherwise regulating by a movable part or portion that opens partially opens closes partially closes or partially obstructs a fluid passageway In one aspect the second valve 465 may either be a control valve or a check valve If the second valve is a control valve then it may also be electrically coupled with the controller as shown by the dashed line whereas if the sec ond valve is a check valve it need not be electrically coupled with the controller The first water supply line control valve is in line on the water supply line The water supply line may supply water from a sufficiently pressurized source of water By way of example the water supply line may be a line such as for example a section of hose or PVC pipe leading from a standard faucet spigot or other source of pressurized munici pal or household water The section of the water supply line leading from the outlet of the first water supply line control valve is fluidically coupled with the condensate drain line at a po
4. line cleaning method 100 according to embodiments of the invention The method includes performing an automated introduc tion of a fluid into the condensate drain line at block 102 As used herein the term fluid may include a liquid e g water gas e g air or a combination of liquid and gas By automated it is meant that the introduction of the fluid into the condensate drain line includes at least one device e g a controller controlling at least one other device e g at least one fluid flow regulation device For example perform ing the automated introduction of the fluid may involve the controller providing at least one control signal to the at least one fluid flow regulation device to cause the at least one fluid flow regulation device to introduce the fluid into the conden sate drain line The automation implies something more than purely human or manual control or actions although it is to be understood that some actions or operations may be manual such as for example a user pushing a button coupled with the controller or otherwise initiating the automated introduction of the fluid 20 35 40 45 55 4 Then at least one of microbial material and non microbial debris may be removed from the condensate drain line by flowing the fluid through the condensate drain line at block 104 The non microbial debris may include dust dirt rust or the like or a combination thereof By way of example the micro
5. pressure reduction device may be operable to reduce the flow rate and or the pressure of the fluid introduced into the condensate drain line and may be operable to prevent the fluid from damaging the condensate drain line or another component downstream from the flow restriction and or pressure reduction device Examples of suitable flow restriction and or pressure reduction devices include but are not limited to relatively small or constriction orifices relatively small or constriction valves relatively small or constriction sections of piping or line constriction bends and other relatively small and or constriction devices and structures These may either be incorporated into an existing flow regulation device e g a solenoid or control valve or may be separate Examples of a suitable solenoid valves include those available from Gems Sensors amp Controls of Plainville Conn USA some of which have a built in orifice Such flow restriction and or pressure reduction devices may be used with various of the automated condensate drain line cleaning systems disclosed herein In one or more embodiments of the invention the auto mated condensate drain line cleaning system such as for example that shown in FIG 2 4 5 6 or 7 may include an optional pressure sensor Examples of suitable pressure sen sors include but are not limited to small piezoelectric sen sors By way of example the pressure sensor may be fluidi cally couple
6. tions and adaptations may be made to the methods and are contemplated Certain operations may be performed by hardware compo nents or may be embodied in machine executable instruc tions that may be used to cause or at least result in a circuit programmed with the instructions performing the operations The circuit may include a general purpose or special purpose processor or logic circuit to name just a few examples The operations may also optionally be performed by a combina tion of hardware and software One or more embodiments of the invention may be pro vided as a program product or other article of manufacture that may include a machine accessible and or readable medium having stored thereon one or more instructions and or data structures The medium may provide instructions which if executed by a machine may result in and or cause the machine to perform one or more of the operations or methods disclosed herein For clarity in the claims any element that does not explic itly state means for performing a specified function or step for performing a specified function is not to be inter preted as a means or step clause as specified in 35 U S C Section 112 Paragraph 6 In particular any potential use of 0 m 5 20 40 45 55 14 step of in the claims herein is not intended to invoke the provisions of 35 U S C Section 112 Paragraph 6 It should also be appreciated t
7. 0 45 50 60 65 2 damage For example the condensate may damage the floors walls carpet and miscellaneous other content within the business or residence In some cases the condensate may cause an electrical short Sometimes such damage may con tinue to occur unnoticed for days This tends to be exacer bated by the fact that air conditioners are often deployed in attics closets or other out of sight locations One approach is to have a plumber come out either from time to time or after discovering the condensate overflow and associated damage The plumber typically disconnects the clogged condensate drain line and manually removes the microbial matter and or debris from the condensate drain line for example with compressed air from a compressed air tank Potential disadvantages of this approach are not pre venting the condensate overflow and associated damage and or the sienificant costs of the plumber U S Patent Application Publication US 2006 0042292 dis cusses another approach As discussed in the abstract thereof currently there are no products available which allow a user to solely remove microbial and bacterial growth inside a blocked HVAC condensate drain line using compressed air without cutting into or disassembling the drain line Our valve is an in line condensate drain line valve that can be installed easily quickly and economically either during new construc tion or onto existing HVAC systems The HVA
8. 47 A 5 1995 Jaffe 5 837 147 A 11 1998 Joung 6 024 112 A 2 2000 Cornwell 137 204 6 041 611 A 3 2000 Palmer 6 146 524 A 11 2000 Story 6 229 229 Bl 5 2001 Sharp 6 321 773 Bl 11 2001 Ramsby 6 427 458 Bl 8 2002 Fowler Continued FOREIGN PATENT DOCUMENTS WO WO 2012 110800 8 2012 OTHER PUBLICATIONS apc com NetworkAIR PA 1000 Installation User s Manual http www apcmedia com salestools ASTE 622RQ6 RO EN pdf Apr 2001 28 pages Continued Primary Examiner Kevin Lee 74 Attorney Agent or Firm Blakely Sokoloff Taylor amp Zafman LLP 57 ABSTRACT Automated condensate drain line cleaning apparatus are dis closed In one aspect an apparatus may include a controller a fluid supply line and at least one fluid flow regulation device The at least one fluid flow regulation device may be electrically coupled with the controller to receive at least one control signal from the controller The at least one fluid flow regulation device may cause a fluid to flow into a condensate drain line through the fluid supply line responsive to the at least one control signal Other apparatus as well as methods and kits are also disclosed 10 Claims 8 Drawing Sheets 210 CONTROL SIGNAL FLUID FLOW REGULATION CONTROLLER DEVICE 230 240 ELUID FLOW 244 INTO CONDENSATE DRAIN i LINE p s I AIR CONDENSATE CONDITIONING DISCHARGE SYSTEM S LOCATION 215 I 225 CONDENS
9. ATE DRAIN lide 1 LINE 220 US 8 646 474 B2 Page 2 56 References Cited 2002 0157708 Al 10 2002 Goff 2005 0005625 Al 1 2005 Lee U S PATENT DOCUMENTS 2006 0033630 Al 2 2006 Lyall HI 2006 0042292 Al 3 2006 Kimbrough et al 6 442 955 B1 9 2002 Oakner et al 2006 0070658 Al 4 2006 Nakata et al 6 442 956 B1 9 2002 Herren 2006 0096307 Al 5 2006 Coogle 6 443 173 B1 9 2002 Thompson Jr 137 1 2006 0096638 Al 5 2006 Coogle 6 708 717 B1 3 2004 Coogle 2006 0096639 A1 5 2006 Coogle 6 730 865 B1 5 2004 Hernandez Zelaya 6 976 367 B2 12 2005 Spanger OTHER PUBLICATIONS 6 992 259 B1 1 2006 Cantolino 2 E 2 DUE Sene Matsushita Eletrical Co Ltd Room Air Conditioner Operating GL LL oogle uum 7392658 BI 7 2008 Hardy HI Instructions http service us panasonic com OPERMANPDF 7 844 367 B2 11 2010 Nickerson etal 137 62411 CSC9CKPG PDF 2002 24 pages 7 930 898 B2 4 2011 Laufenberg et al 2002 0000093 Al 1 2002 Lea cited by examiner U S Patent Feb 11 2014 Sheet 1 of 8 US 8 646 474 B2 AUTOMATED CONDENSATE DRAIN LINE CLEANING METHOD 100 SS 102 PERFORM AUTOMATED INTRODUCTION OF FLUID INTO CONDENSATE DRAIN LINE REMOVE AT LEAST ONE OF MICROBIAL MATERIAL AND NON MICROBIAL DEBRIS FROM CONDENSATE DRAIN LINE BY FLOWING FLUID THROUGH CONDENSATE DRAIN LINE 104 FIG 1 US 8 646 474 B2 Sheet 2 of 8 Feb 11 2014 U S Patent 6 QI 0cc ANTI amy NOME NIVIG ILVSNIANOD ce ces Y vo
10. C user can remove microbial and bacterial growths without cutting into or disassembling the drain line by injecting compressed air through the valve The design of our valve allows the user to perform safe and routine maintenance to the HVAC drainage system without having to resort to expensive and repetitive service call repairs over the lifetime of the HVAC system The valve is further designed to prevent undesirable reverse air flows into the HVAC system and home or building caused by a dry trap in the condensate drain The prevention of reverse airflows and reduction of microbial and bacterial growth will have a positive impact of Indoor Air Quality U S Pat No 6 041 611 discusses a system and method for cleaning air conditioning drains As discussed in the abstract thereof a system for cleaning out a condensate drain line is disclosed The condensate drain line is operatively associated with an air conditioner that contains an evaporator coil and a primary drain pan The system comprises a manifold opera tively placed in fluid communication with the condensate drain line The manifold includes a first second and third line In one embodiment the first line extends from the mani fold and the second and third line are axially aligned with the condensate drain line The system further includes a first valve member disposed within the first line a second valve member disposed within the second line and a third valve member disposed wit
11. US 8 646 474 B2 11 storage tank to discharge the stored and pressurized air into the condensate drain line This pressurized air may help to clean the condensate drain line One potential advantage of the air pump and air storage tank is that they may be well suited for retrofitting an existing air conditioning system There is no need to run a separate water supply line Additionally one potential advantage of the air storage tank is to help to allow a smaller and less expensive air pump to be used than would be needed if the air storage tank were not there Alternatively the air pump may be used without the air storage tank or a pre compressed air tank may optionally be used Since the flow through condensate drain lines is generally relatively low the condensate drain lines and their couplings are not always designed to handle appreciable pressures and or fluid flow rates In some cases it is contemplated that the fluid introduced into the condensate drain line by the auto mated condensate drain line cleaning system may have suf ficient pressure and or flow that it may potentially damage the condensate drain line its couplings and or one or more other components downstream In one or more embodiments of the invention the auto mated condensate drain line cleaning system such as for example that shown in FIG 2 4 5 6 or 7 may include an optional flow restriction and or pressure reduction device The flow restriction and or
12. WILSAS ONINVATO INTI NIVQA AILVSNIGNOO GILVNOLNV US 8 646 474 B2 Sheet 6 of 8 Feb 11 2014 079 ANTT Pr NIVNG ILVSNIANOD GE SE eda CI GZO 237 STI NOILVJOT _ _ is T Er WIISAS qoWNVHOsId nm ONINOLLIANOO ILVSNIGNOD NIV ANVI TOVAOLS UV 079 diNNd UV 0 9 YITIOYULNOD S 9 IVNOIS TOYULNOD as 019 U S Patent IN3 LSAS ONINVTTO INTI NIVYG JLVSNIGNOO GILVNOINV US 8 646 474 B2 Sheet 7 of 8 Feb 11 2014 U S Patent ANTI NIVYG ILVSNIGNOD OFZ FOIAId 0 NOILVINDTA YITIOULNOD MOTI GINTI 01 SZZ WALSAS ONINVTIO INTI YUOSSTUdNOD NIVYG ILVSNIGNOD UV GHVOSNO dILVWOLNV OZZ ITDIHIA Z DIT U S Patent Feb 11 2014 Sheet 8 of 8 US 8 646 474 B2 AUTOMATED CONDENSATE DRAIN LINE CLEANING KIT 880 CONTROLLER 830 AT LEAST ONE FLUID FLOW REGULATION DEVICE 840 INSTRUCTIONS 885 AT LEAST ONE OTHER COMPONENT OPTIONAL FIG 8 US 8 646 474 B2 1 AUTOMATED CONDENSATE DRAIN LINE CLEANING SYSTEM METHOD AND KIT The present application is a divisional of U S patent appli cation Ser No 12 006 325 filed on Dec 31 2007 entitled AUTOMATED CONDENSATE DRAIN LINE CLEAN ING SYSTEM METHOD AND KIT now USS Pat No 7 857 004 Application Ser No 12 006 325 is hereby incor porated herein by reference BACKGROUND 1 Field Embodiments of the invention relate to air conditioning systems In particular embodiments o
13. ain line cleaning system 610 of FIG 6 may optionally have the characteristics of the corre spondingly named components of the condensate drain line cleaning systems shown in FIGS 2 and or 4 5 To avoid obscuring certain concepts the following description will focus primarily on the different and or additional components and their characteristics The controller 630 is electrically coupled with the air pump 640 In operation at an appropriate time the controller may provide at least one control signal 635 to the air pump Various known types of air pumps are suitable including fans blow ers and compressors The air pump may operate responsive to the at least one control signal In particular the at least one control signal may cause the air pump to pump air into the air storage tank The air storage tank is coupled between the air pump and the condensate drain line The air storage tank may accumu late and store the air By way of example the air storage tank may have a capacity ranging from about half a quart to about agallon or more although this is not required The air storage tank may include a pressurized cylinder or other pressure vessel The pressure in the air storage tank may increase over time as more air is pumped into the air storage tank At some point the controller may control the air pump to stop pumping air into the air storage tank When it is time to clean the condensate line the controller may control the air
14. alve to cause the first control valve to at least partially open to introduce the fluid into the condensate drain line wherein providing the at least one control signal to the first control valve comprises providing the at least one control signal to a water supply control valve that is in line on a water supply line to cause the water supply control valve to at least partially open to introduce water into the condensate drain line wherein introducing the water into the condensate drain line comprises flowing the water through a flow restric tion device that is operable to prevent the water from the water supply line from damaging a component down stream from the flow restriction device and removing at least one of microbial material and non mi crobial debris from the condensate drain line by flowing the fluid through the condensate drain line 2 The method of claim 1 wherein providing the at least one control signal to the water supply control valve comprises providing the at least one control signal to the water supply control valve that is in line on a water supply line coupled with a source of pressurized municipal water 3 The method of claim 1 wherein flowing the water through the flow restriction device comprises flowing the water through a constriction valve 4 The method of claim 1 wherein flowing the water through the flow restriction device comprises flowing the water through a constriction orifice 5 The method of clai
15. ate drain line discharge e g at the sewer or outside location and the inside of the air condi tioner This delay would provide an opportunity for the water in the condensate drain line to drain to the sewer before the cleaning operation occurred In some cases it may be appropriate for the controller to have the capability to communicate with an external system That system may be associated with the cleaning process and or monitoring of the cleaning process Examples of suit able systems include but are not limited to thermostats home control systems computer systems coupled by a local area network e g a personal computer system used for home control and or monitoring and computer systems coupled through the Internet e g an Internet weather station and or server responsible for monitoring the air conditioning sys tem In one or more embodiments of the invention the control ler may be electrically coupled with or otherwise in commu nication with the external system Furthermore in one or more embodiments the controller may include logic to pro vide at least one signal to the external system The signal may provide different information in different embodiments In one aspect the signal may indicate that the controller just caused the fluid to flow into the condensate drain line In another aspect the signal may indicate a time when the controller will next cause the fluid to flow into the condensate drain line In ye
16. ay help to unclog or un restrict the condensate drain line Advantageously this may help to allow the flow of conden sate from the drain pan to resume which may advantageously help to avoid spillage and the associated property damage Now it is generally desirable to prevent the water intro duced through the water supply line from flowing into the drain pan of the air conditioning system which could poten tially result in overflow Recall that the automated condensate drain line cleaning system includes the second control or check valve 465 The second valve is in line on the conden sate drain line and is disposed between a drain pan 498 of the air conditioning system 415 and the point 446 where the water is introduced into the condensate drain line from the water supply line Generally the second valve is close to the air conditioning system such as for example within a foot or several feet If the second valve is a check valve then the check valve may allow flow in a direction leading from the air condition ing system toward the condensate discharge location but may prevent or at least significantly restrict flow in the opposite direction Examples of suitable check valves include but are not limited to standard check valves and the valve described in U S Patent Application Publication 2006 0042292 Alter natively if the second valve is a control valve then the con troller may provide at least one control signal shown in das
17. bial material and or non microbial debris may be removed to a sewer line an outside location a bucket or other suitable destination Advantageously such a method may help to remove mate rial from the condensate drain line This may help to prevent or at least reduce the likelihood of condensate overflow and its associated damage Accordingly this method aims to pro vide a preventative solution that may help to prevent property damage from occurring Furthermore the automated introduction of a fluid into the condensate drain line may help to reduce the involvement and or technical knowledge requirements of the user Indeed in some embodiments the level of automation may be such that the user may barely even need to be aware of the opera tion of the automated condensate drain line cleaning system or that the condensate drain pan could even overflow FIG 2 is a block diagram of an automated condensate drain line cleaning system 210 according to embodiments of the invention An air conditioning system 215 a condensate drain line 220 and a condensate discharge location 225 e g a sewer outside location bucket or the like are shown These com ponents are shown in this figure to illustrate the coupling of the automated condensate drain line cleaning system How ever these components are shown in dashed lines to indicate that they are generally not a part of the automated condensate drain line cleaning system The automated c
18. d after the fluid flow regulation device 240 first control valve 440 fluid pump 540 air storage tank 642 If an optional flow restriction and or pressure reduction device is included then the pressure sensor may optionally be after it The pressure sensor may be electrically or logically coupled with or in communication with the controller to provide a sensed pressure to the controller The controller may control the control valve pump or other controlled device based at least in part on the sensed pressure In one aspect the con troller may use the sensed pressure as feedback to control the valve pump or other controlled device As one example the controller may adjust the valve pump or other controlled device based on the sensed pressure to help to achieve a predetermined given or sufficient pressure For example the controller may further open the valve or increase the output of the pump if the sensed pressure is too low e g lower than a 20 40 45 55 65 12 threshold Advantageously this may help to improve clean ing As another example the controller may at least partially close the valve or at least partially reduce the output of the pump if the sensed pressure is too high e g higher than a threshold which may potentially indicate that the discharge line is blocked The controller may also potentially interrupt the cleaning operations and or issue an alarm e g a piezo electric warning buzzer so
19. e but are not limited to a fluid storage tank an air storage tank a flow restriction device at least one user input device a condensate drain line an amount of a known antimicrobial agent to be applied to the condensate drain line and combinations thereof In the description above for the purposes of explanation numerous specific details have been set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments of the invention It will be apparent however to one skilled in the art that one or more other embodiments may be practiced with out some of these specific details The particular embodi ments described are not provided to limit the invention but to illustrate it The scope of the invention is not to be determined by the specific examples provided above but only by the claims below In other instances well known circuits struc tures devices and operations have been shown in block dia gram form or without detail in order to avoid obscuring the understanding of the description All equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the speci fication are encompassed within embodiments of the inven tion Various operations and methods have been described Some of the methods have been described in a basic form but operations may optionally be added to and or removed from the methods The operations of the methods may also often optionally be performed in different order Many modifica
20. eem SCC SIT NOILV2OT C AEN q WIISAS JOUVHOSIA DNINOLLIANOD ILVSNIANOD NIV ee ee D Can J INIT NIVYG ILVSNIANOO O LNI FF MOTH CINTA OF JOIA3G NOILVINDIYU MOTI dinda OEZ YTTTOYULNOD SEC TVNOIS TOLLNOO R OIZ WALSAS DNINVATO INTI NIVA ILVSNIANOD GILVNOLNV U S Patent Feb 11 2014 Sheet 3 of 8 US 8 646 474 B2 CONTROLLER OF AUTOMATED CONDENSATE DRAIN LINE CLEANING SYSTEM 330 MATERIAL REMOVAL TIME DETERMINATION LOGIC UNIT 350 FIG 3A USER CONTROLLER OF USER INPUT DEVICE AUTOMATED E G BUTTON SWITCH DIAL KNOB ETC 360 CONDENSATE DRAIN LINE CLEANING SYSTEM 330 FIG 3B US 8 646 474 B2 Sheet 4 of 8 Feb 11 2014 U S Patent p 514 OZ INIT E E 4 S ye l NIVA ILVSNIANOD I E nos I ST oF STF NOLLVJOT _ _ EE JATVA MOTH _ _ WALSAS JONVHOSId NO TOXNINOO ONINOLLIGNOO ILVSNIANOD ov GINODIS NIV gewesen Cr lt A lu OFF PN OEP JA TVA TOXINOO ISU PET OREN SEP TVNDIS SEE TOXINOO ANITATddNS N31VM S OTF WALSAS DNINVITD ANTI NIVA ILVSNIGNOD dILVNOLINV US 8 646 474 B2 Sheet 5 of 8 Feb 11 2014 U S Patent 0cS ANTI TT E 8 I NIVA JALVSNIGNOD 7 ga 4 599 I NOILVDOT ___ PON ms _ _ WaISAS IOUVHOSIAG eee 2NINOLLIGNOO ALVSNIANOD NIV I SPS ANITATddNS CINTA I OFS OES dWNd ANTI YITTOYULNOD GEG TVNOIS TOW INOO TS OLS I
21. erforming the automated intro duction of the fluid into the condensate drain line Since the cleaning may be performed in a preventative way instead of on an urgent need when the problem of spillage is eminent or has already occurred there is the possibility for delay Various different criteria are contemplated For example if the determined time to perform the automated introduction of the fluid is late at night e g after 9 00 PM then controller may wait until morning e g after 9 00 AM Advanta geously this sort of controller intelligence may help to avoid noise during the middle of the night that may wake the resi dents As another example if the determined time is during a conventional or configured time for eating dinner then the controller may wait a given amount of time e g two hours before performing the automated introduction of the fluid Advantageously this also may help to avoid noise that may disrupt the dinner As yet another example if the controller determines that the air conditioning system is currently running then the controller may wait until the air conditioner shuts off This may allow the condensate drain line to remain open while condensate is being produced by the running air conditioning system Additionally this may help to reduce the chances that water inside the condensate drain line may back flow into the condensate drain pan in the event that there is a negative pressure between the condens
22. f the invention relate to systems methods and kits to clean condensate drain lines of air conditioning systems 2 Background Information Air conditioning systems are widely utilized in homes and businesses throughout the world The air conditioning sys tems or air conditioners for short are used to cool air in order to provide a cool working or living environment By way of example an air conditioner may have an evapo rator or evaporator coils that are used to cool the air In cooling the air humidity or water vapor in the air may condense on the relatively cooler evaporator coils This may produce liquid water known as condensation Generally the greater the humidity the greater the amount of condensation produced The air conditioner typically includes a primary conden sate drain pan situated below the evaporator coils to collect the condensation When the air conditioner is operating con densation may form on the evaporator coils fall from the evaporator coils into the primary condensate drain pan and accumulate in the condensate drain pan The air conditioner typically also includes a condensate drain line The condensate drain line may be used to drain the condensate from the primary condensate drain pan to a suit able destination such as for example a sewer an outside location or the like One challenge is that the condensate drain line may tend to become clogged thereby restricting flow of the condensate from the p
23. hat reference throughout this specification to one embodiment an embodiment or one or more embodiments for example means that a par ticular feature may be included in the practice of the inven tion Similarly it should be appreciated that in the description various features are sometimes grouped together in a single embodiment Figure or description thereof for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure and aiding in the understanding of various inventive aspects This method of disclosure how ever is not to be interpreted as reflecting an intention that the invention requires more features than are expressly recited in each claim Rather as the following claims reflect inventive aspects may lie in less than all features of a single disclosed embodiment Thus the claims following the Detailed Description are hereby expressly incorporated into this Detailed Description with each claim standing on its own as a separate embodiment of the invention What is claimed is 1 A method comprising performing an automated introduction of a fluid into a condensate drain line wherein performing the auto mated introduction of the fluid into the condensate drain line comprises providing at least one control signal to at least one fluid flow regulation device wherein providing the at least one control signal to the at least one fluid flow regulation device comprises providing at least one con trol signal to a first control v
24. hed lines to the second control valve either before or at about the same time as the at least one control signal is provided to the first valve to cause the second control valve to close while the water flows into the condensate drain line Alternatively if there is sufficient gradient and or if the water is introduced with sufficient velocity in the desired direction then the second control or check valve may optionally be omitted The cleaning process may be allowed to proceed for a sufficient amount of time typically ranging from several sec onds to several minutes depending upon the pressures flows and frequency of cleaning After the cleaning process the controller may control the first water supply control valve to close to prevent further entrance of water into the condensate drain line The controller may then control the second control valve to open to allow flow of condensate to resume to the discharge location In one aspect the controller may wait for a short delay such as for example an the order of five seconds or more to allow water in the condensate drain line to drain to the discharge location to help ensure that it doesn t backflow into the drain pan FIG 5 is a block diagram ofan automated condensate drain line cleaning system 510 according to second embodiments of the invention The automated condensate drain line cleaning system includes a controller 530 a fluid pump 540 a fluid supply line 545 and a sec
25. hin the third line A water stream which is operatively connected with the first line is provided so that the water stream may be channeled through the manifold and into the condensate drain line The manifold may further comprises a fourth line extending from the center of the manifold with the fourth line having a fourth valve disposed therein The system may further comprise sensor means operatively associated with a secondary pan for measuring the level of condensation within the secondary pan and acti vating an alarm once a predetermined level is reached A method of cleaning a condensate drain line is also disclosed One potential drawback with all three of these approaches is that manual actions in some cases requiring special skills or knowledge seem to be needed to remove the material from the condensate drain line US 8 646 474 B2 3 BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS The invention may best be understood by referring to the following description and accompanying drawings that are used to illustrate embodiments of the invention In the draw ings FIG 1 is a block flow diagram of an automated condensate drain line cleaning method according to embodiments of the invention FIG 2 is a block diagram of an automated condensate drain line cleaning system according to embodiments of the inven tion FIG 3A is a block diagram of a controller of an automated condensate drain line cleaning system the c
26. in which the controller may determine the time to flush the drain line To further illustrate certain concepts a few illustrative ways will be discussed further below although other ways will be apparent to those skilled in the art and having the benefit of the present disclosure In one or more embodiments of the invention the material removal time determination logic and or unit may determine the time based on at least one of 1 a calendar 2 a clock 3 a counter 4 a sensor and 5 information received from an external electrical device or system Let s consider several illustrative examples of how these may be used to determine the time Calendar As one example the controller may determine that it is time based on the calendar day being a given day e g June 21 As another example the controller may deter mine that it is time based on the calendar day being a given day of the month e g the first day Clock As one example the controller may determine that it is time based on a clock counting a given amount of time since a last introduction of fluid into the condensate drain line As another example the controller may determine that it is time based on a clock counting to a given amount of air conditioner operating time since the last introduction Counter As another example the controller may deter mine that it is time based on a counter counting to a given number of air conditioner on off cycles since a last int
27. int 446 By way of example the condensate drain line may be tapped into or cut and a T fitting inserted Generally that point is close to the air conditioning system such as for example within a foot or several feet This may help to promote cleaning of a majority of the condensate drain line In operation the controller may provide at least one control signal 435 to the first water supply line control valve in line on the water supply line The at least one control signal may cause the first water supply line control valve to at least partially open This may cause water from the water supply line to flow or be introduced into the condensate drain line through the water supply line The valve may potentially limit the flow to help to avoid damaging the condensate drain line or as discussed further below a flow restriction and or pres sure reduction device 499 may optionally be included Accordingly the first water supply line control valve is an example of a fluid flow regulation device The first water supply line control valve may admit water to the condensate drain line only when the controller controls it to do so US 8 646 474 B2 9 The water introduced into the condensate drain line may have a significantly higher flow rate than the typical flow rate of the condensate through the line The water may help to remove or flush at least some of the microbial material and or non microbial debris from the condensate drain line This m
28. l ler may allow a user to provide user specified configuration information that is operable to affect how the controller deter mines the time For example the controller may allow the user to specify a calendar date clock value counter value sensor value or other information which it may use to deter mine the time The controller may also optionally allow the user to provide a frequency factor such as for example very often often sometimes infrequently and disabled which may modulate how the controller determines the times Advantageously this may allow the user to have the auto mated condensate drain line cleaning system clean the line frequently less frequently or completely disable the auto mated condensate drain line cleaning system depending upon time of year environmental factors personal prefer ence etc A few illustrative examples have been described although the scope of the invention certainly is not limited to these specific examples Those skilled in the art and having the benefit of the present disclosure appreciate that there are various other ways and criteria for determining the time For example the time may be determined based on a combination of the ways or criteria mentioned above If desired equations calibration data or even detailed models may optionally be used to provide additional sophistication in estimating the desired time to clean the line One potential advantage of the aforementioned a
29. m 1 further comprising prior to performing the automated introduction of the fluid sensing a pressure and wherein the at least one control signal that is provided to the first control valve is based on the sensed pressure 6 A method comprising performing an automated introduction of a fluid into a condensate drain line wherein performing the auto mated introduction of the fluid into the condensate drain line comprises providing at least one control signal to at least one fluid flow regulation device wherein providing the at least one control signal to the at least one fluid flow US 8 646 474 B2 15 regulation device comprises providing at least one con trol signal to a pump to cause the pump to pump the fluid into one selected from the condensate drain line and a storage tank coupled between the pump and the conden sate drain line and wherein providing the at least one control signal to the pump comprises providing the at least one control signal to an air pump to cause the air pump to pump air into an air storage tank coupled between the air pump and the condensate drain line and removing at least one of microbial material and non mi crobial debris from the condensate drain line by flowing the fluid through the condensate drain line 7 The method of claim 6 wherein providing the at least one control signal to the air pump is to cause the air pump to pump air into the air storage tank which comprises a pressur ized cyli
30. nder 8 The method of claim 6 wherein providing the at least one control signal to the air pump comprises providing the at least one control signal to a compressor 9 The method of claim 6 wherein providing the at least one control signal to the air pump causes the air pump to pump the air into the air storage tank having a volume ranging from a half a quart to a gallon 10 The method of claim 6 further comprising sensing a pressure and wherein providing the at least one control signal to the air pump comprises providing the at least one control signal to the air pump based on the sensed pressure LEE UI 20 25 16
31. ntroller Such user input may cause the controller to provide at least one control signal to at least one fluid flow regulation device As previously discussed this may activate or initiate the automated introduction of the fluid into the condensate drain line In one or more embodiments of the invention the con troller may optionally have a button switch knob dial set ting or other mechanism to allow a user to disable the system when they don t want it to operate automatically One potential drawback to this approach is that the user may need to remember to initiate the cleaning As another option the controller may be controlled to initiate the process by an external system such as for example a thermostat a home control system a computer system coupled by a local area network e g a personal computer system used for home control and or monitoring and a computer system coupled US 8 646 474 B2 7 through the Internet e g an Internet weather station and or server responsible for monitoring the air conditioning sys tem In one or more embodiments of the invention the control ler may include logic to wait for at least one criteria to be satisfied before causing the fluid to flow into the condensate drain line In other words after determining that it is time to perform the automated introduction of the fluid into the con densate drain line the controller may wait for at least one criteria to be satisfied before p
32. ond control or check valve 565 Also shown are an air conditioning system 515 a condensate drain line 520 and a condensate discharge location 525 Unless otherwise specified or readily apparent the com ponents of the condensate drain line cleaning system 510 of FIG 5 may optionally have the characteristics of the corre spondingly named components of the condensate drain line cleaning systems shown in FIGS 2 and or 4 To avoid obscur ing certain concepts the following description will focus primarily on the different and or additional components and their characteristics m 0 m 5 20 40 45 55 60 65 10 The controller 530 is electrically coupled with the pump 540 By way of example the pump may represent any of various types of mechanical devices capable of pumping compressing or otherwise enhancing the transfer of the fluid into the condensate drain line In various aspects the pump may be a gas pump e g an air pump or a liquid pump e g a water pump In the case of a water pump the water pump may be coupled to receive input water from a condensate drain pan a faucet or spigot a bucket or the like It is to be appreciated that occasionally a liquid pump pumps a limited amount of a gas and vice versa Accordingly a pump is an example of a fluid flow regulation device In operation at an appropriate time the controller may provide at least one control signal 535 to the pump The pump may opera
33. ondensate drain line cleaning system 210 includes a controller 230 a fluid supply line 245 and at least one fluid flow regulation device 240 The controller may be implemented in hardware e g a circuit or integrated circuit software e g instructions executable by a general purpose processor or computer firmware or a combination thereof The controller may receive power from the air conditioning system an outlet a communication link a battery or the like Theat least one fluid flow regulation device 240 is electrically coupled with the controller 230 to receive at least one control signal 235 from the controller 230 The at least one fluid flow regulation device 240 is operable to cause a fluid flow 244 into the condensate drain line 220 through the fluid supply line 245 responsive to the at least one control signal 235 One specific example of a controller that is suitable or that at least may be adapted for suitability for one or more embodiments of the invention is the Millenium II Code 88950024 controller which is commercially available from Crouzet of Coppell Tex USA Alternatively field program mable gate arrays FPGAs or other off the shelf program mable controllers may optionally be used Note that off the shelf suitable FPGAs are commercially available from various sources and can be programmed for a specific appli cation There are even companies that can be hired to help in the programming of FPGAs for specific
34. ontroller having cleaning time determination logic according to embodiments of the invention FIG 3B is a block diagram of a user input device electri cally coupled with or otherwise in communication with a controller of an automated condensate drain line cleaning system to provide user input to activate an automated clean ing according to embodiments of the invention FIG 4 is a block diagram ofan automated condensate drain line cleaning system according to first embodiments of the invention FIG 5 is a block diagram of an automated condensate drain line cleaning system according to second embodiments of the invention FIG 6 is a block diagram of an automated condensate drain line cleaning system according to third embodiments of the invention FIG 7 is a block diagram of a vehicle having an automated condensate drain line cleaning system according to embodi ments of the invention FIG 8 is a block diagram of an automated condensate drain line cleaning kit according to embodiments of the invention DETAILED DESCRIPTION In the following description numerous specific details are set forth However it is understood that embodiments of the invention may be practiced without these specific details In other instances well known circuits structures and tech niques have not been shown in detail in order not to obscure the understanding of this description FIG 1 is a block flow diagram of an automated condensate drain
35. ponsive to at least one control signal from the controller In particular the fluid flow regulation device has an input that is fluidically coupled with an output of the onboard air compressor An output of the fluid flow regulation device is fluidically coupled with the condensate drain line through a fluid supply line 745 The controller is electrically coupled with the fluid flow regulation device to provide the at least one control signal 735 to cause the automated introduc tion of the compressed air The controller may be electrically coupled with the electrical system of the vehicle or it may have its own battery to name a few examples In embodiments of the invention the automated conden sate drain line cleaning systems disclosed herein may be assembled or incorporated with new air conditioning systems in factories It is hoped and believed that the automated con densate drain line cleaning systems disclosed herein will provide new functionalities that may help to encourage the sale of the air conditioning systems that incorporate them As another option in other embodiments of the invention components of the automated condensate drain line cleaning systems disclosed herein may be sold in various combina tions as kits that may be installed on and or used to retrofit a new and or existing air conditioning system FIG 8 is a block diagram of an automated condensate drain line cleaning kit 880 according to embodiments of the inven
36. pproach is that the user need not be involved or need only be involved on a limited basis However another approach for activating or initiating the automated condensate drain line cleaning sys tem and method is based on user input This may help to simplify the logic of the controller and generally also the cost FIG 3B is a block diagram of a user input device 360 electrically coupled with or otherwise in communication with a controller 330 of an automated condensate drain line cleaning system according to embodiments of the invention By way of example the user input device may include at least one button at least one switch at least one dial at least one knob a touch screen or at least one other user input device known in the art The user input device may be on a thermo stat near a thermostat on the air conditioner e g near the air conditioner filter proximate the air conditioner or on the controller to name just a few illustrative examples The user input device may allow a user to activate or initiate the automated condensate drain line cleaning system and method For example the automated introduction of the fluid into the condensate drain line may be performed responsive to auser pushing at least one button flipping at least one switch turning at least one knob or turning at least one dial Respon sive to the user performing at least one of such operations the user input device may provide user input 355 to the co
37. rimary condensate drain pan One potential cause is microbial growth Bacteria algae or other microbial matter may tend to grow within the condensate drain line Non microbial debris such as for example dust dirt rust or the like may also tend to enter the condensate drain line and contribute to restriction of flow Generally the flow rate of the condensate through the condensate drain line is fairly low Typically the flow rate of the condensate is insufficient to flush or otherwise remove the microbial matter and or non microbial debris from the con densate drain line Eventually if actions are not taken this growth may tend to close off the condensate drain line and prevent further flow of condensate from the condensate drain pan This may cause the level of condensate in the condensate drain pan to rise Some air conditioners have a secondary or backup conden sate drain line at a higher level in the condensate drain pan than the aforementioned main condensate drain line How ever this secondary condensate drain line may also become clogged If the air conditioner doesn t have a secondary con densate drain line or if the secondary condensate drain line also becomes clogged the primary condensate drain pan may fill with condensate and at some point the condensate may begin to overflow In some cases this condensate may overflow into the busi ness or residence and may tend to cause significant property m 5 20 4
38. roduc tion Sensor As another example the controller may determine that it is time based on a sensed level of condensate in a condensate drain pan as input from a sensor As another example the controller may determine that it is time based on a sensed differential pressure across a filter for the air condi tioner either from the sensor directly or through a thermostat that is coupled with the actual sensor As yet another example the controller may determine that it is time based on a sensed humidity and or outside temperature Information from External Device or System as input to controller As another example the controller may determine that it is time based on information received from a thermostat e g a monitored filter differential pressure or filter change interval As another example the controller may determine that it is time based on information received from a network e g an internet weather station networked air conditioning monitoring computer system or other networked computer system The controller may have or be coupled with a connection interface to the network As yet another example the controller may determine that it is time based on informa tion received from an external control system e g a home control system or control system similar to that used to con trol lights in homes 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 6 In one or more embodiments of the invention the contro
39. t another aspect the signal may indicate both pieces of information As one example the thermostat may receive and display this information to a user so that the user may readily monitor the cleaning activity As another example the home or net 20 40 45 50 55 8 worked monitoring system may receive and retain this infor mation so that the user another person or software may monitor the cleaning activity Now the generalized automated condensate drain line cleaning system 210 of FIG 2 may be implemented in various different ways FIGS 4 6 provide several illustrative examples Each of these are examples of different automated means for removing microbial buildup from said at least the portion of the condensate drain line FIG 4 is a block diagram of an automated condensate drain line cleaning system 410 according to first embodiments of the invention The automated condensate drain line cleaning system includes a controller 430 a water supply line 445 a first water supply line control valve 440 and a second control or check valve 465 As before an air conditioning system 415 a con densate drain line 420 and a condensate discharge location 425 are shown to illustrate the coupling of the automated condensate drain line cleaning system However these com ponents are shown in dashed lines to indicate that they are generally not a part of the automated condensate drain line cleaning system The line coupling the
40. te responsive to the at least one control signal In particular the at least one control signal may cause the pump to pump the fluid into the condensate drain line through the fluid supply line As previously discussed the fluid may help to remove or flush at least some of the microbial material and or non microbial debris from the condensate drain line This may help to unclog or un restrict the condensate drain line Advan tageously this may help to allow the flow of condensate from the drain pan to resume which may advantageously help to avoid spillage and the associated property damage In one or more embodiments of the invention a fluid accu mulation tank such as for example a pressurized cylinder may be coupled with the discharge ofthe pump to accumulate or store fluid for later release into the condensate drain line While this generally offers greater advantages for gases it may be used for liquids if desired FIG 6 is a block diagram of an automated condensate drain line cleaning system 610 according to third embodiments of the invention The automated condensate drain line cleaning system includes a controller 630 an air pump 640 an air storage tank 642 an air supply line 645 and a second control or check valve 665 Also shown are an air conditioning system 615 a condensate drain line 620 and a condensate discharge loca tion 625 Unless otherwise specified or readily apparent the com ponents of the condensate dr
41. that corrective actions may be taken Advantageously this may help to avoid system damage and or leakage The utility of the automated condensate drain line cleaning systems and methods disclosed herein are not limited to use in home or business air conditioning systems but are more widely applicable to other environments having air condition ing systems One notable example is in vehicles FIG 7 is a block diagram of a vehicle 770 having an automated condensate drain line cleaning system 710 according to embodiments of the invention By way of example the vehicle may be a car a truck a motorcycle industrial vehicle e g dump truck or garbage truck airplane tank or the like The vehicle has an onboard air compressor and a condensate drain line These compo nents are shown in dashed lines to indicate that they are not necessarily part of the automated condensate drain line clean ing system Rather these components may be conventional components found in vehicles The automated condensate drain line cleaning system includes a controller 730 and at least one fluid flow regulation device 740 such as for example a control valve The auto mated condensate drain line cleaning system is coupled with and or attached to the vehicle The fluid flow regulation device is coupled to allow com pressed air from the onboard air compressor of the vehicle to flow or be introduced into the condensate drain line through a fluid supply line res
42. tion The kit includes a controller 830 at least one fluid flow regulation device 840 and instructions 885 The controllers and fluid flow regulation devices discussed elsewhere herein are suitable The at least one fluid flow regulation device such as for example one or more valves and or pumps may be capable of being electrically coupled with the controller US 8 646 474 B2 13 The instructions may be paper instructions and or instruc tions stored on a computer disk compact disk DVD or other machine readable medium The instructions may explain how to assemble the kit to an air conditioning system and or how to use the automated condensate drain line cleaning kit and system By way of example the instructions may include instructions to electrically couple the controller with the at least one fluid flow regulation device The instructions may also include instructions to couple the at least one fluid flow regulation device with a condensate drain line through a path including a fluid supply line and potentially other compo nents e g in some cases a fluid storage tank With this coupling the at least one fluid flow regulation device may be operable to cause a fluid to flow into the condensate drain line responsive to at least one control signal received from the controller Referring again to FIG 8 in one or more embodiments the kit may include at least one other component 890 Examples of suitable other components includ
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