Comfort control system and components thereof

Claim 2

A comfort control system comprising: a thermostat having first and second main leads, said thermostat having means therein being adapted to produce heat and cool signals of first and second opposite polarities, respectively; at least first and second main diodes; a main junction connected from said second thermostat main lead, both of said main diodes being connected from said main junction, said first main diode being poled away from said main junction, said second main diode being poled toward said main junction; first means including first and second leads for producing an A.C. voltage, said first means first lead being connected to said first thermostat lead; second means including a first circuit connected from one of said main diodes to said first means second lead to heat the space around said thermostat; and third means including a second circuit connected from the other of said main diode to cool the space around said thermostat, said first and second circuits each including an incandescent lamp, first and second zero voltage switches fixed relative to said first and second lamps, respectively, to receive the light outputs thereof, respectively, fourth and fifth means connected from said first and second zero voltage switches, respectively, to heat or to cool the space around said thermostat, respectively, when the temperature of said space is respectively below or above a predetermined set temperature.

Claim 3

The invention as defined in claim 1, wherein said thermostat includes a first full wave bridge rectifier having first, second, third and fourth auxiliary diodes, and first, second, third and fourth junctions, said first auxiliary diode being connected from said first junction to said second junction and poled to be conductive toward said second junction, said second auxiliary diode being connected from said third junction to said second junction and being poled to be conductive toward said second junction, said third auxiliary diode being connected from said fourth junction to said third junction and being poled to be conductive toward said third junction, said fourth auxiliary diode being connected between said fourth and first junctions and being poled to be conductive toward said first junction, one of said first and second thermostat main leads being connected to one of said first and third junctions, said main junction being connected to the other of said first and third junctions, said thermostat having first and second internal leads, and fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth and ninth junctions, said first internal lead being connected to one of said second and fourth junctions, said second internal lead being connected to the other of said second and fourth junctions, a differential amplifiEr having inverting and noninverting input leads, first and second power leads, and an output lead, said output lead being connected to said eighth junction, said first internal lead being connected to said eighth junction, said seventh and eighth junctions being connected together, said fourth junction being connected to said second internal lead, said thermostat including first, second, third and fourth resistors, said first resistor being connected from one of said first and third junctions to said fifth junction, said second resistor being connected from the other of said first and third junctions to said fifth junction, one of said first and second resistors being variable, the other of said first and second resistors being temperature sensitive, said fifth junction being connected to said amplifier inverting input lead, said third resistor being connected between said sixth and seventh junctions, said fourth resistor being connected between said sixth and ninth junctions, said sixth junction being connected to said amplifier noninverting input lead, said first and second power leads of said amplifier being connected to said seventh and ninth junctions, respectively.

Claim 4

The invention as defined in claim 2, wherein said thermostat additionally includes a first capacitor, fifth, sixth and seventh resistors, and a first transistor having a collector, an emitter and a base, said amplifier output lead being connected to said first transistor base, said first transistor emitter being connected to said eighth junction, said seventh resistor being connected from said first transistor collector to said ninth junction, said fifth resistor being connected between said seventh and eighth junctions, said sixth resistor being connected between said fourth and ninth junctions, said capacitor being connected between said first and third junctions.

Claim 5

The invention as defined in claim 3, wherein one of said zero voltage switches has a construction the same as the other, said construction including a photosensitive silicon-controlled rectifier (SCR), a second transistor having a collector, an emitter and a base, an eighth resistor, a second full wave bridge rectifier, and a triac having first and second sides, said construction including first and second output leads connected from said first and second triac sides, respectively, said second bridge rectifier including tenth, eleventh, twelfth and thirteenth junctions and fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth auxiliary diodes, said triac having a gate connected from said second side thereof to said tenth junction, said twelfth junction being connected to said construction first output lead, said fifth diode being connected between said tenth and eleventh junctions and poled to be conductive toward said eleventh junction, said sixth diode being connected between said eleventh and twelfth junctions and poled to be conductive toward said eleventh junction, said seventh diode being connected between said twelfth and thirteenth junctions and poled to be conductive toward said twelfth junction, said eighth diode being connected between said tenth and thirteenth junctions and poled to be conductive toward said tenth junction, fourteenth, fifteenth and sixteenth junctions, said fourteenth and sixteenth junctions being connected from said eleventh and thirteenth junctions, respectively, the SCR of said one switch being fixed relative to one of said lamps to be illuminated thereby, the SCR of said other switch being fixed relative to the other of said lamps to be illuminated thereby, said construction also including said eighth resistor connected between said fourteenth and fifteenth junctions, a second capacitor connected between said fifteenth and sixteenth junctions, said SCR having an anode connected from said fourteenth junction, a cathode connected to said sixteenth junctions, and a gate, said second transistor collector, emitter and base being respectively connected from said SCR gate, said sixteenth junction and said fifteenth junction.

Claim 6

The invention as defined in claim 4, including a light emitting diode, said amplifier output lead being connected to said first transistor base by said light emitting diode, said light emitting diode being poled to be conductive in a direction toward said amplifier output lead.