1. Apparatus and method for controlling a printing machine
There is provided a control apparatus for a printing machine located in a building with a portion of the building being characterized by an environmental state. The printing machine includes a print machine component, while the control apparatus includes a communication line, operatively coupled with the printing machine, across which signals are transmitted. A sensing arrangement, communicating with the communication line, transmits a signal, representative of the environmental state of the building portion, across the communication line. An interface receives and converts the signal to a control signal, the control signal being used to control the print machine component.

2. Apparatus and method for automatic climate control
An apparatus and method for controlling the operation of (HVAC) equipment or other climate control equipment. The method is executed by a conventional computer with a memory storing a program. The system determines whether the space is not occupied and if the temperature drifts outside an allowed margin, then the system allows the temperature to drift to a maximum allowable margin, or to a newly determined margin, whichever is less. The newly determined margin is based upon a determination of the maximum temperature margin to which the system can drift and still drive the temperature back substantially to the use set point within a predetermined maximum recovery time. The recovery time is calculated based upon past temperature-vs.-time data stored for previous cycles of drift and drive. The system can further increase the energy savings by augmenting the allowed recovery time and/or maximum drift range when the ratio of the incremental drift time to the consequent required drive time exceeds a predetermined, programmable amount, i.e. when the added drive time required to return to a certain temperature is small relative to the added allowed drift time for the space, during which the HVAC equipment is not operating and hence no energy is being consumed. Savings and usage of energy over time are stored, and are output to the user upon request to the control computer. The stored data can also be used to determine whether the HVAC equipment's efficiency is deteriorating, and thus whether corrective maintenance is needed.

3. Room occupancy indicator means and method
Rooms in a building each have a heating, ventilating and air conditioning system (HVAC), a room control unit having a temperature controller, and various sensors. The control unit monitors the presence of persons in the room, determines the season, sets back the temperature in an empty room by a variable amount which the HVAC can restore in a given time, and restores the temperature to the previous user request when the user returns but to a standard temperature if the user has newly checked in. An outside hallway panel briefly displays, when interrogated by a maid, a person's presence. By monitoring maid requests, door status and maid activity, the unit indicates on a room map whether the room is being cleaned, clean, or ready to rent. By establishing the heat loss/gain (lg) factor of a room with the HVAC off and comparing it with the time to heat or cool the room, HVAC failures are determined. By comparing a room's lg factor with those of its neighbors, room environment failures are determined. A fire alarm is displayed immediately if more than one unit or more than one sensor reports fire; otherwise a fire alarm display is delayed briefly to reduce false alarms. Fire spreading is displayed on a screen room map showing in red rooms over a certain temperature. For fire, the hallway panels indicate those rooms where a person is present.

4. Printing machine adaptive setup
An adaptive setup for a printing machine that stores time and date data for each usage. A pattern of the stored information is determined and processed in conjunction with operator entered restrictions in order to specify machine operating conditions for successive days and times.

5. Infrared remote control apparatus
One or more infrared receiver units communicate by carrier current to an infrared transmitter unit in order to extend the operational range of an infrared remote control device that normally operates an electrical or electromechanical apparatus. The receiver converts the infrared radiation pattern produced by an infrared remote control device into a signal at a suitable frequency that is injected onto the carrier current of a facility. The transmitter, located adjacent the apparatus, converts the signal on the carrier current back into the original infrared signal used to operate the apparatus.

6. Climate control apparatus
A multi-level access flooring system having a work area floor and at least one intermediate floor, defining at least one isolated wireway between the intermediate floor and the work area floor, and at least one relatively unobstructed plenum, between the intermediate floor and the building floor, together with at least one HVAC inlet to such plenum and a plurality of individual outlets, with each outlet having its own flow control damper, together with a suitable control system for positioning the individual dampers and regulating the heating/cooling load of the HVAC unit to achieve localized as well as generalized control of climate within a building room.

7. Image forming apparatus including turn-on and turn-off setting means
An image forming apparatus comprises an image forming unit, a setting key for setting a turn-on or turn-off time of a power supply of the image forming unit and a control unit for controlling turn-on or turn-off of the power supply in accordance with the time preset by the setting key. The control unit inhibits the setting by the setting key if the turn-on or turn-off period of the power supply is shorter than a predetermined time period. The control unit further inhibits the turn-on or turn-off of the power supply during the operation of the image forming apparatus and within a predetermined time period after the completion of the image forming operation.

8. Environmental control system
An environmental control system for use in greenhouses or other structures requiring the control of a temperature regulating element in response to sensed temperatures. The environmental control system includes a plurality of sensor elements and actuator elements comprising peripheral control elements each of which communicate bidirectionally with individual communication interface units. A central control processor bidirectionally communicates with another communication interface unit. All of the interface units bidirectionally communicate with each other over fixed AC power lines by frequency shift keying the information onto and from the lines. The control processor receives operator inputs which cause it to assign time slots to different peripheral control elements to configure the system whereby each peripheral control element can be interrogated by addressing it during its time slot. In response to an interrogation, a sensor replies with data corresponding to a sensed parameter while an actuator replies with an acknowledgement and awaits control commands. A unique framing character is generated at the beginning of each time slot for alerting all peripheral elements that the next character generated will be an element address and for synchronizing multiple control processors to an identical time slot clock.