APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR LOGGING DATA FROM A HEATING, VENTILATION, AND AIR CONDITIONING SYSTEM

1 . A method for logging data from a heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system, the method comprising:

collecting, within a thermostat, a plurality of data elements corresponding to a current time, at least one user setting, at least one HVAC system state, and at least one environmental measurement;

correlating, within the thermostat, the collected data elements according to the current time; and

storing, within the thermostat, the collected data elements.

2 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

transmitting the stored data elements from the thermostat to an external device; and

analyzing, within the external device, the transmitted data to determine energy savings.

3 . The method of claim 2 , wherein the data is transmitted from the thermostat when the thermostat receives a request from the external device.

4 . The method of claim 2 , wherein the data is transmitted from the thermostat to the external device over a communication link comprising one of a hard-wired communication link or a radio frequency communication link.

5 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the at least one user setting comprises at least one of an HVAC system setting, a fan setting, or a setpoint temperature.

6 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the at least one HVAC system state comprises at least one of an operating level, a fan state, an emergency heat state, a ventilation source state, or a humidity control state.

7 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the at least one environmental measurement comprises at least one of an occupancy status or a light level.

8 . An apparatus for governing a temperature of a room by controlling an operation of a heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system, the apparatus comprising:

an interface coupled to the HVAC system to control the operation thereof by control signals;

a controller including a processor coupled to a memory, the memory storing an environmental control program including program instructions for controlling the operation of the HVAC system by generating the control signals and further storing data; and

a temperature sensor coupled to the controller for providing, at any given time, a signal representing the temperature within the room;

wherein the controller is configured to collect a plurality of data elements corresponding to a current time, at least one user setting, at least one HVAC system state, and at least one environmental measurement; wherein the controller is further configured to correlate the collected data elements according to the current time; and wherein the controller is further configured to store the collected data elements.

9 . The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the controller is further configured to transmit the stored data elements from the thermostat to an external device capable of analyzing the transmitted data to determine energy savings.

10 . The apparatus of claim 9 , wherein the controller transmits the data when the controller receives a request from the external device.

11 . The apparatus of claim 9 , wherein the controller transmits the data to the external device over a communication link comprising one of a hard-wired communication link or a radio frequency communication link.

12 . The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the at least one user setting comprises at least one of an HVAC system setting, a fan setting, or a setpoint temperature.

13 . The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the at least one HVAC system state comprises at least one of an operating level, a fan state, an emergency heat state, a ventilation source state, or a humidity control state.

14 . The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the at least one environmental measurement comprises at least one of an occupancy status or a light level.