Jul 14 2016
Schneider Electric, the global specialist in energy management and automation, today announced the new Eco IQ™ self-learning feature of its Wiser Air™ Wi-Fi Smart Thermostat. Instead of requiring users to constantly enter desired temperature set points – a common requirement of most commercially available smart thermostats on the market today – users now only need to provide feedback when they're not comfortable. The new feature takes the guesswork out of determining what temperature is optimal for users and allows Eco IQ to quickly learn and leverage feedback to create a comfortable heating and cooling plan.
According to Park Associates, smart thermostats are currently one of the strongest categories of smart home devices, with more than 10 percent of U.S. broadband households planning to purchase one in the next 12 months. But research shows that most users with smart thermostats don't know how to properly utilize them for energy savings and often override schedules. Unlike other smart thermostats, Eco IQ constantly manages and adjusts temperatures, freeing users from the burden of having to constantly provide feedback. This helps users create an optimal environment and maximize energy savings all day long – not just when they are away from their homes.
"Created by building automation and HVAC experts at Schneider Electric, Eco IQ is the most advanced self-learning algorithm on the market today," said Paul Buda, engineer, fellow and senior group expert, Schneider Electric. "With Eco IQ, Wiser Air challenges the very idea of set points – commonly used as a determining factor of user comfort in other solutions – freeing users from the need to set temperatures and schedules."
In addition to producing a more comfortable and efficient environment, Wiser Air with Eco IQ combines Schneider Electric's weather service, WeatherSentry™, the number one ranked forecasting service for nine consecutive years. Leading utilities, major airlines and sports and entertainment venues also rely on WeatherSentry for weather intelligence. Utilizing these forecasts, the Eco IQ feature learns how long it takes to change the temperature in the home in all types of weather and plans ahead to start heating or cooling just in time to hit users' preferred target temperatures.
Featuring a smartphone style, high-resolution 3.5 inch color touchscreen and a plug-and-play design, Wiser Air with Eco IQ is easy to install and intuitive to operate. Users simply tell Eco IQ how to prioritize comfort vs. savings, and Wiser does the rest. It syncs seamlessly with its smartphone app to create a unified user experience across any device or operating system. The thermostat, with rich hardware and Wi-Fi capability, supports automatic software updates, giving users access to the latest technology advancements over time. Existing Wiser Air users will receive an update that includes Eco IQ. Once the feature is enabled by the user, they will be able to incorporate the self-learning feature into their thermostats.
In addition to partner technologies currently available with Wiser Air from Microsoft and EnergySage, Schneider Electric is continuing to build on Wiser Air's functionalities with Amazon. This summer, Wiser Air will seamlessly sync with Amazon Alexa, which will enable voice control of Wiser Air. Users will be able to take advantage of this new feature with their current devices through Wiser Air's automatic updates.
Schneider Electric's Wiser Air with the new Eco IQ self-learning feature is currently available for purchase at select Microsoft Stores, the first brick and mortar retailer to sell Wiser, and online at Home Depot, Amazon, Best Buy, NewEgg, Controls Central, APC.com and other retailers. For a complete list, please visit: Wiser Air – Where to Buy.
For more information about Wiser Air with Eco IQ, please visit www.wiserair.com/up-close/eco-iq/.