US 12,455,120 B1
Heating and cooling of buildings using underground heat storage
John Andrew Weems, San Antonio, TX (US)
Assigned to United Services Automobile Association (USAA), San Antonio, TX (US)
Filed by UIPCO, LLC, San Antonio, TX (US)
Filed on May 12, 2023, as Appl. No. 18/316,267.
Claims priority of provisional application 63/341,572, filed on May 13, 2022.
Int. Cl. F28D 20/00 (2006.01)
CPC F28D 20/0043 (2013.01) 13 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A system for heating and cooling a building comprising:
a radiant heating and cooling circuit comprising one or more pipes, wherein the pipes are filled with a fluid;
the radiant heating and cooling circuit further comprising a first circuit portion disposed within the building and a second circuit portion disposed within a heat storage medium;
at least one reversing pump circulating the fluid through the radiant heating and cooling circuit, said reversing pump operable to pump the fluid in a first direction or in a second direction, wherein when the reversing pump operates to pump the fluid in the first direction the fluid can be circulated in a first direction through the radiant heating and cooling circuit, and when the reversing pump operates to pump the fluid in the second direction the fluid can be circulated in a second direction through the radiant heating and cooling circuit;
wherein circulating the fluid through the radiant heating and cooling circuit in the first direction during a discharging phase extending from a first time of the year to a second time of the year has the effect of heating the building and extracting thermal energy from the heat storage medium to lower the temperature of the heat storage medium; and
wherein circulating the fluid through the radiant heating and cooling circuit in the second direction during a charging phase extending from the second time of the year to the first time of the year has the effect of cooling the building and adding thermal energy to the heat storage medium to increase the temperature of the heat storage medium.