This invention relates to a box, especially designed to manage power to non-essential / high electricity usage devices, such as air-conditioning units (ACUs) and immersion heaters (N.B.: During the description, only ACUs will be mentioned, but should be read as including immersion heaters and other similar devices, as well).

Hotel keycard systems are well known in the marketplace and work quite well, in the sense that, when people leave their hotel room, they have to remove their key from a box situated right next to the room's door, and, in this way, electricity goes off completely in that room. As a direct consequence, economy in both expenses and energy is ensured, as well as environmental protection. It is important to note that the components used for hotel keycard systems are integrated into existing electrical systems and not as a stand alone device, as with the proposed product.

The major problem with trying to incorporate the hotel keycard systems into houses or apartments (N. B.: Reference is here made predominantly to houses or apartments let as holiday or long term rentals, but also to houses or apartments, in a broader sense) is that it requires an electrician to add separate components and change wiring in the house's or apartment's electrical system. Also, as with most hotel systems, all electrical devices are switched off and, therefore, essential devices, such as refrigerators, freezers, etc., cannot continue working, thus e.g. causing the destruction of any perishable food the resident might have placed in them. The proposed product houses all required components in one box, which then just requires connecting directly to the property's electrical system.

This is where the proposed box ("the product") becomes useful. Although the product could also be used for managing power of refrigerators, freezers, television, lighting, etc., its intended use is for high electricity usage devices alone, because of the bigger impact they have on expenses, energy and the environment.

The advantages of the product are multiple, as already explained above in part. ACUs constitute a high percentage of a property's electricity usage. The product saves power and, thus, naturally saves money. Leaving ACUs even on stand-by wastes electricity / energy; the product turns off power to all ACUs simultaneously, by removing the key fob from the unit, thus protecting the environment.

In a nutshell, the product essentially provides an interface between the main electricity supply distribution board (fuse box) of the property and the ACUs, with the option to include the electric water heater system (immersion heater). The power to the ACUs is routed through the product. A specially designed key fob, when inserted into a slot on the front of the box, completes the circuit, which provides power to the ACUs (Figure 1). When the key fob is removed, the circuit and power to the ACUs is instantly disabled.

The key fob is attached to the property's access keys to ensure that the ACUs can only be powered when occupants of the property are present. The keys are attached to the key fob using aircraft wire with a crimp join, which under normal use cannot be broken, except with specialist tools. It is to be noted that, "unattached" key fobs can be purchased by the property owners, ensuring that the owners have full control over the whole system.

There are several technical details that should be taken into account when fabricating the product.

The product is housed in a heat-resistant container (e.g. plastic). The container is vented for ventilation purposes, plus it has a slot, which holds the key fob in a vertical position. Moreover, it has screw holes in the back to secure the unit to an internal wall, plus a larger hole in the back (roughly centred) to allow for wires, which connect the unit to the property's fuse box.

Internally, the container houses up to four (4) contactors, located around a central printed circuit board (PCB). Internal cabling is routed for exit through the hole in the back of the container for connection to the property's fuse box (Figure 2). Other internal cabling includes that between the contactors and the PCB. The product is provided with a standard of 300mm length external cables sheathed through a suitable conduit. External cabling from the hole in the back of the container needs to be connected to the property's fuse box, although the location of the container does not need to be adjacent to the fuse box.

It should be noted that any electrical connection between the front cover and the main box will be via a wiring Lo mb.

As to the function of the product, the PCB requires a magnet placed over the magnetic feed switch to complete the circuit and power the board. Once this connection is made, power is relayed to the contactors and, in turn, powers the ACUs.

Each of the internal contactors can control two (2) ACUs (or one ACU and the immersion heater). Therefore, if, for example, a property has three (3) ACUs, it will require two (2) contactors. The container is designed in such a way that contactors may be added or removed at any point as required, so that a single product / unit can control from one (1) ACU up to a maximum of eight (8) ACUs (or seven ACUs and one immersion heater).

The product's key fob is cast in brass, with a magnet housed in the hollow centre of one side of the key fob, covered by an aluminium strip. The key fob has a hole at one end to enable it to be attached to a set of the property's key(s). The keys are attached to the key fob using aircraft wire with a crimp join, which under normal use cannot be broken, except with specialist tools.

Once the key fob is inserted into the slot on the front of the container, the magnet inside it completes the circuit in the PCB, which in turn powers the ACUs.

There are several possible fabrication alterations of the product.