EFRI-SEED: Occupant Oriented Heating and Cooling

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

The objective of this EFRI-SEED project is to produce occupant-oriented heating and cooling technology, in which novel sensing systems extract information about the occupants to more strategically and effectively deliver comfort based on occupant need. The research will aim to answer the question: How much energy can be saved by sensing the identities, locations, and activities of building occupants, and automatically optimizing building operation? Using building occupancy to control heating and cooling requires more than simply connecting a thermostat to motion sensors; it requires a fundamental shift in the design goals of buildings and equipment. The research will create novel sensing technologies to better estimate both current and future building occupancy, in order to address the issue of thermal lag. It will also create novel types of heating and cooling equipment, and new designs for the building envelope that improve how quickly and efficiently a building can respond to changes in occupancy. This research will be integrated with new user interfaces that allow users to interact with an autonomous building operation system, and the outcomes will be guided by an analysis of marketplace constraints on green and sustainable technologies. The principles and approaches developed in this research can also be applied to other aspects of building operation such as lighting and water heating, and will therefore create a foundation for the next generation of intelligent buildings that autonomously monitor and respond to building occupants.This research focuses on low-cost solutions that can be readily translated to market. Preliminary studies demonstrated a 28% reduction per household in the energy required for heating and cooling, at the cost of only $25 in additional sensors. Thus, this technology can reclaim the 20-30% energy savings that was expected from but not realized by programmable thermostats. The research is expected to increase these gains substantially for existing buildings, which will help propel the nation towards its goal of a 25% improvement in the total energy efficiency of existing buildings across the country by 2030. This research will also create both residential and commercial "living laboratories" that will enhance the infrastructure for research and education in the areas of energy-efficient technologies. Both graduate and undergraduate researchers will be involved in all phases of this research, and we will engage and recruit students from underrepresented groups to participate in this research. This project will help inspire future generations of researchers, particularly women and underrepresented minorities to study Science and Engineering by illustrating its applied nature and potential for social benefit.The FY 2010 EFRI-SEED Topic that supports this project was sponsored by the US National Science Foundation (NSF) Directorates for Engineering (ENG), Mathematical and Physical Sciences (MPS) and Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences (SBE), and Computer & Information Science and Engineering in collaboration with the US Department of Energy (DOE) and the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).