Teaching Approved Methods of Tuning and Adjusting Heating, Ventilating, and Air Conditioning Control Systems

供暖、通风和空调（HVAC）行业目前正在努力解决一个影响其在建筑物所有者和居住者中的信誉的问题：安装、翻新和维护的建筑物HVAC系统不能满足业主、居住者和其他最终用户的条件、舒适度和运行经济性预期。正如暖通空调和建筑行业期刊上的文章和关注信件所证明的那样，建筑机械系统业主、设计师、安装人员和居住者代表需要一种普遍理解的、科学的现场测试暖通空调系统控制性能的方法，这种方法可以更容易地确定是否符合期望和指定的操作。先前的一项NSF对辛克莱社区学院（DUE 9544183）的资助资助了一次由全国高校代表、暖通空调行业专业人士和暖通空调设备制造商参加的研讨会。在研讨会上，证明了控制系统的性能可以通过控制器响应的硬拷贝记录来分析。这种教科书描述的分析方法取代了非科学的视觉监测实践，或用于观察和纠正控制器行为的模糊“自调整”程序。应研讨会的要求，辛克莱学院正在开发一个课程模块，教授如何使用手持式图形计算器来代替研讨会上使用的脆弱、昂贵、复杂的实验室测试设备，以演示基于教科书控制理论的控制器行为分析方法。课程模块用于辛克莱社区学院现有的暖通空调控制课程，并可用于机械工程技术的其他副学士和学士学位课程。所有开发的材料和技术都通过工程教育专业协会传播。最终报告作为提交给ASHRAE、IEEE、ASEE和ISA等专业协会大会的技术论文的基础。课程的开发是与代顿大学的教师、专业顾问小组和国家先进制造教育卓越中心的课程开发人员合作完成的。管理这个开发项目的辛克莱学院研究人员在设计和安装主要商用暖通空调控制系统方面有多年的经验。此外，这些材料可以在全国范围内由两年制大学为当地工业雇员提供的继续教育课程中找到现成的用途。辛克莱与代顿大学、迈阿密米德尔敦大学、辛辛那提大学应用科学学院、托莱多大学和费里斯州立大学等四年制大学签订了衔接协议和工作安排，开发的材料正在许多工程和技术项目中使用。

The Heating, Ventilating, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) industry is presently struggling with a problem that affects its credibility with owners and occupants of buildings: installed, renovated, and maintained building HVAC systems are not meeting the conditions, comfort, and economy of operation expectations of owners, occupants and other end users. As evidenced by articles and letters of concern in HVAC and building trade periodicals, building mechanical system owners, designers, installers, and occupant representatives need a commonly understood, scientific means of field testing HVAC system control performance which can more readily determine compliance with desired and specified operation. A previous NSF grant to the Sinclair Community College (DUE 9544183) sponsored a symposium attended by national representatives of colleges and universities, HVAC industry professionals, and HVAC equipment manufacturers. At the symposium it was demonstrated that control systems performance could be analyzed through hard copy recordings of controller responses. This textbook-described method of analysis was in lieu of the non-scientific practice of visual monitoring, or vague "self tuning" programs used for observing and correcting controller behavior.As the result of a request at the symposium, Sinclair faculty is developing a curriculum module to teach the utilization of a hand-held graphing calculator to be substituted for the fragile, expensive, sophisticated laboratory test equipment that was used at the symposium to demonstrate the method of controller behavior analysis based on textbook control theory. The curriculum module is used in existing HVAC control courses at Sinclair Community College and is available to other Associate and Bachelor degree programs in mechanical engineering technology. All materials and technology developed are disseminated through engineering education professional associations. The final report serves as the basis of technical papers presented to general meetings of such professional societies as ASHRAE, IEEE, ASEE, and ISA.Development of curriculum is accomplished in cooperation with faculty from the University of Dayton, a professional advisory panel, and curriculum developers at the National Center of Excellence for Advanced Manufacturing Education. The Sinclair faculty researchers administering this development project have years of experience in designing and installing major commercial HVAC control systems. In addition, such material can find ready use nationally in continuing-education courses offered by two-year colleges to employees of local industry. With the articulation agreements and working arrangements that Sinclair has with such four-year colleges as the University of Dayton, Miami University of Middletown, University of Cincinnati College of Applied Science, University of Toledo, and Ferris State University, the developed material is being used in many engineering and technical programs.