Environmental control management system

• US 10,539,937 B2
• Filed: 03/22/2018
• Issued: 01/21/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ideal Impact, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Ideal Impact, Inc.
• Inventors: McDaniel, Wesley O., Porter, Todd A., Hornback, Kimberly J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Cao, Chun
• Application Number:
  US15/928,408
• Publication Number:
  US 20180284819A1
• Time in Patent Office: 670 Days
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/64 using pre-stored data
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 2130/10 Weather information or forecasts
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 15/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/2642 Domotique, domestic, home control, automation, smart house
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 23/1934 each space being provided with one sensor acting on one or more control means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/1093 Calendar-based scheduling for persons or groups

Abstract

Disclosed is a system and method for environmental control management. In response to a controller, sensors and effectors throughout a physical site operate to maintain the temperature, humidity, and/or peak energy usage of the physical site within parameters selected for occupant comfort and economical operation while accommodating changing occupancy patterns.

Claims

1. An environmental control management system configured to provide environmental control management for a plurality of controlled sites, the environmental control management system comprising:

a static data store comprising;

a site intelligence database comprising a meter demand target associated with meters providing power to a plurality of effectors dispersed through the plurality of controlled sites; and

an equipment intelligence database comprising a seasonal values table comprising environmental characteristics associated with each effector of the plurality of effectors;

a dynamic user data store comprising a calendar activity database configured to store an occupancy pattern of the plurality of controlled sites; and

a controller configured to receive the occupancy pattern from the calendar activity database and schedule operation of each of the plurality of effectors in response to the occupancy pattern wherein scheduling operation comprises setting each of the plurality of effectors to activate for a first duration of time prior to each site associated with each effector being scheduled for occupancy, the first duration comprising a ramp time, and

wherein the controller further comprises a run time, ramp time, and load rolling engine configured to alter the schedule by changing the first duration in response to a meter demand target whereby an electrical load associated with at least a subset of the plurality of effectors is maintained below the meter demand target, the altering comprising increasing the first duration of at least one of the plurality of effectors to cause an actuation of the at least one of the plurality of effectors to be asynchronous with a further actuation of a further at least one of the plurality of effectors.

2. The environmental control management system of claim 1, further comprising:

a third party data receiver comprising;

an I/O controller configured to receive weather data via a third party data receiver data input channel; and

a weather database, wherein the I/O controller stores weather data in the weather database;

wherein the controller further comprises a weather adaptation module configured to retrieve the weather data and interoperate with the run time, ramp time, and load rolling engine to assign the ramp time of the at least an effector of the at least the subset of the plurality of effectors, and

wherein the controller is configured to further alter the schedule by changing the first duration comprising the ramp time in response to the weather data.

3. The environmental control management system according to claim 2,

wherein the third party data receiver further comprises a utility provider database comprising a billing rule and a real-time load data, and

wherein the controller is configured to alter the schedule in response to the billing rule, whereby the meter demand target of the site intelligence database is changed in response to a comparison of the real-time load data and the billing rule.

4. The environmental control management system of claim 2, wherein assigning the ramp time comprises performing a method of daily weather-responsive effector ramp time determination comprising:

obtaining a mode of a thermostat, wherein obtaining the mode of the thermostat comprises;

retrieving, by the weather database of a third party data receiver, daily weather forecast data comprising a forecast high temperature and a forecast low temperature;

retrieving, from the seasonal values table of at least one of the equipment intelligence database of the static data store, an outside air cooling enable temperature (OACET) of the thermostat;

retrieving, from the seasonal values table of at least one of the equipment intelligence database of the static data store, an outside air heating enable temperature (OAHET) of the thermostat;

comparing, by the controller, the forecast high temperature to the OACET;

comparing, by the controller, the forecast low temperature to the OAHET;

the controller configured to, in response to the forecast high temperature being less than or equal to the OACET and the forecast low temperature being greater than or equal to the OAHET, select an automatic mode for the thermostat;

the controller configured to, in response to the forecast high temperature being less than or equal to the OACET and the forecast low temperature being less than or equal to the OAHET, select a heating mode for the thermostat;

the controller configured to, in response to the forecast high temperature being greater than or equal to the OACET and the forecast low temperature being less than or equal to the OAHET, select the automatic mode for the thermostat; and

the controller configured to, in response to the forecast high temperature being greater than or equal to the OACET and the forecast low temperature being greater than or equal to the OAHET, select a cooling mode for the thermostat; and

the controller further configured to, in response to the mode of the thermostat being the cooling mode, perform, by the run time, ramp time, and load rolling engine, a cooling mode ramp time establishment procedure;

the controller further configured to, in response to the mode of the thermostat being the heating mode, perform, by the run time, ramp time, and load rolling engine, a heating mode ramp time establishment procedure; and

the controller further configured to, in response to the mode of the thermostat being the automatic mode, perform, by the run time, ramp time, and load rolling engine, an automatic mode ramp time establishment procedure.

5. The environmental control management system of claim 4, further comprising wherein the heating mode ramp time establishment procedure performed by the run time, ramp time, and load rolling engine of the controller comprises:

retrieving, from the weather database by the weather adaptation module, a current day'"'"'s low forecast temperature;

retrieving, from the seasonal values table of the equipment intelligence database of the static data store, an OAHET;

differencing, by the controller, the current day'"'"'s low forecast temperature with the OAHET to obtain a worst case forecast temperature delta;

retrieving, from the equipment intelligence database of the static data store, a ramp time coefficient;

multiplying the ramp time coefficient by the worst case forecast temperature delta to determine a calculated heating ramp time;

comparing the calculated heating ramp time to a minimum ramp time and selecting a larger of the calculated heating time and the minimum ramp time as an adjusted heating ramp time;

retrieving, from the equipment intelligence database of the static data store, a maximum ramp time;

selecting, by the controller, a smaller of the maximum ramp time and the adjusted heating ramp time as a final adjusted heating ramp time; and

changing the first duration by propagating, by the controller, the final adjusted heating ramp time to at least one of a central plant and the effector connected to the thermostat.

6. The environmental control management system of claim 4, further comprising wherein the cooling mode ramp time establishment procedure performed by the run time, ramp time, and load rolling engine of the controller comprises:

retrieving, from the weather database by the weather adaptation module, a previous day'"'"'s high forecast temperature and a current day'"'"'s high forecast temperature and selecting, by the controller, a higher of the previous day'"'"'s high forecast temperature and the current day'"'"'s high forecast temperature;

retrieving, from the seasonal values table of the equipment intelligence database of the static data store, an OACET;

differencing the higher of the previous day'"'"'s high forecast temperature and the current day'"'"'s high forecast temperature with the OACET to obtain a worst case forecast temperature delta;

retrieving, from the equipment intelligence database of the static data store, a ramp time coefficient;

multiplying, by the controller, the ramp time coefficient by the worst case forecast temperature delta to determine a calculated cooling ramp time;

comparing the calculated cooling ramp time to a minimum ramp time and selecting a larger of the calculated cooling ramp time and the minimum ramp time as an adjusted cooling ramp time;

retrieving, from the equipment intelligence database of the static data store, a maximum ramp time; and

selecting, by the controller, a smaller of the maximum ramp time and the adjusted cooling ramp time as a final adjusted cooling ramp time;

changing the first duration by propagating, by the controller, the final adjusted cooling ramp time to at least one of a central plant and the effector connected to the thermostat.

7. The environmental control management system of claim 4, further comprising wherein the automatic mode ramp time establishment procedure performed by the run time, ramp time, and load rolling engine of the controller comprises:

retrieving, by the controller, a final adjusted cooling ramp time by performing the cooling mode ramp time establishment procedure;

retrieving, by the controller, a final adjusted heating ramp time by performing the heating mode ramp time establishment procedure; and

selecting a higher of a previous day'"'"'s high forecast temperature and a current day'"'"'s high forecast temperature;

comparing the selected higher temperature to the OAHET;

in response to the selected higher temperature being greater than or equal to the OAHET selecting the final adjusted heating ramp time as a final adjusted automatic ramp time;

in response to the selected higher temperature being less than the OAHET selecting the final adjusted cooling ramp time as a final adjusted automatic ramp time; and

changing the first duration by propagating, by the controller, the final adjusted automatic ramp time to at least one of a central plant and the effector connected to the thermostat.

8. The environmental control management system of claim 4, further comprising wherein the scheduling the operation of each of the plurality of effectors in response to the occupancy pattern further comprises:

importing, by the controller, data representative of a calendar containing a plurality of calendar events, by a calendar activity engine of the controller, wherein the data comprises at least one of dates, times, use types, and rooms;

assigning, by the run time, ramp time, and load rolling engine of the controller, the first duration comprising the ramp time to each calendar event; and

instructing, by the controller, the effector to actuate in response to the ramp time assigned to the calendar event,

wherein actuating comprises at least one of turning on and turning off.

9. The environmental control management system of claim 8, further comprising wherein the scheduling the operation of each of the plurality of effectors in response to the occupancy pattern further comprises:

calculating, by the calendar activity engine, an event proximity window comprising a determined duration of time wherein events spaced apart by no less than the event proximity window are mergeable as a single event;

merging, by the calendar activity engine, at least two calendar events of the plurality of calendar events, in response to the at least two calendar events occupying time slots lying within the event proximity window;

identifying, by an equipment intelligence engine of the controller, at least one effector of the plurality of effectors of the environmental control management system, wherein the at least one effector is associated with the site of the calendar event;

determining, by the equipment intelligence engine of the controller, whether at least one further effector of the plurality of effectors of the environmental control management system has a central plant-peripheral unit relationship wherein the further effector is associated with a central plant shared with the at least one effector;

in response to the determining indicating that the effector and the further effector each have central plant-peripheral unit relationships with the central plant, aggregating a load of the effector and the further effector to calculate an aggregated plant load; and

in response to the determining indicating that the aggregated plant load is less than a central plant minimum load requirement, selecting by the controller a second further effector for actuating and instructing, by the controller the second further effector to actuate.

10. The environmental control management system of claim 9, further comprising wherein the scheduling the operation of each of the plurality of effectors in response to the occupancy pattern further comprises:

identifying, by a site intelligence engine and effector mapping engine, a meter associated with the effector;

evaluating a meter charge profile associated with the meter and stored in the site intelligence database by the site intelligence engine and determining an existence of a demand charge of the meter charge profile; and

performing a load rolling method in response to the existence of the demand charge, wherein the load rolling method returns a timeslot precession instruction; and

subsequent to the performing the load rolling method, setting an operating time of at least one of the at least one effector and the central plant in response to the timeslot precession instruction.