Building control system and fume hood system for use therein having reduced wiring requirements

• US 20040088082A1
• Filed: 01/28/2003
• Published: 05/06/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 01/28/2002
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: CF Magnus LLC (SoftBank Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: CF Magnus LLC (SoftBank Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Ahmed, Osman
• Application Number:
  US10/353,110
• Publication Number:
  US 20040088082A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 700/276
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 15/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/2642 Domotique, domestic, home control, automation, smart house
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/04 Trading; Exchange, e.g. stocks, commodities, derivatives or currency exchange

Abstract

A controller arrangement for a building system includes a first module, a second module, and a controller. The first module includes a first wireless communication device and a first microelectromechanical sensor device operable to generate a process value representative of a concentration of a first set of gaseous substances within a fume hood. The second module has a second wireless communication device and is operably coupled to an actuation element. The controller, which may be part of the first module, second module, neither or both, is operable to obtain the process value from the first module and provide a control output to the second module. The controller is further operable to communicate with at least one of the sensor module and the actuator module using wireless communications.

Claims

1. A controller arrangement for a building system, the arrangement comprising:

a first module comprising a first wireless communication device and a first microelectromechanical sensor device operable to generate a process value representative of a concentration of a first set of gaseous substances within a fume hood;

a second module having a second wireless communication device, the second module operably coupled to an actuation element; and

a controller operable to obtain the process value from the first module and provide a control output to the second module, the controller further operable to communicate with at least one of the first module and the second module using wireless communications.

2. The controller arrangement of claim 1 wherein the first module further comprises the controller.

3. The controller arrangement of claim 1 wherein the second module further comprises the controller.

4. The controller arrangement of claim 1 wherein the first set of gaseous substances comprises one gaseous substance.

5. The controller arrangement of claim 1 wherein the first module includes a processing device incorporated into the same substrate as the first microelectromechanical sensor.

6. The controller arrangement of claim 1 wherein the second module further includes an air flow sensor operable to generate an air flow process value, and wherein the controller is further operable to provide the control output based in part on the air flow process value.

7. The controller arrangement of claim 1 wherein the wireless communication circuit of the first module is a microelectromechanical local RF communication circuit.

8. The controller arrangement of claim 6 wherein the second module is further operable to provide information representative of air flow to a third module using wireless communications.

9. The controller arrangement of claim 1, wherein the first module includes a plurality of microelectromechanical sensors, at least one of the plurality of microelectromechanical sensors generating the process variable.

10. The controller arrangement of claim 1, wherein the wireless communication device of the sensor module employs a Bluetooth communication protocol and the wireless communication device of the actuator module employs the Bluetooth communication protocol.

11. An apparatus comprising:

a first microelectromechanical sensor device operable to generate a process value representative of a concentration of a first set of gaseous substances in a space;

a wireless communication device operably coupled to the first microelectromechanical sensor device, the wireless communication device operable to transmit first information to a control device, the control device operable to adjust an air flow to affect the concentration of the first gas substance in the space, the first information based on the process value.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, further comprising a plurality of microelectromechanical sensor devices.

13. The apparatus of claim 11, further comprising a processing device, the processing device operably coupled between the first microelectromechanical sensor device and the wireless communication device.

14. The apparatus of claim 13, further comprising a plurality of microelectromechanical sensor devices, the controller including a memory, the memory containing information identifying the first microelectromechanical sensor device of the plurality of microelectromechanical devices.

15. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the first information comprises a value representative of the process value.

16. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the first information comprises a value representative of a control output, the control output determined based on the process value and a set point value.

17. A method comprising:

a) obtaining from a microelectromechanical sensor device a process value representative of a concentration of a first set of gaseous substances;

b) effecting wireless communication of information to a second device, the information based on the process value; and

c) controlling an actuator responsive to the information.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the first set of gaseous substances comprises a first gaseous substance.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein the microelectromechanical sensor device is disposed within a fume hood.

20. The method of claim 17, wherein the second device includes a control device, and step c) further comprises employing the control device to control the actuator responsive to the information.

21. The method of claim 17, wherein the information comprises a control output determined based at least in part on a set point value and the process value.

22. The method of claim 17, wherein the information comprises a value representative of the process value.

23. The method of claim 17, wherein step c) further comprises employing the second device generate a control output based on the information and a set point value, and controlling the actuator responsive at least in part to the control output.

24. The method of claim 19 wherein step c) further comprises controlling an actuator operably coupled to a vent damper, the vent damper in air communication with the fume hood.

25. The method of claim 24 further comprising

d) effecting wireless communications to a third device, said wireless communications containing second information identifying an air flow characteristic in the vicinity of the vent damper;

e) controlling a second actuator attached to a second damper based on the second information.