Air conditioning equipment operation system and air conditioning equipment designing support system

• US 6,591,620 B2
• Filed: 02/06/2002
• Issued: 07/15/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 10/16/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Nakajima, Tadakatsu, Kikuchi, Hiroshige, Sasao, Keiji
• Primary Examiner(s): DOERRLER, WILLIAM CHARLES
• Application Number:
  US10/066,667
• Publication Number:
  US 20030070438A1
• Time in Patent Office: 524 Days
• Field of Search: 621/26, 621/32, 236/51, 236/47, 705/8, 700/276
• US Class Current: 62/126
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/30 for purposes related to the operation of the system, e.g. for safety or monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/47 Responding to energy costs
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/62 characterised by the type of control or by internal processing, e.g. using fuzzy logic, adaptive control or estimation of values
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/64 using pre-stored data
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 2130/00 Control inputs relating to environmental factors not covered by group F24F2110/00
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 2130/10 Weather information or forecasts
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/06 Energy or water supply

Abstract

A control server includes a device information database storing device characteristic data constituting the air conditioning equipment, a fuel/power rate database storing price and rate data regarding gas, oil, power and the like, a device characteristic and price database, an air conditioning equipment simulator for calculating running costs by using the data stored in the fuel/power rate database, and communication portion for performing communications through a network. The control server, and an air conditioning management controller for managing and controlling the air conditioning equipment provided with the communication portion for performing communications through the network, are connected to the network. An operation plan is made by the control server, the operation plan is transmitted to the air conditioning equipment management controller for controlling the air conditioning equipment through the network, and the air conditioning equipment is controlled and operated according to the operation plan.

Claims

1. An air conditioning equipment operation system in which air conditioning equipment provided in a contract site is operated by a service provider company, wherein the service provider company has a control server, said system comprising a device information database storing a device characteristic data of an air conditioner constituting the air conditioning equipment, a fuel or electricity rate database storing rate data of at least one of gas, oil and electric power, and an air conditioning equipment simulator for obtaining a partial load factor, and at least one of power consumption and fuel consumption during partial load running by using the device characteristic data and a cycle simulator, and for calculating running costs from the obtained power consumption and/or fuel consumption by using the rate data, wherein the contract site includes an air conditioning equipment management controller provided to manage and control the air conditioning equipment;

the control server and the air conditioning equipment management controller are connected to each other through a network;

the control server predicts a cooling load from predictable time series data on a temperature and humidity of outside air by referring to the device information database to make an operation plan of the air conditioner; and

the air conditioning equipment management controller operates the air conditioner in accordance with the operation plan; and

wherein the air conditioning equipment simulator calculates running costs for each operation of the air conditioner, and makes operation plan data by an operation method having lowest running costs among the calculated running costs.

2. The air conditioning equipment operation system according to claim 1, wherein the air conditioning equipment includes absorption and turbo freezers, and the air conditioning equipment simulator selects full or partial loads of the freezers in accordance with a set amount of heat for cooling of the absorption and turbo freezers, and calculates running costs in this case.

3. The air conditioning equipment operation system according to claim 1, wherein the air conditioning equipment includes a cooling tower, and the air conditioning equipment simulator calculates running costs in accordance with the operation/stop of the cooling tower.

4. The air conditioning equipment operation system according to claim 1, wherein the control server predicts a cooling load from prediction data on a temperature and humidity of an outside air purchased from a weather forecast company;

and the air conditioning equipment simulator sets an operation method of the air conditioning equipment in the air conditioning equipment management controller through a web based on the predicted cooling load.

5. The air conditioning equipment operation system according to claim 1, wherein said system comprises means for detecting the temperature and humidity of the outside air and means for detecting a cooling load of the air conditioning equipment, an equation of relation between the cooling load and the temperature and humidity of the outside air is obtained from the temperature and humidity of the outside air and the cooling load detected by the detecting means to predict a cooling load by using a equation of this relation.

6. The air conditioning equipment operation system according to claim 1, wherein the air conditioning equipment provided in the contract site includes a plurality of independently operable air conditioning equipment, and wherein the air conditioning equipment simulator provides simulation for a plurality of different operational scenarios using mutually differing operational combinations and/or cycles of ones of the plurality of independently operable air conditioning equipment, and calculates running costs for each different operational scenario.

7. The air conditioning equipment operation system according to claim 6, wherein the air conditioning equipment simulator provides simulation for at least three different operational scenarios.

8. The air conditioning equipment operation system according to claim 1, wherein the air conditioning equipment simulator is provided at a service provider company facility which is different from a facility where the air conditioning equipment is provided.