Building management system

• US 7,567,844 B2
• Filed: 03/17/2006
• Issued: 07/28/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 03/17/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Innovation Asset Collective
• Original Assignee: Honeywell International Inc.
• Inventors: Anderson, Neal A., Behar, Mark A., Thomas, Robert J., Donaldson, Stuart G.
• Primary Examiner(s): BARNES-BULLOCK, CRYSTAL JOY
• Application Number:
  US11/276,910
• Publication Number:
  US 20070219645A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,229 Days
• Field of Search: 700/17, 700/19, 700/83, 700/180, 700/182, 700/275, 700/276, 702/186, 702/188, 703/1, 705/1, 705/7, 705/8, 705/9, 705/15, 705/27, 705/28, 707 2- 4, 707/9, 707/10, 707/100, 707/102, 707/104.1, 709/208, 709/217, 709/223, 709/224, 715/255, 715/700, 715/733, 715/740, 715/741, 715771-773, 340/3.1, 340/3.5, 340/3.9, 340/531, 345/1.1, 345/2.1, 345/156, 345/419, 348/49, 348/50, 348/73, 348/142, 348/143, 348/159, 382/104, 382/154
• US Class Current: 700/19
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 15/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/2642 Domotique, domestic, home control, automation, smart house

Abstract

A building management system for one or more buildings, having a processor and a display for showing a model of a building being managed. The model may be shown as a three dimensional depiction or rendition, or a virtual building. A database may provide information regarding sensors, actuators and other items which may be viewed in conjunction with the displayed model. Information regarding the location and status of the sensors, control devices, and the like, which may be points of interest, may be mapped on the virtual depiction or model of the building. A user or operator may thus move through the building and view and affect rooms, sensing and control devices, and other items, including quick navigation to points of interest, in virtual reality. A recorder and play mechanism may be a significant portion of the system for recording structures, parameters, environment, events and other information of the system.

Claims

1. A method for managing a plurality of buildings, comprising:

providing a display to provide observations of a virtual camera;

providing a model of each of the plurality of buildings;

observing a model with the virtual camera;

updating each model of each of the plurality of buildings; and

viewing a plurality of parameters in the model of each of the plurality of buildings with the virtual camera via the display.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

providing points of interest for a building; and

selecting a point of interest for quick navigation with the virtual camera to the point of interest in a model of the building for viewing.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising recording observations of the virtual camera of structures, events and/or operations in and related to the system.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

evaluating the plurality of parameters; and

determining from the evaluating the plurality of parameters a cause of a problem, if any, in a building of the plurality of buildings.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

recording the viewing of the plurality of parameters; and

playing back the viewing of the plurality of parameters to navigate in time for analyses.

6. The method of claim 5, comprising placing the plurality of parameters in the model.

7. The method of claim 6, comprising displaying the model in a three-dimensional rendered format for two-dimensional displaying.

8. The method of claim 6, comprising displaying the model in a three-dimensional format for three-dimensional displaying.

9. A building management system comprising:

a building model;

a processor connected to the building model module;

a building data module connected to the processor;

a user interface connected to the processor; and

a recorder and player connected to the processor; and

wherein the user interface comprises a virtual camera for observing the building model and a display for viewing observations from the virtual camera.

10. The system of claim 9, further comprising:

a linking module connected to the processor; and

wherein the linking module is connected to at least one building.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the building model is a three-dimensional representation of the at least one building.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein a space of the building model may be entered with the virtual camera.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein:

points of interest of a space are available for prompt access at the user interface; and

an adequate viewing position of the point of interest is available via the virtual camera and the display.

14. The system of claim 12, wherein the linking module is connected to a plurality of buildings.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the linking module is connected to a building controller of each of the plurality of buildings.

16. The system of claim 14 wherein each of the plurality of buildings comprises:

a plurality of building control devices; and

a building controller connected to the plurality of building control devices.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the plurality of building control devices comprises:

a face recognition system;

an RFID reader;

temperature sensors;

valve actuators;

video cameras;

access controllers;

lighting devices; and

/or

smoke detectors.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the linking module is connected to the plurality of buildings via an internet connection.

19. A building management system comprising:

a controller;

a plurality of building control devices connected to the controller; and

a workstation connected to the controller; and

wherein the workstation comprises a virtual camera and a display for providing views from the virtual camera.

20. The system of claim 19, further comprising a recording and playback mechanism, connected to controller.

21. The system of claim 20, further comprising a building model module connected to the controller.

22. The system of claim 21, further comprising:

points of interest at the building available for navigating to and viewing via the virtual camera on the display at the workstation; and

wherein the navigating is based on a lattice.

23. The system of claim 19, wherein the workstation comprises:

a three-dimensional rendering of two-dimensional views on the display; and

a keyboard connected to the display.

24. A building management system comprising:

a building model database;

a processor connected to the building model database and to a controller of at least one building; and

a user interface connected to the processor; and

wherein;

the building model database contains a model of the at least one building

the at least one building is monitored via the model of the at least one building;

the user interface comprises a virtual camera and a display for revealing an observation of the virtual camera; and

the virtual camera is for observing one or more items in the model of the at least one building.

25. The system of claim 24, wherein:

an item is an environmental condition; and

the environmental condition is one or more items of a group comprising room temperature, wall temperature, airflow, airflow temperature, lighting, humidity, air quality, and electromagnetic radiation.

26. The system of claim 25, wherein the virtual camera is for observing a color of light of a space in the model of the building, which is indicative of a temperature of a space of a building.

27. The system of claim 26, wherein the virtual camera is for observing temperature values of a space of the building via observation of geometric shapes situated proximate to the respective space on the model of the building.

28. The system of claim 27, the geometric shapes situated proximate to the respective space on the model of the building further indicate temperature gradients in a space of the building.

29. The system of claim 26, wherein:

a map of the earth on the display of a scene from the virtual camera is for emanating a visible signal at a location on the map indicative of a certain condition at a building proximate to the location of the visible signal; and

the virtual camera is for zooming in on the location to observe a model of the building and receive a visual indication of a specific condition of the building.

30. The system of claim 29, wherein:

the specific condition may be one or more environmental conditions;

the visual indication is a geometrical shape having a certain color is indicative of the specific condition.

31. The system of claim 26, wherein:

the virtual camera is for observing marks indicative of air flow in a space of a building of the model; and

a color of the marks is indicative of a temperature of the air flow.

32. The system of claim 31, wherein:

the user interface further comprises a mechanism for selecting an item on the display; and

selecting a source of the air flow in a display of the space of the building in the model observed by the virtual camera, results in a numerical indication of temperature and an amount of air flow at the source.

33. The system of claim 24, wherein:

the user interface further comprises a mechanism for selecting an item on the display; and

the item may be an object in the model of the at least one building;

selecting an object results in one or more settings and/or indications to the virtual camera if the object is a thermostat or a sensor;

selecting an object results in one or more actions and/or indications to the virtual camera if the object is an actuator;

selecting an object results in information to the virtual camera if the object is a piece of equipment; and

selecting an object results in movement or disassembly if the object in the model of the at least one building is a part of the building.

34. The system of claim 24, further comprising a recording mechanism for recording observations of the virtual camera.

35. The system of claim 24, wherein the display can provide three-dimensional images from observations of the virtual camera.

36. The system of claim 24, wherein:

the user interface further comprises a mechanism for selecting an item on the display;

the item may be an object in the model of the at least one building; and

the at least one building in model can be virtually taken apart by selecting and moving objects.

37. The system of claim 24, the virtual camera via the user interface can move through the model of the at least one building.

38. The system of claim 24, wherein:

the model comprises points of interests for a space of the at least one building;

the user interface further comprises a mechanism for selecting a point of interest on the display showing the model; and

the virtual camera can promptly go to a point of interest upon selecting of a point of interest.

39. The system of claim 24, wherein the display can provide three-dimensional images from observations of the virtual camera.

40. The system of claim 24, wherein the user interface further comprises a mechanism for selecting a access control, security, auto-identification technologies, face recognition systems, environmental control and sensing systems, video cameras, lighting systems, and/or alarm systems of the least one building, on the display showing the model of the least one building.