Actuator and energy management system comprising such actuators

• US 9,287,708 B2
• Filed: 06/24/2011
• Issued: 03/15/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 06/24/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Diehl AKO Stiftung & Company KG, Mrs-Office GmbH, Viessmann Werke GmbH & Company KG
• Original Assignee: Viessmann Hausautomation GmbH (Viessmann Climate Solutions SE)
• Inventors: Simon, Helmut, Leonhardt, Armin, Kaps, Werner
• Primary Examiner(s): Barnie, Rexford
• Assistant Examiner(s): INGE, JOSEPH N
• Application Number:
  US13/167,947
• Publication Number:
  US 20120019066A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,726 Days
• Field of Search: 307/31
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00004 characterised by the power network being locally controlled
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00016 using a wired telecommunication network or a data transmission bus
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00022 using wireless data transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2310/14 The load or loads being home appliances
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 3/14 by switching loads on to, or off from, network, e.g. progressively balanced loading
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 70/30 Systems integrating technologies related to power network operation and communication or information technologies for improving the carbon footprint of the management of residential or tertiary loads, i.e. smart grids as climate change mitigation technology in the buildings sector, including also the last stages of power distribution and the control, monitoring or operating management systems at local level
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 70/3225 Demand response systems, e.g. load shedding, peak shaving
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 90/20 Smart grids as enabling technology in buildings sector smart grids supporting the management or operation of end-user stationary applications in general, or like technologies with no associated climate change mitigation effect Y04S20/00
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 20/222 Demand response systems, e.g. load shedding, peak shaving
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 20/242 Home appliances
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 40/124 using wired telecommunication networks or data transmission busses
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 40/126 using wireless data transmission

Abstract

An actuator for the power control of at least one connected load has a load detection device for detecting a magnitude of a load and/or a type of a load of the at least one as a measurement variable relating to the load of the at least one consumer. A communication interface receives at least one manipulated variable for the power control of the at least one consumer and transmits the measurement variable detected by the load detection device. Actuators of this type may be integrated into an energy management system, such as of a building automation system, for example.

Claims

1. An actuator for integration in a monitored system having a central control unit and a plurality of controlled consumers, the actuator controlling a power of at least one consumer connected thereto, the actuator comprising:

a load detection device for detecting a load magnitude and a load type of the at least one consumer, the load magnitude forming a load measurement variable relating to a load of the at least one consumer and the load type being selected from the group consisting of a resistive load, a capacitive load and an inductive load;

a control circuit for controlling a power of the at least one consumer, said control circuit being configured for operation in at least two control types selected from the group consisting of a sinusoidal control, a phase chopping control and a phase gating control, said control circuit being connected to receive from said load detection device information regarding the load type and being configured to drive the at least one consumer in accordance with one of a plurality of control types depending on the load type detected by said load detection device; and

a communication interface for connecting the actuator to the central control unit for transmitting the load measurement variable detected by said load detection device to the central control unit and for receiving from the central control unit at least one manipulated variable for the power control of the at least one consumer.

2. The actuator according to claim 1, wherein said control circuit is operable according to a control type selected from the group consisting of a sinusoidal control, a phase chopping control, and a phase gating control.

3. The actuator according to claim 1, which comprises at least one supply connection for voltage supply and at least one output, and wherein a mains voltage fed in can be looped through via said output unchanged.

4. The actuator according to claim 1, which comprises at least one electrical control input for feeding in a switching signal of at least one external switching element.

5. The actuator according to claim 4, wherein a switching state of the actuator can be altered independently of a polarity of a voltage present at the at least one electrical control input.

6. The actuator according to claim 4, wherein said at least one control input is configurable in such a way that the switching state can be altered depending on a duration and/or on a state change of a present switching signal of a switching element.

7. The actuator according to claim 4, wherein said at least one control input is one of at least two control inputs including a first control input and a second control input, each of said control inputs is assigned a switching element, said control inputs are configurable such that a first switching state is present when a switching signal of a switching element is present at said first control input, and a second switching state is present when a switching signal of a switching element is present at said second control input.

8. The actuator according to claim 7, wherein said control inputs are configurable such that the first and second switching states can be set by the switching signal being present briefly and a power that can be fed to a consumer can be altered by a switching signal present over a longer period of time.

9. The actuator according to claim 4, wherein said control inputs are configurable such that a change to the same switching state of the actuator can be initiated, independently of a polarity of a switching signal of the switching element and/or of the control input at which a switching signal of a switching element is present.

10. An energy management system, comprising:

a plurality of consumers;

a plurality of actuators according to claim 1, each connected to a respective one of said consumers, for a power control of said consumers;

at least one central control unit; and

a communication link between said at least one central control unit and each of said plurality of actuators, said communication link transmitting from a respective said actuator to said central control unit a measurement variable representing a load of the at least one consumer connected to said actuator and transmitting from said central control unit to said actuator a manipulated variable for the power control of the at least one consumer connected to said actuator.

11. The energy management system according to claim 10, configured as a building automation system.

12. The energy management system according to claim 10, wherein said at least one central control unit is provided with an evaluation device for evaluating the measurement variables detected by respective load detection devices of said actuators.

13. The energy management system according to claim 12, wherein said at least one central control unit includes an output device for outputting measurement variables detected by said load detection devices of said actuators and/or evaluation results of said evaluation device.

14. The energy management system according to claim 10, wherein said at least one central control unit is provided with an input device for inputting manipulated variables for the power control of the input variables relating to said consumers connected to said actuators.

15. The energy management system according to claim 10, wherein the at least one consumer assigned to a respective actuator and/or of at least one other actuator that is connected thereto via said communication link is driven by way of a switching signal present at said control input of the respective actuator.

16. The energy management system according to claim 10, wherein an actuator has at least one control input, an activation of which has the effect that, by way of said communication interface, in the case of a control signal characterized by a first actuation sequence, at least one first consumer of at least one arbitrary actuator or the directly connected consumer is switched, and that, in the case of a control signal characterized by a second actuation sequence, at least one second consumer of at least one arbitrary actuator is switched.

17. An actuator for integration in a monitored system having a central control unit and a plurality of controlled consumers, the actuator controlling a power of at least one consumer connected thereto, the actuator comprising:

a load detection device for detecting one or both of a load magnitude and a load type of the at least one consumer, the load type being a resistive load, a capacitive load, or an inductive load, and the load magnitude or the load type forming a measurement variable relating to a load of the at least one consumer;

a communication interface for connecting the actuator to the central control unit and for receiving from the central control unit at least one manipulated variable for the power control of the at least one consumer and for transmitting the measurement variable detected by said load detection device to the central control unit; and

at least two control inputs including a first control input and a second control input, each of said control inputs being assigned a switching element, and said control inputs being configurable such that a first switching state is present when a switching signal of a switching element is present at said first control input, and a second switching state is present when a switching signal of a switching element is present at said second control input.

18. The actuator according to claim 17, wherein said control inputs are configurable such that the first and second switching states can be set by the switching signal being present briefly and a power that can be fed to a consumer can be altered by a switching signal present over a longer period of time.