SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR ENERGY HARVESTING SYSTEM PLANNING AND PERFORMANCE

• US 20160285416A1
• Filed: 03/23/2016
• Published: 09/29/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 03/24/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Carrier Corporation (Carrier Global Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Carrier Corporation (Carrier Global Corporation)
• Inventors: Tiwari, Ankit, Alberola, Rodolfo De Paz, Villaverde, Berta Carballido, Mukherjee, Kushal, Soldner, Nicholas C., Ramoutar, Michael
• Granted Patent: US 10,230,326 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/06 Energy or water supply
• CPC Class Codes: H02S 50/15 using optical means, e.g. using electroluminescence
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 10/50 Photovoltaic [PV] energy
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 90/82 Energy audits or management systems therefor

Abstract

A method of evaluating energy harvesting potential includes receiving point-in-time illuminance data into a mobile device for incorporation into a building information model of a building. A site-specific light simulation model for the building is calibrated using the building information model incorporating the point-in-time illuminance data. The method also includes determining energy availability for energy harvesting in the building based on the calibrated site-specific light simulation model.

Claims

1. A method of evaluating energy harvesting potential comprising:

receiving point-in-time illuminance data into a mobile device for incorporation into a building information model of a building;

calibrating a site-specific light simulation model for the building using the building information model incorporating the point-in-time illuminance data; and

determining energy availability for energy harvesting in the building based on the calibrated site-specific light simulation model.

2. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising displaying output indicative of the energy availability at any given location within the building on the mobile device.

3. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein determining energy availability includes determining average illuminance as a function of location within the building to determine locations where uninterrupted operation of devices powered by energy harvesters is feasible within the building for devices powered by photovoltaic energy harvesters.

4. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein receiving point-in-time illuminance data includes receiving illuminance measurements as input into the mobile device.

5. A method as recited in claim 4, wherein receiving point-in-time illuminance data includes associating point-in-time illuminance data with corresponding location data relative to the building information model, wherein the location data is determined using sensors of the mobile device and/or using user input indicating the user'"'"'s location in a displayed floor plan.

6. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein receiving point-in-time illuminance data includes defining at one or more virtual luminaries for at least one respective location with illuminance measurements, and using a light simulation model to trace light from the one or more virtual luminaries to other locations in a room based on room geometry and wall material properties.

7. A method as recited in claim 6, further comprising adding up the light received at a given location in the room from the one or more virtual luminaries in the room to estimate illuminance at the given location.

8. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein receiving point-in-time illuminance data includes using one or more known locations and photometric specifications for one or more respective lighting fixtures to directly obtain estimates from the light simulation model for illuminance as a function of position in a room.

9. A method as recited in claim 8, wherein the type of lighting fixture is obtained by processing an image taken at the location and downloading its photometric specifications from a data base.

10. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein calibrating the site-specific light simulation model includes comparing one or more illuminance measurements with modeled illuminance, and adjusting material properties for room walls, surfaces, and/or object locations to improve matching between the one or more illuminance measurements and the modeled illuminance.

11. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein receiving point-in-time illuminance data includes using known position of door/window shades/blinds, neighboring buildings/external obstacles, orientation of the building, and historical sunlight data for the geographic site of the building to estimate illuminance as a function of location within a room.

12. A method as recited in claim 11, wherein calibrating the site-specific light simulation model includes comparing one or more illuminance measurements with modeled illuminance, and adjusting the position of the door/window shade/blinds as modeled to improve matching between the one or more illuminance measurements and the modeled illuminance.

13. A method as recited in claim 11, wherein receiving point-in-time illuminance data includes performing image content analysis over panoramic images of the room to obtain size and shape of doors and windows.

14. A method as recited in claim 11, wherein receiving point-in-time illuminance data includes performing image content analysis over aerial or exterior images of the building to obtain the location of neighboring buildings/external obstacles and the orientation of the building.

15. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising recording room lighting conditions associated with all point-in-time illuminance measurements.

16. A method as recited in claim 15, further comprising performing image content analysis over panoramic images of the room to associate room lighting conditions with all the recorded point-in-time illuminance measurements within the room.

17. A method as recited in claim 15, further comprising defining all possible lighting conditions for a building or zone within the building, using already associated illuminance measurement data and a machine learning algorithm to classify all the new point-in-time measurements with one of the possible room lighting conditions.

18. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising obtaining a lighting schedule which specifies expected lighting conditions at any given time within the room, and wherein determining energy availability includes generating cumulative illuminance statistics from point-in-time illuminance measurements/estimates based on the lighting schedule.

19. A method as recited in claim 18, further comprising estimating harvestable power as a function of position in the building based on the cumulative illuminance statistics and efficiency specifications of a given photovoltaic cell.

20. A method as recited in claim 19, further comprising searching through locations within a room of the building as modeled to obtain locations where average harvestable power exceeds the power usage profile of a given device.

21. A method as recited in claim 20, further comprising sorting the locations based on the harvestable power.

22. A method as recited in claim 20, further comprising obtaining the final mounting location of the device by combining other placement criteria based on device type, sensing requirements, and connectivity requirements.

23. A method as recited in claim 22, further comprising determining the type of harvester to be used at a mounting location given the sensing and connectivity requirements for a particular device type.

24. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising:

determining feasibility of operating a given device at a given location based on its power requirements and estimated harvestable power at that location; and

displaying output indicative of feasibility of operating the given device.

25. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising determining a mounting location for a given device based on device type, connectivity, and mounting requirements for the given device.

26. A mobile device comprising machine readable instructions to cause the mobile device to:

receive point-in-time illuminance data into a mobile device for incorporation into a building information model of a building;

calibrate a site-specific light simulation model for the building using the building information model incorporating the point-in-time illuminance data; and

determine energy availability for energy harvesting in the building based on the calibrated site-specific light simulation model.

27. A mobile device as recited in claim 26, further comprising machine readable instructions to cause the mobile device to display output indicative of the energy availability on the mobile device.