Claims
- 1. A system for controlling an internal environment of a storage facility having an air plenum, the system comprising:at least one fan adapted to induce air movement directly through the at least one fan, through the air plenum and within the storage facility through continuous operation; a variable-speed driver coupled to the at least one fan, wherein the variable-speed driver provides a drive signal to the at least one fan for controlling speed of the at least one fan; at least one sensor adapted to determine at least one internal environmental parameter; and at least one electrical control unit coupled to the at least one sensor and to the variable-speed driver, wherein the at least one electrical control unit receives a parameter signal indicative of the at least one internal environmental parameter from the at least one sensor and provides a command signal to the variable-speed driver based upon the parameter signal for varying an operational speed of the at least one fan.
- 2. The system of claim 1, wherein the variable-speed driver is adapted such that the at least one fan will be operated continuously at less than full power.
- 3. The system of claim 1, wherein the at least one sensor includes a temperature sensor.
- 4. The system of claim 1, wherein the at least one sensor includes a CO2 sensor.
- 5. The system of claim 1, wherein the at least one sensor includes a humidity sensor.
- 6. The system of claim 1, wherein the at least one electrical control unit is configured to send the command signal to the variable-speed driver such that the speed of the at least one fan varies to maintain the internal environment at a predetermined value of the at least one internal environmental parameter.
- 7. The system of claim 1, further comprising a ventilation inlet wherein air external to the storage facility is admitted into the internal environment and wherein the ventilation inlet regulates flow of the admitted air in response to the determined at least one internal environmental parameter.
- 8. The system of claim 1, further comprising at least one additional sensor adapted to determine at least one parameter of an environment external to the storage facility wherein the at least one additional sensor is coupled to the at least one electrical control unit and provides an external parameter signal to the at least one electrical control unit.
- 9. The system of claim 8, further comprising a ventilation inlet wherein air external to the storage facility is admitted into the internal environment and wherein the ventilation inlet regulates flow of the admitted air in response to the determined at least one external environmental parameter.
- 10. The system of claim 8, wherein the at least one additional sensor includes a temperature sensor.
- 11. The system of claim 10, wherein the at least one electrical control unit is adapted to decrease the speed of the at least one fan upon receipt of an external parameter signal indicative of a sensed external temperature higher than a predetermined value.
- 12. The system of claim 1, wherein the variable-speed driver is adapted to have a maximum speed setting and a minimum speed setting such that the at least one fan is continuously running between the maximum and minimum speed settings.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
This application is a divisional of application Ser. No. 09/621,509, filed Jul. 21, 2000, pending.
US Referenced Citations (16)