The present disclosure relates to a heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) boiler controller.
A heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system can be used to control the environment of a facility (e.g., a home or commercial building). For example, an HVAC system can be used to control the air temperature, humidity, and/or air quality of a facility.
One component of an HVAC system used to control the environment of the facility is a boiler (e.g., boiler plant). The operation of the boiler, and therefore the environment of the facility, can be controlled by controlling the set point(s) of the boiler, such as the supply (e.g., output) water temperature, for example.
Previous HVAC systems, including previous boilers, may operate on the basis of reactive control (e.g., they may only react to currently existing conditions that may have already caused the environment of the facility to become unsatisfactory). For instance, the operation (e.g., set point(s)) of boilers of previous HVAC systems may be adjusted based on the current outdoor temperature, as sensed by an outdoor temperature sensor of the HVAC system.
Such a reactive approach, however, may be inefficient (e.g., use a large amount of energy) and/or ineffective at controlling the environment of the facility in a satisfactory manner due to, for example, the large amount of time it may take for the HVAC system (e.g., boiler) to adjust to the current conditions (e.g., it may take the HVAC system a long time to react to and/or compensate for a change in the current conditions in the environment of the facility). Further, the current outdoor temperature, as determined by the outdoor temperature sensor of the HVAC system, on which the adjustment is based may be inaccurate and/or unreliable due to, for example, lengthy wiring, electromagnetic interference, and/or a failure (e.g., fault and/or malfunction) of the temperature sensor occurring.
A heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) boiler controller is described herein. For example, one or more embodiments include a memory and a processor configured to execute executable instructions stored in the memory to receive a weather forecast for an area in which the boiler of the HVAC system is located, receive a current outdoor temperature, determine a set point of the boiler based, at least in part, on the received weather forecast and the received current outdoor temperature, and adjust the set point of the boiler to the determined set point.
An HVAC boiler controller in accordance with the present disclosure can be a predictive (e.g., rather than reactive) controller. For instance, an HVAC boiler controller in accordance with the present disclosure can adjust the operation (e.g., set point(s)) of the boiler in anticipation of future conditions of the environment of a facility (e.g., in anticipation of future changes to the conditions), such as, for instance, an increase in outdoor temperature, that would cause the environment of the facility to become unsatisfactory. Further, an HVAC boiler controller in accordance with the present disclosure may not rely exclusively, or even at all, on an outdoor temperature sensor of the HVAC system to determine the current outdoor temperature at the facility, and as such may not be susceptible to inaccuracy and/or unreliability issues that may arise with such an outdoor temperature sensor. Accordingly, an HVAC boiler controller in accordance with the present disclosure can be more efficient (e.g., use less energy) and/or effective at controlling the environment of the facility in a satisfactory manner than previous (e.g., reactive) boiler control approaches.
In the following detailed description, reference is made to the accompanying drawings that form a part hereof. The drawings show by way of illustration how one or more embodiments of the disclosure may be practiced.
These embodiments are described in sufficient detail to enable those of ordinary skill in the art to practice one or more embodiments of this disclosure. It is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and that mechanical, electrical, and/or process changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.
As will be appreciated, elements shown in the various embodiments herein can be added, exchanged, combined, and/or eliminated so as to provide a number of additional embodiments of the present disclosure. The proportion and the relative scale of the elements provided in the figures are intended to illustrate the embodiments of the present disclosure, and should not be taken in a limiting sense.
The figures herein follow a numbering convention in which the first digit or digits correspond to the drawing figure number and the remaining digits identify an element or component in the drawing. Similar elements or components between different figures may be identified by the use of similar digits. For example, 114 may reference element “14” in
As used herein, “a” or “a number of” something can refer to one or more such things. For example, “a number of facilities” can refer to one or more facilities.
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In the example illustrated in
In the example illustrated in
Controller 114 can receive the weather forecast from a third party weather forecast service 120 via network 118, as illustrated in
Network 118 illustrated in
As used herein, a “network” (e.g., network 118) can provide a communication system that directly or indirectly links two or more computers and/or peripheral devices and allows users to access resources on other computing devices and exchange messages with other users. A network can allow users to share resources on their own systems with other network users and to access information on centrally located systems or on systems that are located at remote locations. For example, a network can tie a number of computing devices together to form a distributed control network (e.g., cloud).
A network may provide connections to the Internet and/or to the networks of other entities (e.g., organizations, institutions, etc.). Users may interact with network-enabled software applications to make a network request, such as to get a file or print on a network printer. Applications may also communicate with network management software, which can interact with network hardware to transmit information between devices on the network.
The weather forecast received by controller 114 from weather forecast service 120 can include, for example, a forecast temperature (e.g., forecast temperature curve), forecast wind speed, forecast humidity, and/or forecast sunlight intensity for the area in which facility 110 is located. In some embodiments, the weather forecast may also include the current outdoor temperature, the current wind speed, the current humidity, and/or the current sunlight intensity for the area in which facility 110 is located (e.g., the current outdoor temperature, wind speed, humidity, and/or sunlight intensity for the area in which facility 110 is located can be received with the forecast).
The weather forecast can be the forecast for a particular time period, such as, for instance, the next two or three hours, the next 24 hours, or the next day. Further, controller 114 may receive the weather forecast from weather forecast service 120 periodically. For instance, controller 114 may receive the weather forecast once an hour, once a day, etc. The accuracy and/or reliability of the weather forecast may depend on the time period for the forecast and/or the frequency with which the forecast is received (e.g., the shorter the time period and/or higher the frequency, the greater the accuracy and/or reliability of the forecast). However, embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited to particular information that can be included in the forecast, a particular time period for the forecast, or a particular frequency with which the forecast can be received.
Controller 114 can determine (e.g., calculate) the set point of (e.g., for) boiler 112 based on the weather forecast (e.g., the forecast temperature, wind speed, humidity, and/or sunlight intensity) received from weather forecast service 120, the current outdoor temperature received from (e.g., sensed by) outdoor temperature sensor 116, and the outdoor reset curve (e.g., algorithm) of boiler 112 set up during installation and/or commissioning of boiler 112 and/or controller 114, and controller 114 can adjust the set point of boiler 112 to the determined set point. That is, controller 114 can adjust the set point of boiler 112 based on the weather forecast, current outdoor temperature, and outdoor reset curve. As such, controller 114 can be a predictive (e.g., rather than reactive) controller.
For example, controller 114 can decrease the set point of boiler 112 upon the weather forecast indicating the temperature in the area in which facility 110 is located will increase above a particular temperature and/or will increase by more than a particular amount within a particular amount of time (e.g., indicating that a significant temperature increase will occur in the area). The set point can be, for example, the set point of the supply (e.g., output) water temperature of boiler 112, the set point of the pump speed of boiler 112, or the maximum achievable firing rate of boiler 112 if boiler 112 is a modulating boiler. Further, controller 114 can adjust its outdoor reset curve based on the weather forecast and current outdoor temperature.
As shown in
In the example illustrated in
In the example illustrated in
The weather forecast received from weather forecast service 220 can be analogous to the weather forecast received from weather forecast service 120 previously described in connection with
Controller 214 can determine (e.g., calculate) the set point of (e.g., for) boiler 212 based on the weather forecast, including the current outdoor temperature, wind speed, humidity, and/or sunlight intensity, received from weather forecast service 220, and the outdoor reset curve (e.g., algorithm) of boiler 212 set up during installation and/or commissioning of boiler 212 and/or controller 214, and controller 214 can adjust the set point of boiler 212 to the determined set point. That is, controller 214 can adjust the set point of boiler 212 based on the weather forecast, including the current outdoor temperature, received from weather forecast service 220, and the outdoor reset curve. As such, controller 214 can be a predictive controller, in a manner analogous to controller 114 previously described in connection with
In the example illustrated in
As an example, controller 214 can decrease the set point of boiler 212 upon the weather forecast and/or current temperature received from weather forecast service 220 indicating the temperature in the area in which facility 210 is located will increase above a particular temperature and/or will increase by more than a particular amount within a particular period of time (e.g., indicating that a significant temperature increase will occur in the area). The set point can be, for example, the set point of the supply (e.g., output) water temperature of boiler 212, or the set point of the pump speed of boiler 212. Further, controller 214 can adjust its outdoor reset curve based on the weather forecast and current outdoor temperature received from weather forecast service 220.
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In the example illustrated in
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The weather forecast received from weather forecast service 320 can be analogous to the weather forecast received from weather forecast service 120 and 220 previously described in connection with
In the example illustrated in
In the example illustrated in
Although one additional facility, boiler, boiler controller, and local outdoor temperature sensor are illustrated in
In the example illustrated in
Controller 314 can determine (e.g., calculate) the set point of (e.g., for) boiler 312 based on the weather forecast received from weather forecast service 320, the current outdoor temperature received from (e.g., sensed by) outdoor temperature sensor 316, and the outdoor reset curve (e.g., algorithm) of boiler 312 set up during installation and/or commissioning of boiler 312 and/or controller 314, and controller 314 can adjust the set point of boiler 312 to the determined set point. That is, controller 314 can adjust the set point of boiler 312 based on the weather forecast, current outdoor temperature, and outdoor reset curve, in a manner analogous to controller 114 described in connection with
In some instances, however, a failure (e.g., a malfunction and/or fault) of outdoor temperature sensor 316 may occur. In such an instance (e.g., upon failure of outdoor temperature sensor 316), controller 314 can determine and adjust the set point of boiler 312 based on the current outdoor temperature received from weather forecast service 320 and/or the current outdoor temperature received from outdoor temperature sensor 336, and not based on the current outdoor temperature received from outdoor temperature sensor 316. That is, the current outdoor temperature received from weather forecast service 320 and/or outdoor temperature sensor 336 can be used as a backup for the temperature received from outdoor temperature sensor 316, in case a failure of outdoor temperature sensor 316 occurs.
Further, in some embodiments, system 302 may not include outdoor temperature sensor 316 (e.g., no outdoor temperature sensor may be installed at facility 310). In such embodiments, weather forecast service 320 and/or outdoor temperature sensor 336 may be the sole source(s) of the current outdoor temperature for controller 314. That is, in such embodiments, controller 314 may rely solely on the current outdoor temperature received via network 318.
Controller 314 can determine a failure of outdoor temperature sensor 316 has occurred based on a comparison of the current outdoor temperature received from outdoor temperature sensor 316 and the current outdoor temperature received from weather forecast service 320 and/or outdoor temperature sensor 336. For example, if the comparison indicates that the difference between the current outdoor temperature received from outdoor temperature sensor 316 and the current outdoor temperature received from weather forecast service 320 and/or outdoor temperature sensor 336 meets or exceeds a particular threshold, controller 314 can determine that a failure of outdoor temperature sensor 316 has occurred. The comparison can be made over a particular period of time (e.g., 24 hours). Upon determining the failure has occurred, controller 314 can determine and adjust the set point of boiler 312 based on the current outdoor temperature received from weather forecast service 320 and/or the current outdoor temperature received from outdoor temperature sensor 336, and not based on the current outdoor temperature received from outdoor temperature sensor 316.
Controller 314 can provide an indication of the failure of outdoor temperature sensor 316 to a user. For example, controller 314 can display the indication of the failure to the user on a user interface, as will be further described herein (e.g., in connection with
As shown in
Memory 444 can be volatile or nonvolatile memory. Memory 444 can also be removable (e.g., portable) memory, or non-removable (e.g., internal) memory. For example, memory 444 can be random access memory (RAM) (e.g., dynamic random access memory (DRAM) and/or phase change random access memory (PCRAM)), read-only memory (ROM) (e.g., electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM) and/or compact-disk read-only memory (CD-ROM)), flash memory, a laser disk, a digital versatile disk (DVD) or other optical disk storage, and/or a magnetic medium such as magnetic cassettes, tapes, or disks, among other types of memory.
Further, although memory 444 is illustrated as being located in controller 414, embodiments of the present disclosure are not so limited. For example, memory 444 can also be located internal to another computing resource (e.g., enabling computer readable instructions to be downloaded over the Internet or another wired or wireless connection).
As shown in
In some embodiments, user interface 446 can be a graphical user interface (GUI) that can include a display (e.g., a screen) that can provide and/or receive information to and/or from the user of controller 414. The display can be, for instance, a touch-screen (e.g., the GUI can include touch-screen capabilities). Embodiments of the present disclosure, however, are not limited to a particular type(s) of user interface.
Although specific embodiments have been illustrated and described herein, those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that any arrangement calculated to achieve the same techniques can be substituted for the specific embodiments shown. This disclosure is intended to cover any and all adaptations or variations of various embodiments of the disclosure.
It is to be understood that the above description has been made in an illustrative fashion, and not a restrictive one. Combination of the above embodiments, and other embodiments not specifically described herein will be apparent to those of skill in the art upon reviewing the above description.
The scope of the various embodiments of the disclosure includes any other applications in which the above structures and methods are used. Therefore, the scope of various embodiments of the disclosure should be determined with reference to the appended claims, along with the full range of equivalents to which such claims are entitled.
In the foregoing Detailed Description, various features are grouped together in example embodiments illustrated in the figures for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure. This method of disclosure is not to be interpreted as reflecting an intention that the embodiments of the disclosure require more features than are expressly recited in each claim.
Rather, as the following claims reflect, inventive subject matter lies in less than all features of a single disclosed embodiment. Thus, the following claims are hereby incorporated into the Detailed Description, with each claim standing on its own as a separate embodiment.
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
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9557068 | Honma | Jan 2017 | B2 |
20100266738 | Wisner | Oct 2010 | A1 |
20120205456 | Honma | Aug 2012 | A1 |
20130073094 | Knapton | Mar 2013 | A1 |
20140277817 | Stevens | Sep 2014 | A1 |
Number | Date | Country | |
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20170138624 A1 | May 2017 | US |