A novel occupancy detection solution using low-power IR-FPA based wireless occupancy sensor

Mikkilineni, Aravind K.; Dong, Jin; Kuruganti, Teja; Fugate, David

doi:10.1016/j.enbuild.2019.03.022

A novel occupancy detection solution using low-power IR-FPA based wireless occupancy sensor

Journal Article · Fri Mar 15 00:00:00 EDT 2019 · Energy and Buildings

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enbuild.2019.03.022· OSTI ID:1504008

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Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
Aerojet Rocketdyne, Huntsville, AL (United States)

Significant energy savings can be achieved by operating heating, ventilation, and air conditioning control systems with indoor occupancy measurement information. This paper presents a novel plug-and-play occupancy sensing method which will enable temporal minimization of building energy consumption to meet building usage behavior without privacy concerns. The proposed wireless occupancy sensing platform is based on long-wave infra-red (LWIR) focal-plane arrays (FPAs), or thermal imagers, that detect thermal energy rather than visible light. We developed an advanced sensor package consisting of multiple thermal imagers with low-cost optical enhancements to increase field of view and increase sensitivity to occupant detection (filtering building clutter). These imagers can be coupled with radio frequency and ultrasonic-based radar to enhance data collection at key occupant zone boundaries to improve accuracy. Standard filtering and estimation techniques from the image processing and computer vision communities are introduced to overcome the accuracy issues suffered by traditional PIR based sensing, especially when occupants remain relatively still. Accurate low-level counting of individuals can be achieved with minimal impact on privacy. As a result, the proposed occupancy detection method can work as a retrofit to enable real-time understanding of the building operational state and usage behavior. Sensor data obtained from real test building zones was used to test the efficacy of the method.

View Accepted Manuscript (DOE)

Research Organization:: Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE)

Grant/Contract Number:: AC05-00OR22725

OSTI ID:: 1504008

Journal Information:: Energy and Buildings, Journal Name: Energy and Buildings Journal Issue: C Vol. 192; ISSN 0378-7788

Publisher:: ElsevierCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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A novel occupancy detection solution using low-power IR-FPA based wireless occupancy sensor

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