Innovations in Sensors and Controls for Building Energy Management: Research and Development Opportunities Report for Emerging Technologies
- USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Energy Efficiency Office. Building Technologies Office, Washington, DC (United States)
- Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)
- National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)
- Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)
- Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
- Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E)
- Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL)
- DOE Building Technologies Office
- Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL)
- Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL)
- Argonne National Laboratory (ANL)
- Navigant Consulting, Inc.
Sensors, actuators, and controllers, which collectively serve as the backbone of cyberphysical systems for building energy management, are one of the core technical areas of investment for achieving the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Building Technologies Office's (BTO's) goals for energy affordability in the national building stock - both commercial and residential. In fact, an aggregated annual energy savings of 29% is estimated in the commercial sector alone through the implementation of efficiency measures using current state-of-the-art sensors and controls to retune buildings by optimizing programmable settings based on occupant schedules and comfort requirements, as well as detecting and diagnosing equipment operation and installation problems (Fernandez et al. 2017). Monitoring and control of building conditions and operations has advanced significantly, from the invention of the modern thermostat just before the start of the 20th century to the midcentury incorporation of direct digital control into devices, the introduction of open protocols and network communications at the end of the century, and finally the invention of cloud-based computing and additional advancements that have enabled remote operation and a proliferation of connected and intelligent devices in building automation. Despite this potential, however, two main challenges hinder widespread adoption of sensors and controls in building operations that can ensure savings for high-efficiency components and equipment (e.g., heat pumps, windows, and lighting devices), as well as additional savings from more sophisticated control architectures and algorithms. energy savings of 29% is estimated in the commercial sector alone through the implementation of efficiency measures using current state-of-the-art sensors and controls to retune buildings by optimizing programmable settings based on occupant schedules and comfort requirements, as well as detecting and diagnosing equipment operation and installation problems (Fernandez et al. 2017). Monitoring and control of building conditions and operations has advanced significantly, from the invention of the modern thermostat just before the start of the 20th century to the midcentury incorporation of direct digital control into devices, the introduction of open protocols and network communications at the end of the century, and finally the invention of cloud-based computing and additional advancements that have enabled remote operation and a proliferation of connected and intelligent devices in building automation. Despite this potential, however, two main challenges hinder widespread adoption of sensors and controls in building operations that can ensure savings for high-efficiency components and equipment (e.g., heat pumps, windows, and lighting devices), as well as additional savings from more sophisticated control architectures and algorithms.
- Research Organization:
- National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Energy Efficiency Office. Building Technologies Office
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC36-08GO28308
- OSTI ID:
- 1601591
- Report Number(s):
- NREL/TP-5500-75601; DOE/GO-102019-5234
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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