BFRL Program

Cybernetic Building System

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Component Projects

The objective of the Cybernetic Buildings Program is to make available tested and demonstrated open Cybernetic Building Systems for improved productivity, life cycle cost savings, energy conservation, improved occupant satisfaction and market leadership.  This work will be carried out in close cooperation with the U.S. building industry, industrial partners, building owners/operators and newly developing service companies. 

 

Intended Outcome and Background

During the next ten years, the building controls industry in the United States will be undergoing a radical change from one with a vertical structure to one with a horizontal structure. Building control companies, equipment and system manufacturers, energy providers, utilities, and design engineers will be under increasing pressure to improve performance and reduce costs. Cost reduction can be achieved by developing cybernetic building systems that integrate more and more building services, including energy management, fire and security, transportation, fault detection and diagnostics, optimal control, the real time purchase of electricity and the aggregation of building stock.

A Cybernetic Building System involves energy management, fire detection, security and transport systems, energy providers, one or more utilities, an aggregator, numerous service providers, and information handling and complex control at many different levels. 

The BFRL program, which will include a full-scale demonstration of one or more Cybernetic Building Systems, will involve the following tasks: 

· develop standard communication protocols;

· develop enabling technologies, such as fault detection and diagnostic (FDD) methods;

· develop performance evaluation tools;

· develop a standard based information infrastructure supporting the design, commissioning, operation and maintenance of heating, ventilation, air-conditioning and refrigeration systems;

· construct a Virtual Cybernetic Building System in the laboratory to facilitate the development and evaluation of new products and systems by manufacturers;

· conduct basic research on the dynamic interactions of a fire, HVAC/distribution and the zones of a commercial building through utilization of existing and new simulation models, and validate this new simulation program through both laboratory and field studies;

· develop a consortium of manufacturers and service providers interested in producing, testing, demonstrating and selling Cybernetic Building Systems;

· test and evaluate different security concepts and supervisory security systems for the critical infrastructure protection of integrated building systems; and

· conduct a full-scale demonstration of a Cybernetic Building System in a government owned office building complex.

 

 

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