Remote Building Wind Sensitivity Audits Using Utility Data
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Solution Overview
Problem
On-site building efficiency audits are costly, inconvenient, and require specialized instrumentation, making them inefficient for evaluating energy efficiency in residential or commercial buildings.
Innovation Solution
A computer-implemented method and system for remotely evaluating energy efficiency by collecting and analyzing energy consumption data along with weather information, indoor climate data, and user behaviors to calculate thermal, wind, and solar sensitivity scores, which help identify energy-saving opportunities.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If on-site building efficiency audits are performed using specialized instrumentation and trained auditors, then measurement precision and reliability are improved, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses existing utility meter data and weather data as copies/proxies for direct building performance measurements. Instead of bringing specialized measurement instruments to the site, the system analyzes copies of data that already exist (utility consumption records, weather station data) to infer building efficiency characteristics.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical/physical measurement system (auditors with instruments physically measuring building parameters) with an information processing system that analyzes utility consumption data and weather data to determine building efficiency through computational methods.
2Measurement precision
If on-site audits are conducted with trained auditors and specialized tools, then measurement precision is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables buildings to be evaluated automatically without requiring auditor intervention. The building's utility consumption data and local weather data are automatically collected and analyzed by the system, making the evaluation process self-service oriented and eliminating the need for scheduling auditor visits.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the human auditor operation with an automated information processing system that continuously or periodically analyzes data without requiring manual intervention, thereby improving ease of operation while maintaining measurement precision.
3Measurement precision
If comprehensive on-site audits are performed with multiple instruments, then measurement precision is improved, but loss of time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary data collection by continuously or periodically gathering utility consumption data and weather data before the actual efficiency analysis is needed. This preliminary accumulation of data eliminates the time required for on-site data collection during the audit process, as all necessary data is already available when analysis is performed.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces time-consuming on-site measurement activities with rapid computational analysis of pre-collected data, dramatically reducing the time required to produce efficiency assessments while maintaining or improving measurement precision through comprehensive data analysis.
Data Source
AI summary
The subject disclosure relate to a method for calculating a wind sensitivity score. In some aspects, a method of implementing the technology can include steps for receiving wind speed information for a first geographic location over a first time period, receiving resource consumption data for each of a plurality of similar consumption locations in the first geographic location over the first time period; and generating a wind sensitivity model based on the wind speed information and the resource consumption data for each of the plurality of similar consumption locations. In some aspects, the method may further include steps for computing a wind sensitivity score for each of the similar consumption locations using the wind sensitivity model.