Bus Power Arbitration for Building Devices Under Load Limits

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Solution Overview

Problem

Building management systems (BMS) often consume more power than needed, leading to inefficiencies and potential damage due to excessive power draw, particularly when devices remain active in unoccupied areas, exceeding the capacity of the power bus and risking short-circuiting or overheating.

Innovation Solution

A dynamic power arbitration system using a processing circuit to determine active devices, compute total power consumption, and compare it to a threshold value, arbitrating power by reducing supply to prevent excessive consumption, and implementing a token control system to manage power distribution dynamically.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If BMS devices continuously operate to ensure availability, then device reliability is improved, but power consumption increases beyond bus capacity causing safety hazards

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedevice availabilityVSAvoidpower overload damage

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The system dynamically adjusts device operating states based on real-time power consumption monitoring. When power consumption exceeds the bus capacity threshold, the system transitions devices from active to standby or offline states, and vice versa when power levels are acceptable, creating a dynamic power arbitration mechanism that adapts to changing conditions

Inventive Principle:

Principle #15Dynamics

Solution Approach 2:

The system implements continuous monitoring of power consumption by all devices on the bus and compares it against the bus capacity threshold. This feedback loop enables the system to detect when power limits are approached and trigger appropriate arbitration actions to prevent overload, ensuring safety while maintaining operational efficiency

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

2Object-affected harmful factors

If power arbitration is implemented to prevent bus overload, then safety is improved, but device operation continuity deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvebus overload preventionVSAvoiddevice operation continuity

Core Design Contradiction:

Object-affected harmful factorsVSDuration of action of stationary object

Solution Approach 1:

The system periodically monitors power consumption and implements arbitration actions only when necessary. Devices are allowed to operate continuously during normal conditions, and arbitration intervenes periodically when power thresholds are exceeded, creating a rhythm of operation that maintains continuity while preventing overload

Inventive Principle:

Principle #19Periodic action

Solution Approach 2:

The power arbitration system applies selective control to individual devices based on their specific power consumption characteristics and operational criticality. Not all devices are subjected to the same arbitration rules - critical devices may maintain higher priority access while less critical devices are more readily curtailed, allowing differentiated operation continuity

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

3Measurement precision

If monitoring and arbitration of all devices is implemented, then power management precision is improved, but system complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvepower consumption monitoring accuracyVSAvoidarbitration system complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

Measurement precisionVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The power arbitration system is designed to work with any device type on the bus using a universal monitoring and control approach. The same arbitration logic and power measurement techniques apply regardless of device specificity, reducing the need for device-specific complexity while maintaining precise power management across diverse equipment

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Solution Approach 2:

Each device reports its own power consumption characteristics to the arbitration system, and the system automatically processes this information to determine arbitration actions. This self-reporting mechanism reduces the complexity of centralized monitoring while maintaining accurate power measurement and control

Inventive Principle:

Principle #25Self-service

Data Source

PatentUS12019413B2System and method for power arbitration of devices connected to a bus

Publication Date: 2024.06.25 TYCO FIRE & SECURITY GMBH

AI summary

A controller for controlling power consumption of devices within a building management system (BMS) is shown. The controller includes a processing circuit configured to determine, via a plurality of devices, an active device. The processing circuit is further configured to determine a power consumption of the active device using at least one of an address of the active device or an attribute from a device object associated with the active device. The processing circuit is further configured to compute a total power consumption value of one or more active devices of the plurality of devices, the one or more active devices comprising the active device. The processing circuit is further configured to compare the total power consumption value with a threshold value and, in response to determining that the total power consumption value is greater than the threshold value, arbitrating the power supplied from the bus to the active device.