Cabinet Image Layout Extraction for Building Automation Commissioning
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Solution Overview
Problem
The manual and error-prone process of creating cabinet layouts for building automation systems, which are often not standardized, and the need for accurate documentation of installed cabinets during commissioning, maintenance, and upgrades.
Innovation Solution
A mobile device with a digital camera and image processing capabilities is used to automatically create cabinet layouts by decoding device identification markers, identifying control devices, and determining their relative positions, thereby generating pre-configured input data for building automation systems.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If manual cabinet layout creation is used, then flexibility in design is achieved, but error rate increases and productivity decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables self-service by allowing the cabinet layout documentation to automatically update itself through image capture and processing. The mobile device captures images of control devices in the cabinet, automatically identifies and extracts their positions and parameters, then updates the cabinet layout documentation without requiring manual intervention, thereby eliminating human errors while preserving design flexibility.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the manual mechanical process of creating cabinet layouts with an automated optical and computational system. Instead of manually measuring and documenting control device positions, the system uses image capture, optical character recognition, and automated processing to extract position and parameter information, substituting manual labor with automated technological processes.
2Adaptability or versatility
If manual cabinet layout creation is used, then customization is possible, but time consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary action by capturing images of the cabinet and control devices once during installation or commissioning. This single image capture session provides all necessary information for creating and updating cabinet layout documentation, eliminating the need for repeated manual measurements and documentation updates throughout the system's lifecycle.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces time-consuming manual processes of measuring, recording, and documenting control device positions with automated image-based recognition and processing. The system quickly captures cabinet contents through photography and automatically extracts all necessary information, dramatically reducing the time required compared to manual methods while maintaining full customization capability.
3Device complexity
If remote PC-based tools are used for cabinet layout creation, then detailed configuration is possible, but on-site adaptability decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The mobile device serves multiple functions: it captures images, processes images, recognizes control devices, extracts position and parameter information, and updates cabinet layout documentation. This multi-functional approach consolidates what previously required separate PC-based tools into a single portable device that can be used directly at the installation site, maintaining configuration capability while improving on-site usability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from two-dimensional PC-based graphical interfaces to a three-dimensional real-world interaction model. The mobile device captures three-dimensional cabinet contents through photography, processes this spatial information, and generates updated cabinet layouts that reflect the actual physical arrangement, enabling configuration work to be performed directly in the installation environment rather than remotely at a PC.
Data Source
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AI summary
A mobile device (100) and computer implemented method for generating input data for building automation configuration. The mobile device (110) is communicatively coupled with a digital camera (110) and includes: a data storage module (120) configured to record an image (111) of a cabinet (200) from the digital camera (110), the cabinet including a plurality of control devices (20 to 33) for controlling at least a portion of a building wherein at least a subset of the plurality of control devices is associated with a device identification marker (1, 2), and further configured to save representations (20r) of control devices (20) in a cabinet layout (141) in accordance with their respective device types; a device identification module (130) to identify the control devices (20, 24) of the subset by decoding the corresponding device identification markers (1, 2), and to retrieve a device type for each identified control device; an image processing module (140) configured to determine, from the recorded image (111), a segmentation of the image wherein one or more determined segments define the cabinet layout (141) reflecting the physical structure of the cabinet (200) and each determined segment (141-230, 141,240, 341-250) is associated with a physical location within the cabinet (200), and further configured to determine the relative positions of the identified control devices within the cabinet layout (141) based on their relative positions in the determined segments; and a provisioning module (150) configured to provide, to a building automation system, a list of the identified control devices located inside the cabinet (200), and to provide the cabinet layout (141) including the relative positions of the identified control devices within the cabinet (200).