Conversational Bot Interface for Building Monitoring and Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current building maintenance systems require intensive training and rely on skilled labor, leading to high operational costs and a high attrition rate, while also lacking efficient data analytics and easy interaction with building systems for facility managers and owners.
Innovation Solution
A bot framework with a reusable voice- and chat-based engine that interacts with supervisory systems, utilizing machine learning and cognitive analytics to predict user behavior and provide real-time data and control through a single interface, reducing the need for multiple apps and skilled labor.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a traditional BMS system with multiple screens and dashboards is used, then comprehensive building monitoring is achieved, but intensive training is required and operational costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
A chatbot serves as an intermediary between the facility manager and the complex BMS system. The chatbot translates natural language queries into system commands and presents information in a simplified format, eliminating the need for users to navigate complex dashboards or undergo intensive training while maintaining comprehensive monitoring capabilities
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical interaction model (navigating through multiple screens and dashboards) with a natural language-based conversational interface. This substitution allows users to interact with the building management system using everyday language, dramatically reducing the learning curve and training requirements
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple specialized apps are used for different building functions, then comprehensive control is achieved, but system complexity and interaction difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The chatbot framework is designed as a universal interface that can handle multiple building management functions (lighting, HVAC, security, maintenance) through a single conversational system. This multi-functional approach eliminates the need for multiple specialized apps while maintaining comprehensive control capabilities across all building systems
3Reliability
If skilled labor is used for system operations, then system reliability is maintained, but operational costs and attrition rates increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables facility managers to independently operate and troubleshoot the BMS through natural language conversations with the chatbot. The bot provides real-time guidance, explains system states, and guides users through operational tasks, allowing less-skilled personnel to reliably operate the system without requiring expensive specialized training or hiring highly skilled labor
Data Source
AI summary
A self-guided robot (bot) mechanism. An example bot may have a channel having an input for users, a cloud platform connected to the channel, a bot framework connected to the cloud platform, a web services module connected to the bot framework, and one or more drivers connected to the web services module. The one, the bot framework, the web services module and the drivers may be electronic hardware devices that effect their respective functions with a level of software managed and manipulated by the devices according to their respective algorithms.