LoRaWAN Building Control Nodes With Smart Adapters for Reliable BAS
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional building automation systems (BAS/BMS) face challenges such as high installation costs, difficulty in integrating wireless capabilities, conflicts between device-specific logic and centralized control, and data privacy issues for multiple tenants, leading to inefficient and unreliable operation.
Innovation Solution
A modular and distributed wireless monitoring and control system using LoRaWAN for long-range, low-power communication, with smart adapters translating between native device protocols and LoRaWAN, enabling decentralized control logic and secure data segmentation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If wired connections are used to connect all equipment in a building automation system, then high bandwidth and high reliability are achieved, but installation cost increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces wired mechanical connections with wireless communication technology. The building automation system uses wireless networks to transmit control signals and data between controllers, sensors, and actuators, eliminating the need for extensive physical wiring infrastructure while maintaining system reliability and functionality.
2Ease of manufacture
If wireless capabilities are added to existing devices, then installation cost is reduced, but coordination reliability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a gateway as an intermediary component that bridges wireless devices and the centralized building automation system. The gateway handles protocol translation, data buffering, and coordination tasks, ensuring reliable communication and synchronization between wireless equipment and the central controller, thereby maintaining coordination reliability in wireless environments.
3Ease of operation
If control logic is centralized in a BAS/BMS, then coordinated control is achieved, but device-specific logic conflicts with centralized control
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments control logic into two layers: centralized control logic in the BAS/BMS for overall building coordination, and decentralized device-specific logic embedded in individual equipment for local optimization. This hierarchical segmentation allows both centralized management and device-level adaptability to coexist without conflict, with each layer operating autonomously within its scope.
4Productivity
If building operation data is transmitted over Internet protocol networks, then data sharing is enabled, but data privacy and security become problematic for multiple tenants
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements local quality by allowing different security and privacy configurations for different tenants and building zones. Each tenant can have customized data transmission settings, access control policies, and encryption levels tailored to their specific privacy requirements, while still enabling data sharing within their authorized scope through the building automation network.
Data Source
AI summary
The implementations herein are generally directed to modular and distributed wireless monitoring and control systems for building automation networks (BAS/BMS). The disclosed systems address limitations of existing systems by utilizing a wireless network of nodes within a building to monitor parameters and control equipment. The system employs a long-range wireless area network (LoRaWAN) for communication, enabling low-power, long-range data transmission. Devices not natively configured for LoRaWAN can be integrated using smart adapters that translate between LoRaWAN and the devices' native protocols. The systems may be configured communicate with remote computing systems for data analysis, control logic updates, and integration with external data sources such as weather information.