MEMS Smart Window Control for Real-Time Building Energy Adjustment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing building control systems are inefficient due to limited sensing capabilities, leading to temperature fluctuations and increased energy consumption, as they lack comprehensive understanding of building activities and environmental factors, resulting in high costs and reduced comfort.
Innovation Solution
A building control system incorporating a micro electromechanical system (MEMS) network that senses conditions and controls energy transmission characteristics within the building envelope, using wireless communication protocols to integrate sensors and actuators for real-time adjustments.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Area of stationary object
If a single HVAC unit is used to service multiple floors with ducting and dampers, then the system can cover larger areas, but energy efficiency decreases and material costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The building is divided into multiple zones with independent HVAC units, each serving a specific floor or area. This eliminates the need for long ducting and multiple dampers required in centralized systems, reducing energy loss and material costs while maintaining comprehensive coverage.
Solution Approach 2:
Each zone is equipped with local sensing and control capabilities, allowing HVAC units to respond to local environmental conditions. This localized approach optimizes energy efficiency by avoiding the energy losses associated with transporting conditioned air through extensive ductwork across multiple floors.
2Reliability
If HVAC systems operate reactively based on sensed out of limits conditions, then the system responds to actual temperature changes, but temperature variances increase and energy consumption rises
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses multiple sensors to detect temperature trends and environmental conditions before temperatures reach out-of-limits conditions. This allows the HVAC system to take preliminary action to prevent extreme temperature deviations, reducing the energy required for corrective heating or cooling while maintaining reliable temperature control.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements continuous feedback from multiple temperature sensors throughout the building, enabling real-time monitoring and adjustment. This feedback mechanism allows the HVAC system to maintain stable temperatures with smaller energy inputs compared to reactive systems that only respond after temperature extremes occur.
3Quantity of substance
If the number of sensors is limited to reduce costs, then system costs decrease, but temperature differentials throughout the space increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses building components themselves (windows, walls, HVAC units) as sensing elements through integrated micro-sensors, eliminating the need for numerous dedicated temperature sensors. This self-service approach provides comprehensive temperature monitoring throughout the building without significant additional cost, maintaining measurement precision while controlling sensor quantity.
4Device complexity
If building control systems operate with limited knowledge of building activities and environmental factors, then system complexity decreases, but control precision and energy efficiency are reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses multi-functional sensors and control units that can detect various environmental parameters (temperature, humidity, occupancy, external conditions) and control multiple building components (HVAC, lighting, windows). This universal approach provides comprehensive environmental understanding without proportionally increasing system complexity, as the same hardware performs multiple sensing and control functions.
Data Source
AI summary
A building component system includes a building component that is controllable between a first state and a second state in response to a sensed condition. The system may include a sensor on a first side of the building component and a sensor on the second side of the building component. The building component may be a window that is controllable between an opaque state and a clear state by a micro electromechanical system (MEMS) network that senses the conditions on both sides of the window.