Ventilation Unit Controller for Humidity-Aware Forced Air Circulation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing ventilation units face challenges in maintaining optimal indoor humidity levels, as they may inadvertently increase relative humidity when ambient air is cooler and more humid than indoor air, leading to prolonged inactivity and reduced forced ventilation benefits.
Innovation Solution
A ventilation unit with a controller that assesses target and current air conditions using sensors to activate the fan and control an external air treatment unit, ensuring forced ventilation even under adverse conditions, thereby maintaining target humidity levels and extending active operation time.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If the fan is activated when ambient air is cooler and more humid than indoor air, then forced ventilation continues, but indoor relative humidity increases beyond acceptable levels
Solution Approach 1:
The controller continuously monitors indoor relative humidity levels and ambient air conditions, using this feedback to dynamically adjust fan operation. When ambient air is cooler and more humid than indoor air, the controller prevents fan activation to avoid increasing indoor humidity beyond the 70% threshold, while allowing operation when conditions are favorable for drying indoor air.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the operational parameters of the fan based on ambient and indoor air conditions. By comparing temperature and humidity parameters between ambient and indoor air, the controller adjusts whether the fan should operate, thereby changing the system's state between active ventilation and inactive prevention modes.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If the fan is deactivated when ambient air is cooler and more humid than indoor air, then indoor humidity is controlled, but forced ventilation operation time is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The system employs periodic monitoring of ambient and indoor air conditions, with the controller assessing whether to activate the fan at each monitoring cycle. This periodic evaluation allows the fan to operate during favorable conditions (extending operation time) while preventing operation during unfavorable conditions (controlling humidity).
Solution Approach 2:
The fan operation is made dynamic rather than static, adjusting to changing environmental conditions. The controller continuously evaluates ambient temperature, ambient humidity, indoor temperature, and indoor humidity to dynamically determine the appropriate fan state, maximizing operation time when beneficial and preventing operation when harmful.
3Reliability
If the fan operates continuously to maintain air circulation, then mould growth is prevented, but energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses the naturally occurring ambient air conditions to serve the ventilation function when possible. By activating the fan only when ambient air is warmer and/or drier than indoor air, the system leverages favorable environmental conditions to maintain air circulation and prevent mould growth without requiring continuous energy input.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution allows for extended active operation of the ventilation unit while maintaining indoor humidity within desired limits, preventing humidity increases and ensuring continuous forced ventilation, even when ambient conditions would otherwise lead to increased humidity.
Implementation Method 1
a fan arranged to draw ambient air into the ventilation unit via the inlet and expel air through the outlet
Implementation Method 2
access information from at least one first sensor arranged to sense a first air condition parameter associated with the ambient air, and access information from at least one second sensor arranged to sense a second air condition parameter associated with air in the indoor space
Implementation Method 3
When air is subject to cooling its relative humidity increases provided the total water vapour content, i.e. the absolute humidity level, is held constant
Data Source
AI summary
A ventilation unit for providing forced ventilation of ambient air into an indoor space of a building is provided. The ventilation unit may be used to reduce the relative humidity of an indoor space and provide a more comfortable indoor space environment.