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Saving with Comfort. The Problem: Single thermostat systems are ineffective and inefficient. 1. Single thermostat systems are ineffective at providing comfort throughout the office building. Tree Shade. Sun Exposure. T. Distance.
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The Problem: Single thermostat systems are ineffective and inefficient 1. Single thermostat systems are ineffective at providing comfort throughout the office building Tree Shade Sun Exposure T Distance • Areas far from the thermostat are left at sub-optimal temperatures • Single thermostat systems cannot compensate for room specific factors Note: This diagram can represent heating or cooling scenarios
The Problem: Single thermostat systems are ineffective and inefficient 2. Central forced air systems use more energy than required Do not account for where or when energy is required • Energy is wasted on unoccupied rooms • The rooms in this representative building are empty 54% of the day
Zone Control is the answer. Or is it ? Zoning is expensive to retrofit • Tearing up ductwork and walls • Pulling control wires is a huge hassle
Zoning Issues Constant Volume Systems specifically require Bypass dampers • Bypass dampers are painful to install • They reduce system efficiency by 16% • California is going to ban them from 2014
Fully opening and closing dampers is like on and off a tap to adjust the flow of water while taking a shower… Heating & Cooling is a slow process. After the temperature in a zone is in error, zoning systems use a larger input - fully opening or closing dampers to try overcome thermal inertia in a short time The Real problem then with traditional zone systems is that they are reactive!
Every HVAC contractor balances the airflow in the building as part of the commissioning process. However, the balancing is for a static set of conditions. As the weather, occupancy and other loads change the balancing is no longer accurate
What if we could make subtle changes to balancing dampers to dynamically balance the airflow within a building for the current set of conditions ? Doing so however, requires we know in advance what the thermal loads are going to be in every part of the building since small control inputs require a longer time to overcome thermal inertia Continuous commissioning should not be a buzzword…
75F’s technology offers dynamic airflow balancing 2. Central Control Unit Cloud powered Smart Algorithms control HVAC equipment and predictively balance airflow 1. Wireless Zone Controllers Provide per diffuser temperature control 3. Smart Dampers Modulate to control airflow
Dynamic Balancing for Constant Air Volume System How it works 2 1 • A wireless zone controller monitors the temperature in each zone, the damper position and airflow temperature and sends it to the Central Control Unit (CCU) • The CCU collects the information from all the zones and sends it to servers in the cloud • Powerful servers in the cloud crunch the data along with the current weather to create a thermal model of the building • The algorithms predict the energy requirements of the zones during the day and the required damper positions • The calculations are sent back to the CCU which sends the required damper control points to the zone controllers that move the smart dampers to the ideal position • The CCU then turns on the HVAC cooling or heating coil Central Control UnitControl HVAC equipment and predictively balance airflow 2 1 Supply air sensor Measure backpressure, supply air temperature and CO2 levels Wireless Zone Controllers Provide per diffuser temperature control 3 3 Smart Dampers Modulate to control airflow
Measures Zone and Airflow Temperature Wireless communication (to CCU) enables easy installs Controls 2 Smart Dampers Available with Indoor Air Quality Measurement for Demand Based Ventilation 1. Zone Module
Consolidates real-time FSV data Unified zone control and alerting Controls HVAC equipment Communicates with Cloud Servers 2. Central Control Unit (CCU)
3. Harnessing the power of the cloud = CCU sends the data to server farm for offline processing • Models building thermal envelope • Anticipates energy requirements • Predictively controls operating parameters
Rotary Actuation mechanism Easy drop-in installation cuts install time from 45minutes to 10 minutes Simple cable run to FSV Adjusted vent does not draw power CE and UL rated 4. Smart Dampers (SD)
The Result - Active Balancing Before After
The Result - Active Balancing Before After
The Result - Active Balancing Before System turn on After
Facility Managers have live insight Facility Manager Web Portal • All installations in one consolidated interface • Aggregate Multiple RTUs in same building • Energy Usage Data and Heat maps • Multi-Zone Scheduling & Status • Consolidated Alerting
Installer portal – gives customer overview Installer Web Portal • Consolidated view of all customers • Auto populated from customers • Proactive fault alert to service tech • Prospective issues like insulation problems or duct leakage
Account for humidity Smart Comfort and Mean Temperature of Radiation • Adjust the setpoint to compensate for perceived temperature rather than just ambient air temperature Deliver comfort not just temperature control
Demand Control Ventilation Enhanced Savings thru best of breed strategies Variable Speed Fan support Occupancy Detection / Auto Away
Only condition areas that need it. Prevent over-conditioning of areas Only condition areas when they need it Support for Variable Frequency Drive fan Support for Enthalpy Economizers Support for Demand based Ventilation Active energy cost control through time of day energy usage (pre-cooling and weather forecast considerations) Smart Savings 12-26% 1 24-35% 2 5-10% 3 All estimates compared to a standard programmable thermostat operating as intended. Savings may be substantially higher if compared to a thermostat set to ‘hold’ or inefficiently programmed. 1 - 75f Internal Study 2 - DOE Report - Energy Savings and Economics of Advanced Control Strategies for Packaged Air-Conditioning Units with Gas Heat 3 - 75f Internal Study
Don’t take our word – empower users User Reports • “Kill” switch on CCU lets the system operate as a ‘dumb’ thermostat • Users can toggle between the ‘dumb’ and ‘smart’ modes • Monthly report lets them visualize the correlation between system operation and comfort/ energy
The Market 90% of commercial buildings in the US are light commercial and typically use Constant Volume Packaged Roof Top Units That’s 4,300,000 buildings !
Demand Deferral and Load Shift for Utilities Day Ahead Prices and Forecast Load Enhanced Demand ResponseDeferral • Receives forecast Demand Response • Shift compressor firing to maintain comfort during peak utility hours • Expect 20% load shift for 1 hour with no user perception
A fundamental paradigm shift for the light commercial market Better Comfort Faster Installs for huge savings in labour + 40% The smartest algorithms and most intuitive interfaces Savings Payback <3 years. Average Savings across climate zones. Savings may vary based on climate zone and HVAC equipment capabilities. All estimates are compared to a standard programmable thermostat operating as intended. Savings may be substantially higher if compared to a thermostat set to ‘hold’ or inefficiently programmed.