Future of Building Automation Systems

  Future of Building Automation Systems

In addition to the needs of today we are seeing new concerns over global warming, and long term supply of fossil fuels. This combined with the pressure of an aging electrical generation infrastructure, is putting the onus on new programs for high efficiency and even “zero energy” commercial buildings. These programs will have an intelligent, integrated system design as one of their core elements.

In view of the fact that more and more supervisory computer systems are being installed in buildings, one can expect that the demand for integrated systems will rise even more. Further developments in microelectronics will result in even the further distribution of functionality. Control components entering the market, especially sensors and actuators, will be increasingly intelligent and will be designed to become part of larger intelligent systems. Their native communication will be based on open protocols. As control equipment will become more and more commodity its functionality will become more and more standardized and real plug and play capability will become a reality.

Control products will become more and more internet aware, so that supervision and maintenance maybe done from any location in the world. Eventually this development will cause the DDC controller or substation to disappear as its functionality will be taken over by the more intelligent sensors and actuators. The network will become the heart of the DDC control systems of the future.

In General the BAS technology is advancing to offer the following new functionality in the future.

-          Increased multi-system operability

The BAS industry is currently doing extensive research into developing and testing web browser interfaces. BAS designers have recently begun using them for increased multisystem operability and to improve building operators' access to the system. ASHRAE has added web services to BACnet in order to standardize how BACnet systems run web services to exchange data with other computing applications over a network. One initial use of web services is to enable sophisticated functionality such as creating "virtual thermostats" that give users control over the temperature in their own area. Testing is also under way on using web services to integrate BASs with utility systems, which would implement control strategies based on real-time pricing.

-          Lower installation costs with wireless devices

Wireless networks offer future potential cost reductions that are dramatic for the primary controller architecture, because the cost of wiring and conduit is a major budget item. Although they are still relatively expensive, wireless devices are becoming more affordable and reliable with the development of new manufacturing techniques. Also, a new open communication standard, the ZigBee standard, is making possible reliable, low-power, wirelessly networked products that provide much more flexibility than proprietary wireless systems. However, because buildings typically require a large number of sensor nodes (which drives up the cost), designing wireless systems is currently a balance of functionality and cost-effectiveness, with designers cutting costs by removing functions and limiting compatibility with external systems. As costs continue to come down, wireless networks will likely become much more prevalent in BASs.