Integrated smart actuator and valve device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9746199-B1
Application number	US-201715399706-A
Country	US
Kind code	B1
Filing date	Jan 5, 2017
Priority date	Jan 5, 2017
Publication date	Aug 29, 2017
Grant date	Aug 29, 2017

Abstract

An integrated device in an HVAC system is configured to modify an environmental condition of a building. The device includes a valve configured to regulate the flow of fluid through a conduit, an actuator comprising a motor and a drive device, and a communications mechanism. The communications mechanism is configured to receive a flow rate setpoint from an external control device of an outer control loop. The device further includes a processing circuit. The processing circuit is configured to determine an actuator position setpoint using a cascaded feedback control mechanism based on the flow rate setpoint and a flow rate measurement from a flow rate sensor of an inner control loop. The valve, the actuator, the communications mechanism, and the processing circuit are located within a common integrated device chassis.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An integrated device in an HVAC system configured to modify an environmental condition of a building, the integrated device comprising:
a valve configured to regulate a flow of a fluid through a conduit;
an actuator comprising a motor and a drive device, the drive device driven by the motor and coupled to the valve for driving the valve between multiple positions;
a communications mechanism configured to receive a flow rate setpoint from an external control device of an outer control loop; and
a processing circuit coupled to the motor and the communications mechanism and configured to:
determine an actuator position setpoint using a cascaded feedback control mechanism based on the flow rate setpoint and a flow rate measurement from a flow rate sensor of an inner control loop; and
operate the motor to drive the drive device to the actuator position setpoint;

wherein the valve, the actuator, the communications mechanism, and the processing circuit are located within a common integrated device chassis.

2. The integrated device of claim 1 , wherein the flow rate sensor is located within the common integrated device chassis.

3. The integrated device of claim 1 , wherein the flow rate sensor is a heated thermistor flow rate sensor.

4. The integrated device of claim 1 , wherein the flow rate sensor is configured to measure a flow rate via acoustic detection of vortices in the fluid.

5. The integrated device of claim 1 , wherein the processing circuit is further configured to detect whether the integrated device is experiencing a fault condition based on the flow rate measurement.

6. The integrated device of claim 1 , wherein the communications mechanism is further configured to transmit at least one of a fault status and a valve position to an external network.

7. The integrated device of claim 1 , wherein the external control device determines the flow rate setpoint based on a temperature measurement from a temperature sensor located in a building zone.

8. A method for controlling an integrated device comprising a valve and an actuator in an HVAC system, the method comprising:
receiving a flow rate setpoint from an external control device of an outer control loop;
receiving a flow rate measurement from a flow rate sensor of an inner control loop;
determining an actuator position setpoint of the integrated device based on the flow rate setpoint and the flow rate measurement;
driving the actuator to the actuator position setpoint, wherein the actuator is coupled to the valve in order to drive the valve between multiple positions.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein the flow rate sensor is located within the integrated device.

10. The method of claim 8 , wherein the flow rate sensor is a heated thermistor flow rate sensor.

11. The method of claim 8 , wherein the flow rate sensor is configured to measure a flow rate via acoustic detection of vortices in a fluid.

12. The method of claim 8 , the method further comprising detecting whether the integrated device is experiencing a fault condition based on the flow rate measurement.

13. The method of claim 8 , the method further comprising transmitting at least one of a fault status and a valve position to an external network.

14. The method of claim 8 , wherein the flow rate setpoint is received from the external control device via a wireless communications mechanism.

15. An integrated device in an HVAC system configured to modify an environmental condition of a building, the integrated device comprising:
a valve configured to regulate a flow of a fluid through a conduit;
an actuator comprising a motor and a drive device, the drive device driven by the motor and coupled to the valve for driving the valve between multiple positions;
a zone temperature controller disposed within an outer control loop and configured to output a flow rate setpoint based at least on a zone temperature setpoint and a measured zone temperature; and
a processing circuit coupled to the motor and the zone temperature controller and configured to:
determine an actuator position setpoint using a cascaded feedback control mechanism based on the flow rate setpoint and a flow rate measurement from a flow rate sensor of an inner control loop; and
operate the motor to drive the drive device to the actuator position setpoint;

wherein the valve, the actuator, the zone temperature controller, and the processing circuit are located within a common integrated device chassis.

Assignees

• Johnson Controls Tech Co

Inventors

• Drees Kirk H
• Doll Herbert J
• Duenkel Gerald A
• Passoni Marcello

Classifications

• F24F11/32

  Responding to malfunctions or emergencies · CPC title

• F24F2140/12

  Heat-exchange fluid pressure · CPC title

• F24F2110/10

  Temperature · CPC title

• F24F11/62

  characterised by the type of control or by internal processing, e.g. using fuzzy logic, adaptive control or estimation of values · CPC title

• F24F11/83

  by controlling the supply of heat-exchange fluids to heat-exchangers · CPC title