Device and method for controlling opening of a valve in an HVAC system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9874880-B2
Application number	US-201414771002-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 14, 2014
Priority date	May 16, 2013
Publication date	Jan 23, 2018
Grant date	Jan 23, 2018

Abstract

For controlling the opening of a valve ( 10 ) in an HVAC system ( 100 ) to regulate the flow φ of a fluid through a thermal energy exchanger ( 2 ) of the HVAC system ( 100 ) and adjust the amount of energy E exchanged by the thermal energy exchanger ( 2 ), determined are the flow φ through a valve ( 10 ) and the temperature difference ΔT=T in −T out between the supply temperature T in of the fluid entering the thermal energy exchanger ( 2 ) and the return temperature T out of the fluid exiting the thermal energy exchanger ( 2 ). The opening of the valve ( 10 ) is controlled depending on the flow φ and the temperature difference ΔT. For example, the opening of the valve ( 10 ) is controlled depending on a control criterion c=ƒ(φ,ΔT), calculated from the flow φ and the temperature difference ΔT.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method of controlling opening of a valve in a heating, ventilating and air conditioning (HVAC) system to regulate the flow φ of a fluid through a thermal energy exchanger of the HVAC system and adjust the amount of energy E exchanged by the thermal energy exchanger, the method comprising:
measuring the flow φ through the valve;
determining a temperature difference ΔT=T in −T out between a supply temperature T in of the fluid entering the thermal energy exchanger and a return temperature T out of the fluid exiting the thermal energy exchanger;
calculating a control criterion

c
=

φ
α

Δ
⁢

⁢

T
β

using the flow φ, the temperature difference ΔT=T in −T out and adjustment parameters α>0, β>0; and
controlling the opening of the valve depending on a comparison of the control criterion

c
=

φ
α

Δ
⁢

⁢

T
β

to a threshold value.

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising determining the adjustment parameters α, β using environmental characteristics of a space having arranged therein the thermal energy exchanger, including at least one of: air temperature (T air ), air flow (φ air ), air humidity (H air ), and supply temperature (T in ).

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the supply temperature T in , the return temperature T out , and the flow φ through the valve are measured at the same time.

4. The method of claim 1 , further comprising measuring in a space having arranged therein the thermal energy exchanger at least one of: humidity and air flow; and further comprising at least one of: controlling the opening of the valve depending on at least one of: humidity and air flow, and adjusting the threshold value based on at least one of: humidity and air flow.

5. The method of claim 1 , further comprising at least one of: controlling the opening of the valve depending on the supply temperature T in , and adjusting the threshold value based on the supply temperature T in .

6. A control device for controlling opening of a valve in a heating, ventilating and air conditioning (HVAC) system to regulate the flow φ of a fluid through a thermal energy exchanger of the HVAC system and adjust the amount of energy E exchanged by the thermal energy exchanger, the control device comprising:
a processor configured to calculate a control criterion

c
=

φ
α

Δ
⁢

⁢

T
β

using a measurement of the flow φ through the valve, a temperature difference ΔT=T in −T out , determined between a supply temperature T in of the fluid entering the thermal energy exchanger and a return temperature T out of the fluid exiting the thermal energy exchanger, and adjustment parameters α>0, β>0; and to control the opening of the valve depending on a comparison of the control criterion

c
=

φ
α

Δ
⁢

⁢

T
β

to a threshold value.

7. The control device of claim 6 , wherein the processor is further configured to determine the adjustment parameters α, β using environmental characteristics of a space having arranged therein the thermal energy exchanger, including at least one of: air temperature (T air ), air flow (φ air ), air humidity (H air ), and supply temperature (T in ).

8. The control device of claim 6 , wherein the processor is configured to calculate the control criterion from concurrent measurements of the flow φ through the valve, the supply temperature T in of the fluid entering the thermal energy exchanger, and the return temperature T out of the fluid exiting the thermal energy exchanger.

9. The control device claim 1 , wherein the processor is further configured to perform at least one of: controlling the opening of the valve depending on at least one of: humidity and air flow measured in a space having arranged therein the thermal energy exchanger, and adjusting the threshold value based on at least one of: the humidity and the air flow.

10. The control device of claim 6 , wherein the processor is further configured to perform at least one of: control the opening of the valve depending on the supply temperature T in , and adjust the threshold value based on the supply temperature T in .

11. A computer program product comprising a non-transient computer readable medium having stored therein computer program code configured to direct a processor of a control device for controlling opening of a valve in a heating, ventilating and air conditioning (HVAC) system to regulate the flow of a fluid through a thermal energy exchanger of the HVAC system and adjust the amount of energy exchanged by the thermal energy exchanger by:
calculating a control criterion

c
=

φ
α

Δ
⁢

⁢

T

β
-

using a measurement of the flow φ through the valve, a temperature difference ΔT=T in −T out , determined between a supply temperature T in of the fluid entering the thermal energy exchanger and a return temperature T out of the fluid exiting the thermal energy exchanger, and adjustment parameters α>0, β>0; and
controlling the opening of the valve depending on a comparison of the control criterion

c
=

φ
α

Δ
⁢

⁢

Assignees

• Belimo Holding Ag

Inventors

• Thuillard Marc
• Reider Forest

Classifications

• 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

• F25B25/005

  using primary and secondary systems · CPC title

• F24F11/64

  using pre-stored data · CPC title

• G05B15/02

  electric · CPC title

• F24F11/30

  for purposes related to the operation of the system, e.g. for safety or monitoring · CPC title