Integration and Building Automation Systems
Modern buildings have many systems, even systems of systems. The majority of these systems are energy infrastructure and energy management systems. If we compare a building to our body, energy systems work in integration with each other and keep the building standing, similar to vital systems such as digestion, respiration, and circulation. At this point, it is equally vital to adjust and maintain these systems in an integrated manner from the design of the building.
Many systems work in harmony in a building. HVAC (Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning) systems provide a comfortable and efficient indoor environment by controlling temperature, humidity and air quality in buildings. Fire safety systems, provides early warning, automatic intervention and safe evacuation processes by detecting fire, smoke, gas leaks and emergencies. Lighting systemsoffers energy efficient, automatic or manually controlled lighting solutions in buildings and open spaces. Emergency lighting systemIt is activated in disasters such as earthquakes and fires, when the lighting system is dysfunctional, and ensures the safe evacuation of building occupants.
All these systems consume energy, so the efficiency and management of energy, which is the lifeblood of buildings, is very important. The operation of a system should not disrupt the operation of other systems, and should even contribute to the operation of other systems. For example, information provided by the lighting system can save energy consumed by the heating system. Information from the ventilation system can be used in the security system. In parallel, a small malfunction in the electrical installation can affect not only the lighting units but also the fire and security systems in the building. If a gas leak in the natural gas line cannot be detected by the HVAC or fire systems, a possible explosion can disable all systems.
Therefore, designing the interaction between systems is of vital importance in building design. As in the examples above, the components of specific systems also provide information for the operation of other systems. Therefore, designing different systems in an integrated, interoperable and energy efficient manner is important for both the safety and sustainability of buildings and the health and comfort of the people living in them and the ecosystem.
Tridium Niagara and Integrated System Design
Design and commissioning of indoor systems Tridium The Niagara infrastructure of the company is widely used in the world. The Niagara platform combines different automation systems in buildings in a central environment, providing central control, interoperability between devices, automation, energy efficiency and security. It makes building management more efficient, smart and secure by integrating different infrastructures such as HVAC, lighting, security, energy management and fire systems. With the infrastructure it offers, Niagara 'talks' different protocols over a single platform. For this, companies produce software to make the products they develop 'recognizable' in this infrastructure. For example, an energy meter or lighting control unit developed by a company is not directly recognized in the Niagara platform. A special driver must be developed for this device to communicate with Niagara and integrate with other systems. At this point, Elekon As , we are also developing drivers for the Niagara platform in line with our own areas of expertise.
The driver writing process for Niagara starts with understanding the technical requirements of the device or system to be integrated. Data exchange is provided with the device or system using the Java programming language and APIs (programming interfaces) provided by Niagara. After a basic communication infrastructure is created, the obtained data is made compatible with Niagara's standard data model and integrated into the user interface. Thus, users can monitor the status of the integrated device via Niagara, change its parameters and analyze the system it is in. Driver configuration can be made by making changes to many parameters related to elements such as communication protocols, data formats and communication methods used. For example, protocols such as Modbus, BACnet or KNX, which are widely used in energy management systems, have their own parameters. Master-slave structure is used in the Modbus protocol and addressing is available. Many parameters such as baud-rate (connection speed), timeout (response time), input-holding register (banks holding information) are set.
Similarly, there are many variables in the KNX protocol, such as connection speed, physical address, group address. The Niagara platform processes the data from the drivers of these different protocols in its own infrastructure and can use it to manage other components integrated into the system. At this stage, energy management systems are designed on the platform, similar to the architectural design of the building. The designer can create 'scenarios' with the components of the systems he includes. For example, lamps, which are normally only part of the lighting system, can also be used in the HVAC system by providing information to the heating system according to the created scenario.
Let's go through an example scenario:
In an office building, a smart lighting system works in integration with motion sensors. If no movement is detected in the area during working hours, the lights automatically turn off after a certain period of time. However, if the same system is integrated with HVAC and security systems, temperature control in a room where no movement is detected can be reduced to a minimum level to save energy. Even when there is no movement detected in the building at night, the security system can be activated and lock certain doors or go into alarm mode.
Such integrated scenarios enable different systems to work together thanks to the Niagara platform and make building management more efficient. This scenario is made possible by the driver software that allows lighting units and HVAC components to be recognized on the Niagara platform.
Elekon The drivers we developed as DALI By integrating our lighting units working with the protocol into the Niagara platform, the systems are integrated into the system. This process is a comprehensive process that brings together the experiences of our building automation and engineering.
In the coming stages, we will continue to share our work on the integration of different systems and advanced analytical solutions.
Yasin Alpay | Elekon Software Team Leader
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