Opportunities of Wireless Sensors and Controls for Building Operation

ABSTRACT The rapid maturity of everyday wireless technologies—now widely used for mobile phones, wireless internet access, and even the replacement of barcodes—has had a significant impact on our ability to collect information from the physical world. There are tremendous opportunities in using wireless technologies in sensors and controls for building operation. To date, the market adoption rate of wireless systems in building automation has been limited by two factors. First, the cost of the wireless technology is still high because of the small production numbers. Second, there is still skepticism about the reliability of wireless systems as permanent controls solutions in buildings. The key promise of wireless technology in building operation is to reduce the cost of installing data acquisition and control systems (typically 20–80 percent of the cost of controls technology in a heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system). Reducing or eliminating this cost component has a dramatic effect on the overall installed system cost. With low-cost wireless sensor and control systems, not only will the cost of system installation be significantly reduced, but it will become economical to use more sensors, thereby establishing highly energy efficient building operations and demand responsiveness that will enhance our electric grid reliability. This article characterizes commercially available wireless technologies that are suitable for use in commercial buildings. It describes two demonstration projects of wireless sensors and their integration into existing control networks, and discusses their cost per sensor, their ease of installation, and their reliability. The author will discuss the operational and energy benefits of the wireless sensors and report on the energy and cost savings estimates. The article concludes with some practical considerations for the installation of wireless sensors and provides a future outlook for wireless technologies in buildings applications.