Design and applications of an IoT architecture for data-driven smart building operations and experimentation

Abstract

This paper describes the design of an Internet of Things (IoT) architecture that allows customizable data-driven operations and experimentation for an ultra-efficient office/lab building. To develop the data-driven control for future building operations, the building was designed with two systems: one system for “operation” and another “research” system to allow data acquisition, management, and separate commanding mechanisms. It includes the communication network, sensor network, building operations, and research network. The building was designed with multiple heating/cooling zones that can be controlled and commanded individually, as well as with a hybrid physical and virtual testbed to support algorithm testing. There are several applications that utilize this IoT architecture. First, an experiment that illustrates the testing and deployment of a data-driven algorithm using the hybrid physical and virtual testbed is described. Second, data-informed building energy management based on the IoT architecture is introduced. Third, augmented reality-based building operations and facility management is also discussed.