Smart energy façade for building comfort to optimize interaction with the smart grid

Abstract

An Intelligent Electrical Energy supply Grid, a Smart Grid, is being developed to cope with fluctuations in energy generation from the different renewable energy sources. Energy demand and energy need to be better balanced to achieve improved overall efficiency. The process control of the energy flows in the buildings in relation to the outside environment and the user behavior also needs to become smart, intelligent and capable of adaptation to changing conditions. Otherwise you get the combination of a smart infrastructure but a dumb client, which is not good for the business of the client. Especially is it of great importance to take in account the goal of the energy use: human comfort. There is need for dynamic individual local comfort control instead of only process control at room level. Especially with these new process control possibilities, the interaction becomes essential of the outdoor active and passive energy processes with indoor through the façade. The façade is as such passive and active energy source on the one hand and a critical factor in relation to the perceived thermal comfort. The façade can be seen as an energy interface that should be optimized to perceived comfort of the occupants and their energy consumption. © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2013.