Smart home automation system for energy efficient housing

This paper presents a concept and implementation of modern smart monitoring and control system for building automatization. The system is designed to enable significant reduction of energy consumption and carbon footprint by increasing the energy efficiency of the building under control. The system consists of a Linux-based remotely accessible main embedded control unit, a custom designed programmable logic controller named littlePLC, and a propriatery low-power Wireless Sensor Network (WSN). The energy flow is optimized by using a Model Predictive Control (MPC) algorithm that runs on the main control unit. The main control unit communicates with littlePLC, which serves as an interface that controls the parameters and state of HVAC systems in the building. The feedback information for MPC is gathered by means of the WSN, which consists of various sensor node types, such as temperature, air pressure, humidity, VOC and CO₂. The WSN nodes are connected in a star type network topology, with a communication HUB connected to the main control unit. The information gathered by WSN are used in the MPC algorithm in order to calculate and estimate the requirements for heat corrections, with respect to ventilation and weather predictions.

I. Introduction

One of the main concerns today is energy generation, consumption and preservation. Since the reserves of fossil fuels are limited, the use of alternative energy sources need to be encouraged. Large part of the engineering community considers solar energy being one of the most perspective alternative sources, whether directly by using solar heat and light or indirectly by using the wind, tidal changes and similar effects generated by the Sun's emitted energy. Apart from considering sustainable sources, it is also important to improve the efficiency at which the energy is consumed.