Conference proceeding
Smart HVAC System Controllers Addressing Preservation Requirements in Historic Buildings
2025 16th International Conference on Information, Intelligence, Systems & Applications (IISA), pp 1-7
10 Jul 2025
Abstract
This study explores the use of intelligent heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) controllers to improve environmental conditions in heritage buildings, balancing conservation needs and occupant thermal comfort while simultaneously reducing energy demand. Most heritage buildings rely on traditional on/off HVAC controllers with fixed temperature setpoints that fail to account for relative humidity variations and occupancy levels. This study develops and evaluates two intelligent HVAC system controllers based on artificial neural networks (ANN) and fuzzy inference systems (FIS), which regulate indoor air temperature and relative humidity while accounting for building occupancy patterns. Using real-world datasets taken from a UNESCO World Heritage site in San Antonio, Texas, USA, results indicate that smart controllers, particularly FIS model, enhance building performance by improving thermal comfort and indoor environmental conditions for building and artwork conservation while reducing HVAC operation time by up to 30% compared to conventional on/off controllers. The study highlights the advantages of smart controllers in enhancing both energy efficiency and preservation efforts in historic buildings while maintaining optimal thermal comfort.
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Details
- Title
- Smart HVAC System Controllers Addressing Preservation Requirements in Historic Buildings
- Creators
- Carlos Faubel - Drexel UniversityLakin Casey - Drexel UniversityAntonio Martinez-Molina - Drexel UniversityCristina Nichiforov - The University of Texas at San AntonioMiltiadis Alamaniotis - The University of Texas at San Antonio
- Publication Details
- 2025 16th International Conference on Information, Intelligence, Systems & Applications (IISA), pp 1-7
- Publisher
- IEEE
- Resource Type
- Conference proceeding
- Language
- English
- Academic Unit
- Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering; Architecture, Design, and Urbanism
- Other Identifier
- 991022150103204721