Commercial HVAC rooftop units are about to move from smart to intelligent with the help of Intel technology. With building owners having integrated smart HVAC technologies into their systems over the last decade, more data has become available, but that data has been underutilized. Daikin Applied (formerly Daikin McQuay) plans to use Intel-based intelligent gateway solution to harness big data by putting that knowledge to work in creating intelligent building systems. These systems intuitively know, and adjust to what building occupants need for comfort and energy efficiency.
Daikin Applied is making use of the Internet of Things (IoT) through the integration of an Intel-based intelligent gateway solution in its existing Rebel rooftop units. With the Intel-based intelligent gateway solution, Daikin Applied is able to seamlessly connect Rebel units to the cloud and securely aggregate, filter and share data. This allows Daikin Applied to help people proactively manage the performance of their buildings and makes them aware of HVAC issues before they happen.
“Intel was able to provide us with the integrated computing solution that we were looking for,” said Kevin Facinelli, executive vice president at Daikin Applied. “They offer a scalable roadmap and compatibility across Intel platforms along with McAfee and Wind River. With Intel inside our Rebel units, Daikin Applied intends to continue pushing the limits in achieving energy efficiency and advancing HVAC technologies. The type of information available to building owners as a result is exciting. It will power even greater performance in their HVAC systems.”
“Intel is working to accelerate the Internet of Things by driving intelligence into devices and gateways to unlock the data from the device to help uncover actionable information and improve business processes,” said Ton Steenman, vice president and general manager of Intel’s Intelligent Systems Group. “Intel has been working closely with Daikin Applied as they prepare to deploy Intel-based intelligent gateways to help increase energy efficiency in their existing systems while developing new business models and service offerings.”
Rebel is already one of the most energy efficient rooftop units on the market and the first to meet the Department of Energy’s Rooftop Unit Challenge; saving commercial building owners up to 60 to 70 percent on HVAC energy costs over traditional rooftop units. With the combination of Daikin Applied and Intel technology, building owners will have access to maintenance and operations intelligence that Daikin Applied anticipates will transform the industry’s expectations of what sustainability and performance look like in commercial buildings.
At the maintenance level, the solution will predict faults such as fan or motor failures and will alert users when filters need to be changed based on usage not time. At the operations level, the system can sync with the weather forecast to adjust for changing climates before it happens. It can provide access and insights into a building’s Energy Star Ratings as well as comparable buildings in its area. It will provide users with financial summaries of their energy savings and equipment payback; measure and automatically adjust for building comfort based on building users profiles; and give users direct access to its level of power usage as well as its CO2 use to provide a more accurate view of the carbon footprint.
The Rebel rooftop units are manufactured in the USA at Daikin Applied’s manufacturing facility located in Faribault, Minn. For more information about Daikin Applied, visit: www.DaikinApplied.com.