Database for a remotely accessible building information system

Details Database for a remotely accessible building information system Database for a remotely accessible building information system

2000-02-11

2002-11-26

Breene, John (Department: 2177)

Data processing: generic control systems or specific application

Generic control system, apparatus or process

Sequential or selective

C700S083000, C700S086000, C700S017000, C700S028000, C700S275000, C345S215000, C345S215000, C707S793000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06487457

ABSTRACT:

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to electrical communications systems, and more particularly to systems and data structures for storing data used in monitoring and controlling equipment in a building coupled to a building information system (BIS).
2. Description of Related Art
In a large modem building, such as a manufacturing plant, a building operator can use a dedicated Building Management System (BMS) to manage different building subsystems coupled to the building, including boilers, thermostats, electrical subsystems, controllers, meters, and other equipment. The dedicated BMS typically monitors and controls the building subsystems using a communications network coupling each of the building subsystems. For example, the building operator can use a dedicated BMS to monitor the temperature in a specific zone of the building and to increase or decrease the heat provided to that zone. Typically, a dedicated BMS is executed in a personal computer or workstation located in the building, although such systems can also be operated remotely via a dial-up connection, a local-area network (LAN) or wide-area network (WAN). The data recorded by a dedicated BMS, however, is not readily available to other BMSs or to other applications that would benefit from such data. Furthermore, older dedicated BMSs have typically managed building components using a proprietary channel, which presents an obstacle to adding new service components, interfaces, or clients from different vendors.
Modern BMSs, however, have moved away from the proprietary systems of the late 1980s with the intent of improving a building operator's ability to integrate different vendors' subsystems. Such systems, facilitated by industry standard communication protocols such as “BACnet” and “Echelon”, are typically characterized as “open-systems” and provide non-proprietary communication interfaces among building subsystems marketed by different vendors. Generally, BACnet and Echelon refer to different types of open-system building network protocols, which allow other BACnet-compliant or Echelon-compliant BMSs and building subsystems to communicate together. In contrast to dedicated BMSs that communicate over proprietary channels, open-system BMSs can provide ready, automatic access to disparate building subsystems without the need for specially developed, vendor-specific interfaces to each vendor's building subsystem. In other words, an open-system BMS can seamlessly communicate among the building subsystems of different vendors by providing an open-system interface supporting an open-system building network, like BACnet or Echelon.
While open-system BMSs address customer demands for choice and interoperability for managing building subsystems, modern BMSs do not fully address the complex requirements of modern building operators. The EXCEL BUILDING SUPERVISOR (XBS) v. 1.4.2, marketed by Honeywell, Inc., is an example of a BMS, which is typically used to locally manage and control a building, including accessing dynamic data detected from points and meters within the building, viewing historical dynamic data, setting schedules for turning specific points on or off, viewing alarms when the dynamic data fails to satisfy an acceptable condition, and issuing control commands to points in the building. The term “points” refers to sensors and actuators on various building subsystems.
The BMS data provided by a typical building information system, however, is severely limited in quantity and scope, consisting essentially of dynamic BMS data and BMS attributes. The dynamic (or time-varying) data is detected from or provided to points, meters, and controllers within one or more buildings and stored within the BMS device itself. The BMS attributes typically include an 8-character identifier of the point, meter, or controller; a type characteristic (e.g., digital input, digital output, analog input, analog output); alarm conditions; priority characteristics; and status flags. The BMS data provided by a building management system is not stored in a relational database and is not readily available for use by other non-BMS applications. Furthermore, the BMS does not provide or store configuration data (e.g., describing a particular site, a building, a piece of equipment, and/or a point (or meter) on that equipment) that is also of interest to a building operator. As such, a BMS does not facilitate integration of other needed data and services, such as remotely sending alarms to an email address of a building operator or owner to warn of detected problems with a particular piece of equipment in a particular building. This exemplary functionality is generally outside the scope of a BMS.
Because it is desirable to integrate the data and functionality from a BMS with data and functionality available from other systems, additional data, tools and services are needed to more fully meet these requirements. Furthermore, in some circumstances, a building operator may manage a building remotely or contract with a third party building management company to manage multiple buildings at different geographical locations. A need exists for a remotely accessible building information system that supports the integration of new data, tools and services with a building management system. It is also desirable to provide a relational combination of BMS data and configuration data in a building information system to support expanded capabilities exceeding those of a typical building management system.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In accordance with a preferred embodiment, a method of managing a building information system including a building management system and a building management system network coupled to one or more buildings is provided. Building management system data associated with a piece of equipment on the building management system network is provided. Configuration information associated with the piece of equipment is also provided. A database relationship is established between the building management system data and the configuration information.
In accordance with another preferred embodiment, a computer-readable storage medium storing a data structure for use in a building information system including a building management system program module and a building management system network coupled to one or more buildings is provided. Building management system data is associated with a piece of equipment coupled to the building management system network. One or more building management system database objects stores the building management system data associated with the piece of equipment couple to at least one of the buildings on the building management system network. A building information system configuration object storing configuration information is associated with the piece of equipment. A mapping structure establishes a database relationship between the building management system data of the building management system database object and the configuration information of the building information system configuration object.
In accordance with yet another embodiment. a computer system for managing a building information system, which includes a building management system and a building management system network. is provided. The computer system is coupled to one or more buildings and comprises one or more building management system database objects storing dynamic building management system data associated with a piece of equipment on the building management system network. A configuration database object stores configuration information associated with the piece of equipment. A mapping structure establishes a database relationship between the dynamic building management system data of the building management system database objects and the configuration information of the configuration database object. A processor executes a program module accessing the building management system database object in combination with the configuration database object, based on the

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