Abstract:
Disclosed herein is a building energy management apparatus and method. The building energy management apparatus includes a Building Information Model (BIM) analysis unit for receiving and parsing BIM data and then analyzing BIM objects. A building energy object extraction unit extracts building energy objects related to building energy from the BIM objects. A building energy object database (DB) stores a building energy object data into a DB by arranging the building energy objects. A building energy management unit manages energy of a building based on the building energy object data. Accordingly, the present invention provides technology for extracting and managing objects of a building related to the energy of the building based on a BIM, thus efficiently managing building energy.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
       [0001]    This application claims the benefit of Korean Patent Application No. 10-2013-0009665 filed on Jan. 29, 2013, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety into this application. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    1. Technical Field 
         [0003]    The present invention relates generally to a building energy management apparatus and method. More particularly, the present invention relates to technology for extracting and managing objects of a building related to the energy of the building based on a Building Information Model (BIM) required to manage the life cycle of the building (design, construction, start-up, maintenance, etc.), thus efficiently managing building energy. 
         [0004]    2. Description of the Related Art 
         [0005]    Recently, due to a remarkable rise in oil prices and an exponential increase in power consumption, the need for energy management has increased. In order to manage the energy of buildings, it is required to manage both a part for supplying energy to each building and a part for consuming the energy of the building. Building energy includes electricity, gas, water, etc., and methods for supplying such energy include methods based on electric equipment and heat source equipment. Gas is converted into thermal energy and supplied to buildings for air-conditioning. The part of the building consuming supplied energy includes, for example, lighting equipment, electric heating equipment, and heat source equipment in the case of electricity, air-conditioning spaces in the case of thermal energy, and restrooms and shower rooms in the case of water supply. 
         [0006]    Generally, a system for managing the facilities of each building is called a Building Automation System (BAS), and mainly denotes a system for managing pieces of heat source equipment. A BAS is in charge of the state management and control of pieces of heat source equipment in a building. For example, the inlet and outlet temperatures of cold water of a chiller/heater, the inlet and outlet temperatures of coolant, the operations of various types of pumps, and the operations of various types of air-conditioning fans are monitored and controlled. In conventional technology disclosed in Korean Patent Application Publication No. 10-2010-0075040 or the like, when a BAS is installed, a list of facilities, sensors, and meters installed in each building and locations thereof are taken into consideration, and the facilities, sensors and meters are mapped to and set in a computer system via manual operations in most cases, thus enabling various types of information to be converted into and managed as digital information. 
         [0007]    However, such an installation method is disadvantageous in that the number of manual operations that must be conducted by persons can be increased and work time can be lengthened, and in that, when the scale of each building is increased, a workload and work time show a tendency to increase in proportion to the scale of the building. Therefore, there is required a scheme for reducing the need for manual operations by a person and automatically converting building energy objects into digital information. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0008]    Accordingly, the present invention has been made keeping in mind the above problems occurring in the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to provide a method of reducing the number of manual operations conducted by persons and automatically extracting as many building energy objects as possible, thus enabling the implementation of digital information. 
         [0009]    Another object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus and method that extract building energy objects from BIM data by utilizing a BIM used as a standard in the fields of buildings and convert the building energy objects into digital information in the form of a database (DB), and that connect the building energy object DB to sensors, meters, heat source equipment, lighting equipment, etc. in an actual building, thus monitoring the states of the building and managing building energy based on the building energy object DB. 
         [0010]    In accordance with an aspect of the present invention to accomplish the above objects, there is provided a building energy management apparatus including a Building Information Model (BIM) analysis unit for receiving and parsing BIM data and then analyzing BIM objects; a building energy object extraction unit for extracting building energy objects related to building energy from the BIM objects; a building energy object database (DB) for storing a building energy object data into a DB by arranging the building energy objects; and a building energy management unit for managing energy of a building based on the building energy object data. 
         [0011]    Preferably, the building energy management apparatus may further include a building energy object management unit for managing the building energy object DB. 
         [0012]    Preferably, the BIM analysis unit may parse the BIM data through an Industry Foundation Classes (IFC) browser. 
         [0013]    Preferably, the building energy object extraction unit may include a mapping table for indicating relationships between the BIM objects and the building energy objects; and a control unit for transferring objects corresponding to the mapping table, among the BIM objects, to the building energy object DB, wherein the mapping table can be revised by a manager. 
         [0014]    Preferably, the building energy object DB may include an interface operating in conjunction with a sensor or a meter present in the building. 
         [0015]    Preferably, the building energy object DB may periodically store data about building energy-related actual objects, such as a sensor, a meter or a Building Automation System (BAS) present in the building. 
         [0016]    Preferably, the building energy object management unit may add, remove or replace object data of the building energy object DB as a sensor, a meter or a BAS of the building is added, removed or replaced. 
         [0017]    Preferably, the building energy management unit may sense a condition of energy supply and manage the supply of energy to the building, or sense a condition of energy consumption and manage energy consumption of the building. 
         [0018]    In accordance with another aspect of the present invention to accomplish the above objects, there is provided a building energy management method including receiving and parsing Building Information Model (BIM) data and then analyzing BIM objects; extracting building energy objects related to building energy from the BIM objects; storing a building energy object data into a DB by arranging the building energy objects; and managing energy of a building based on the building energy object data. 
         [0019]    Preferably, the building energy management method may further include managing the building energy object DB. 
         [0020]    Preferably, analyzing the BIM objects may be configured to parse the BIM data through an Industry Foundation Classes (IFC) browser. 
         [0021]    Preferably, extracting the building energy objects may be configured such that objects corresponding to a mapping table, among the BIM objects, are stored in the building energy object DB, the mapping table indicates relationships between the BIM objects and the building energy objects, and the mapping table can be revised by a manager. 
         [0022]    Preferably, the building energy object DB may include an interface operating in conjunction with a sensor or a meter present in the building. 
         [0023]    Preferably, the building energy object DB may periodically store data about building energy-related actual objects, such as a sensor, a meter or a Building Automation System (BAS) present in the building. 
         [0024]    Preferably, managing the building energy objects may be configured to add, remove or replace object data of the building energy object DB as a sensor, a meter or a BAS of the building is added, removed or replaced. 
         [0025]    Preferably, managing the building energy objects may be configured to sense a condition of energy supply and manage the supply of energy to the building, or to sense a condition of energy consumption and manage energy consumption of the building. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0026]    The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will be more clearly understood from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which: 
           [0027]      FIG. 1  is a block diagram showing a building energy management apparatus according to the present invention; 
           [0028]      FIG. 2  is a diagram showing the configuration of a building energy object extraction unit; and 
           [0029]      FIG. 3  is a flowchart showing a building energy management method according to the present invention. 
       
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
       [0030]    The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description, redundant descriptions and detailed descriptions of known functions and elements that may unnecessarily make the gist of the present invention obscure will be omitted. Embodiments of the present invention are provided to fully describe the present invention to those having ordinary knowledge in the art to which the present invention pertains. Accordingly, in the drawings, the shapes and sizes of elements may be exaggerated for the sake of clearer description. 
         [0031]    A building energy management apparatus according to the present invention includes a Building Information Model (BIM) analysis unit for analyzing data about all elements of each building included in a BIM, a building energy object extraction unit for extracting building energy objects from analyzed BIM data, a building energy object database (DB) for storing the extracted building energy objects in a DB, a building energy object management unit for adding, removing or revising stored building energy objects, and a building energy management unit for performing the management of building energy based on the data stored in the building energy object DB. 
         [0032]    Hereinafter, the operation of the building energy management apparatus according to the present invention will be described in detail. 
         [0033]      FIG. 1  is a block diagram showing a building energy management apparatus according to the present invention. 
         [0034]    Referring to  FIG. 1 , a building energy management apparatus  100  includes a BIM analysis unit  110 , a building energy object extraction unit  120 , a building energy object DB  130 , a building energy management unit  140 , and a building energy object management unit  150 . 
         [0035]    The BIM analysis unit  110  performs tasks for loading a BIM data file  10 , parsing all information of a building included in the input file according to the format of a standardized Industry Foundation Classes (IFC) file, and discriminating shapes, attributes, and elements recorded in IFC data. Generally, for efficient and systematic management during the life cycle of the building, a BIM is widely used. Currently, a BIM is frequently required by an orderer even when a building is constructed. “BIM” designates a digital model for providing a reliable basis for making a decision during the life cycle of facilities depending on the physical or functional characteristics of facility objects in all construction fields including construction, engineering works, and plants, and also designates task procedures for creating the digital model. BIM includes BIM objects required to design, construct, and maintain a building, such as the shape information, structure information, and internal material information of the building. IFC denotes a certified international standard specification used to implement an open BIM in such a way that various software elements openly share or exchange model information, and has been used as a BIM data exchange standard. IFC can be mainly classified into product, process, resource, actor, control, and group. Further, detailed information models are defined for respective groups. A modeling language used for definition is EXPRESS, and relationships between individual objects are defined in detail in an object-oriented manner depending on the features of the EXPRESS language. Here, “object” denotes a house, a wall, a pillar, a window, etc., and “relationship” means that inclusion, aggregation, dependence, etc. are present between objects. 
         [0036]    The BIM analysis unit  110  may use an IFC browser as a tool for utilizing the BIM, and function to parse the IFC data of the BIM, render the parsed data in a 3D form, and show various types of construction information through the IFC browser. The BIM analysis unit of the present invention functions to identify space-based objects and attribute information by parsing the IFC data. 
         [0037]    The building energy object extraction unit  120  functions to extract information to be managed from the standpoint of building energy, based on the results of analyzing the IFC data by the BIM analysis unit  110 . For example, objects for supplying energy in a building include a freezer, a boiler, a heat charging pump, a cooling pump, a cooling fan, an air-conditioning fan, a damper, a fan coil unit, etc. Cases where energy is consumed in a building include a case where heating/cooling is activated in an indoor space, a case where electric heating power used by office products or the like is consumed, a case where lighting power is consumed, etc. In particular, in the case of heating/cooling, energy may be wasted due to doors, windows or blinds of an indoor space, and energy may also be wasted even when lighting equipment and electric heating equipment are excessively used. Building objects of the indoor space related to waste may be building energy objects. The building energy object extraction unit  120  functions to extract the above objects, together with the attributes of the objects, as energy objects, from the results of the analysis by the BIM analysis unit  110 . 
         [0038]    The building energy object DB  130  is a DB for storing data about objects for the energy management of the building. The building energy object DB  130  is storage for storing building energy objects extracted by the building energy object extraction unit  120 . The building energy object DB  130  accumulates time-series data by continuously incorporating time-varying values of the objects occurring in the building into the stored building energy object data and storing resulting values. The stored data may be data of sensors or meters installed in the building, and may generally be data received from a system called a Building Automation System (BAS). The data of sensors or meters denotes data, such as a temperature, humidity, motion (presence of a person in an indoor space), illuminance, a flow rate, air volume, a pressure, and a water temperature. The data of the BAS generally denotes information obtained from a system called a Central Control Monitoring System (CCMS), and refers to information, such as a freezer, a boiler, a pump, an air-conditioning fan, a damper, a water pressure, air volume, a flow rate, and hot and cold water temperatures. The data of the BAS may also include information such as lighting and electric heating. Further, the data of the BAS may include other types of information related to the building. 
         [0039]    Moreover, the building energy object DB  130  is implemented in the form of a DB table as an easily managed form from the standpoint of energy of the building, and has columns in which monitored values of actual objects can be recorded. The building energy object DB  130  has an interface operating in conjunction with sensors or meters actually present in the building, and periodically records actually measured sensor values or meter values. Further, the building energy object DB  130  has an interface operating in conjunction with the BAS, and periodically records monitored values of the BAS. Therefore, the building energy object DB continuously accumulates and records the state information of the sensors, meters, and BAS, which are generated with time in the building. Such accumulated information is utilized as basic data for the management of building energy. In this case, the building energy object DB is composed of a plurality of tables, wherein the number of tables is variable without being limited, depending on the scale and characteristics of a building or the number and characteristics of objects. 
         [0040]    The building energy management unit  140  functions to manage a waste of energy in the building based on the data of the time-varying building energy objects accumulated in the building energy object DB  130 , and induce optimal energy consumption if possible. For example, the building energy management unit  140  performs the operation of turning off lighting when no one is present in an indoor space, or turning off an air-conditioning fan or a fan coil unit in a situation in which air-conditioning is unnecessary. Alternatively, in a space, such as a conference room, which is variably used, energy is managed according to a reservation scheduling in such a way that when a reservation is not made, air-conditioning is not performed or lighting power is turned off. That is, the building energy management unit  140  functions to sense the operating states of energy supply parts of a building, for example, a freezer, a boiler, an air-conditioning fan, a pump, and a cooling fan, based on the building object data accumulated in the building energy object DB, and optimize the supply of energy, thus managing building energy. Further, the building energy management unit  140  performs the management function of sensing elements consuming the energy of the building based on the building object data stored in the building energy object DB, recognizing the condition of a waste of energy, and then reducing the consumption of building energy. In this way, the building energy management unit  140  enables optimal energy consumption to be performed in consideration of the condition of the waste of energy in relation to the states of energy objects of the building using various methods. 
         [0041]    The building energy object management unit  150  functions to add, remove or revise the object data of the building energy object DB when a sensor, a meter, or a BAS is added to or removed from the building or is replaced with another one in the building. By means of this function, the connection interface between the individual objects of the building energy object DB  130  and existing sensors, meters, and BAS is changed depending on the degree of a change. Further, the building energy object management unit  150  is also used to map the objects of sensors and meters of the building and the objects of the BAS to the building energy object DB  130 . 
         [0042]    Hereinafter, the configuration of the building energy object extraction unit according to the present invention will be described. 
         [0043]      FIG. 2  is a diagram showing the configuration of the building energy object extraction unit. 
         [0044]    Referring to  FIG. 2 , the building energy object extraction unit  120  includes a control unit  121  and a mapping table  122 . The building energy object extraction unit  120  may include the mapping table  122  including rules for mapping between BIM objects obtained from BIM data through the BIM analysis unit  110  and objects of the building energy object DB  130 . Then, the building energy object extraction unit  120  may include the function of selecting objects obtained from the BIM analysis unit  110  and transferring the selected objects to the building energy object DB  130 . The mapping table  122  may be revised by a manager depending on the change in the structure, shape, sensors, meters, and the BAS of the building. 
         [0045]    Referring to back  FIG. 2 , the control unit  121  is configured to compare a BIM object received from the BIM analysis unit  110  with the mapping rules stored in the mapping table  122 , and if the received BIM object is present in the mapping table  122 , add a building energy object to the building energy object DB  130  depending on the rules of the mapping table  122 . In this case, the control unit  121  functions to extract the building energy object stored in the mapping table  122  from all pieces of data received from the BIM analysis unit  110 . 
         [0046]    Hereinafter, a building energy management method according to the present invention will be described in detail. 
         [0047]      FIG. 3  is a flowchart showing a building energy management method according to the present invention. 
         [0048]    Referring to  FIG. 3 , the building energy management method is performed in the sequence of steps S 110  to S 140 . At step S 110 , BIM data is received and parsed, and then BIM objects are analyzed. At step S 120 , building energy objects related to building energy are extracted from the BIM objects. At step S 130 , the building energy objects are arranged into a DB, and then data about building energy objects is stored in the building energy object DB. At step S 140 , the energy of the building is managed based on the building energy data. If the respective steps are performed, a building energy management system may be easily implemented from the BIM data. Here, the building energy management method according to the present invention may be performed to further include the step of managing the building energy object DB. 
         [0049]    Step S 110  denotes the step of parsing the BIM data based on the standard format of a BIM, and analyzing pieces of information including individual objects and the attributes of the objects. 
         [0050]    Step S 120  denotes the step of extracting objects required for the management of building energy from the BIM objects obtained at step S 110 . 
         [0051]    Step S 130  denotes the step of storing the building energy objects obtained at step S 120  in a DB. 
         [0052]    Step S 140  denotes the step of managing the energy of the building based on the building energy objects stored at step S 130  and actual data stored in correspondence with the building energy objects. 
         [0053]    As described above, the present invention is advantageous in that, in order to solve the disadvantages of the above-described conventional technology, the number of manual operations conducted by persons is reduced and as many building energy objects as possible are automatically extracted, thus enabling the implementation of digital information. 
         [0054]    Further, the present invention is advantageous in that it extracts building energy objects from BIM data by utilizing a BIM used as a standard in the fields of buildings and converts the building energy objects into digital information in the form of a DB, and it connects the building energy object DB to sensors, meters, heat source equipment, lighting equipment, etc. in an actual building, thus monitoring the states of the building and managing building energy based on the building energy object DB. 
         [0055]    As described above, in the building energy management apparatus and method according to the present invention, the configurations and schemes in the above-described embodiments are not limitedly applied, and some or all of the above embodiments can be selectively combined and configured so that various modifications are possible.