Automation system for setpoint temperatures based on adaptive comfort: an in-depth guide of ACCIS capabilities running with EnergyPlus

Abstract

The possibility for energy savings from implementing setpoint temperatures based on adaptive comfort has recently been investigated. This can be achieved by using the recently proposed Adaptive-ComfortControl-Implementation Script (ACCIS), that is a computational approach which extends the air-conditioning usage to adaptive comfort. According to both an Input Data File (IDF) and the setup supplied by the user, ACCIS turns PMV-based into adaptive setpoint building EnergyPlus models. Originally, ACCIS was an EnergyManagementSystem (EMS) script, but its capabilities have been expanded, and it has been nested in the Adaptive Comfort Control Implemented Model ("accim") Python package. This study focuses on the development of ACCIS, and provides a deeper view of the operation of the computational approach based on the relationship between the objects that compose it. As a result, ACCIS brings up new possibilities for conducting energy simulations on a global scale rather than merely on a national or continental size, since all weather file quantity limits have been tackled and now studies can be developed based on millions of simulations. Also, ACCIS could be applied to energy management, or coupled with artificial intelligence to develop smart thermostats.