The Hartman Company Newsletter

Issue: December, 2001
Topic: Practical Network Integration for Building Control

Dear Hartman Company Newsletter subscriber,

The last decade has seen an enormous focus on the development of 'open' and
'standard' communication networks for building controls. However, those of
us who focus considerable time on building controls know that such networks
are still not practical for most of our applications. Still, I encourage
designers and operators to keep their visions of truly open building
networks alive, as it is a realistic goal. Already, it is practical to
connect an increasing number of building system devices directly to
building control networks rather than connecting them only as discrete
points as has been done in the past. 

Direct network connection can reduce costs and increase system operability,
and the process educates and encourages those who participate to keep
moving toward the shared industry vision of open building control systems.
To obtain some additional information on the state of network integration
in building control systems today, here are some on-line references we
recommend:

1. An article entitled 'Chiller-Plant Control Using Gateway Technologies',
written by  Mr. Hartman for Heating/Piping/Air Conditioning magazine,
discusses how the use of gateway integration of chillers and variable speed
drives in an ultra-efficient all-variable speed chiller plant reduces
overall plant costs by eliminating controls duplication and at the same
time provides more information to the system and the operator for a more
user friendly system. It can be obtained at:

http://www.hartmanco.com/pdf/a34.pdf

2. An column entitled 'Effectively Integrated Controls Using Gateway
Connections' written by  Mr. Hartman for the Heating/Piping/Air
Conditioning 'Control Freaks' series looks at the options designers often
have for how gateway connections are accomplished. The example is a chiller
plant, and the options are running two separate networks with a single
gateway interconnection, or the use of a gateways for each non-network
compatible device. The advantages and disadvantages of each options are
outlined.

http://www.hartmanco.com/pdf/a37.pdf

3. To obtain some background on the issues of open/standard network
communications, consider this article entitled 'Practical Considerations
for Protocol Standards' written about eight years ago by Mr. Hartman. This
article shows that not much has changed over time pertaining to the
problems associated with integrating dissimilar equipment with direct
network connections. This article is very helpful to designers as it
outlines the most important elements of the specification required for
successful gateway connections. It can be obtained at:

http://www.hartmanco.com/pdf/a26.pdf

4. Finally, for the latest information on network connection of control
devices and an overview of the potential paths and network services that
are necessary to do the job successfully, please read Mr. Hartman's latest
Control Freaks Column in the December, 2001 issue of Heating/Piping/Air
Conditioning magazine, 'Integrating Devices into BAS Networks'.



Linda Zuvich, Editor
THC News 
The Hartman Company



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                          The Hartman Company
              An HVAC Engineering & Technology Development Firm
                        http://www.hartmanco.com