Incorporating Simulation Into Building Systems Control Logic

We present a prototypically implemented and empirically tested daylight-responsive lighting systems control in buildings that makes use of real-time sensing and lighting simulation. This system can control the position of window blinds and the status of the luminaires. It operates as follows: (1) At regular time intervals, the system considers a set of candidate control states for the subsequent time step; (2) These alternatives are then virtually enacted via lighting simulation. (3) The simulation results are compared and ranked according to the preferences (objective function) specified by the occupants and/or facility manager to identify the candidate control state with the most desirable performance