JAUE2022-083: Research on Air Conditioning Control according to Human Flow and Space Environment in Underground Malls

Abstract

A new air conditioning control method is being applied in underground malls. The idea is to adjust the air conditioning according to the flow of people and the spatial environment to achieve energy-saving effects. In this study, we verified the energy-saving effects of the new operation by identifying the trends of human flow in the target area during summer and developed a new cooling temperature setting method based on this trend. Sensor data were used to analyze the trends in human flow and two temperature setting methods were devised accordingly. The following findings were obtained: 1) the number of people in the underground mall fluctuated significantly over time; 2) one of the temperature setting methods developed could reduce the air conditioning energy consumption by approximately 30% in summer; and 3) while the above energy-saving effects were achieved, PPD increased from 10% to 20–40%. Our suggested future plans are as follows: 1) to study the energy-saving effects with high accuracy by adding data and using simulation software; and 2) to adjust the balance between comfort and energy-saving effects by considering information about people rather than the number of people