Control of HVAC testbeds: remote access and software tools for cooperative research

Abstract: This thesis describes an object oriented programming software that implements a set of automatic controllers for the management-over-the-cloud of Heating, Venting and Air Conditioning (HVAC) systems. More precisely, the toolbox provides general Model Predictive Controls (MPCs), Proportional, Integrative and Derivatives (PIDs), and Linear Quadratic Regulators (LQRs) objects for automatically and remotely actuate any HVAC system over the Internet. The aim is to endow users with some libraries that enable the fast and easy prototyping of control strategies, and thus to boost research on the management of variables such as temperatures, humidity and CO2 levels in buildings. The library has been then exploited to manage a laboratory testbed located at the KTH in Stockholm, and has been shown to provide the research community an instrument for sharing research results and eorts.