Subspace identification and model predictive control for buildings

Model predictive controller presented in this article makes use of both weather forecast and thermal model of a building to control inside temperature. This, by sharp contrast to conventional control strategies such as weather-compensated heating control (heating-curve controller), enables utilization of thermal capacity of the building, thus minimization of energy consumption. The inside temperature can be maintained at desired levels independent of the outside weather conditions using modified formulation of predictive controller. Nevertheless, proper identification of the building model is crucial. The models of multiple-input multiple-output systems can be identified using subspace methods. The controller was tested on (and applied to) the real building and results were compared with a present heating control.