Digitization and air conditioning technology - Danfoss digitizes with BlueRange

Future topic: intelligent HVAC components

Danfoss and BlueRange are companies that are active in the field of sustainable building technology and are considered to be at the forefront of innovation: Danfoss is a leading provider in the fields of heating and cooling technology as well as hydraulic and electric motors and BlueRange is a specialist in the field of wireless digitalization technology in buildings.

The digitalization of buildings is a future key topic in air conditioning technology. In order to operate buildings in a more ecologically and economically sustainable way, heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems must be flexible and digital in line with usage. This ensures demand-based control with the lowest possible consumption.

The NovoCon® S digital actuator developed by Danfoss is the market-leading pressure-independent balancing and control valve. This valve is used to control temperatures in heating and cooling ceilings in large buildings, individually for each room or room unit. NovoCon® S is an indispensable component in the transition to intelligently networked buildings with continuous monitoring, energy management and preventive maintenance at the highest comfort level with the lowest operating costs. The result is the perfect combination of superior hydraulics and building automation.

Bridge between the systems

In the development of products and their digital connection, BlueRange and Danfoss are using their joint expertise to provide answers to the challenges of digitalization in the real estate industry.

NovoCon® S will be equipped with the Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE)-based mesh software from digitalization specialist BlueRange to herald the next level of room automation.

BlueRange is becoming a standard for radio-based digitalization in modern buildings. In contrast to many other radio protocols, BlueRange is optimized for networking components in buildings and is able to provide mesh networks with sensors and actuators for several hundred or thousands of participants in a secure and stable manner.

Up to now, “intelligent” HVAC components have largely still been controlled via wired protocols. BlueRange uses Bluetooth Low Energy technology for the construction of its building mesh, which is optimized for data throughput and the linking of actuators and sensors as well as for the wireless transmission of information in buildings. The Bluetooth mesh has been published as open source software (OSS) and enables manufacturers from various sectors to develop intelligently networked components.

To control the NovoCon®-S valves, a solution was developed that integrates the wired ModBus protocol into the wireless BlueRange mesh. BlueRange thus forms an effective bridge to make digitalization even more efficient without costly new developments on the hardware side.

At best, conventionally controlled actuators provide an analog feedback signal to the room controller of the Building Management System (BMS) software or the building management system (BMS). Instead, NovoCon® S makes many digital system parameters directly available to the building management system in real time via BlueRange. For example, it exchanges precise information about the actuator, valve position, settings, temperatures or alarms.

This wealth of information gives the building user, operator or owner both excellent insight and remote access to the status of the HVAC system. This data can be used to optimize the performance of the system, improve comfort in the room and thus operate the building more energy-efficiently.

“Building automation - next level” means one thing above all: efficient digitalization by saving cables, the proven mesh technology and software from BlueRange with the combination of the market-leading and proven HVAC components from Danfoss.