DEVELOPMENT AND TESTING OF PIPE DETECTOR NETWORK FOR VENTILATION EFFECTIVENESS

THE PIPE (POCKET-SIZED, INTELLIGENT, PORTABLE, ENVIRONMENT) DETECTOR AND NETWORK IS A FLEXIBLE VENTILATION EFFECTIVENESS TESTING TECHNOLOGY FOR QUANTIFYING SPATIAL AND TEMPORAL VARIATIONS IN TEMPERATURE, HUMIDITY, AIR MOVEMENT, AND CONTAMINANT OR TRACER GAS DECAY, AS THEY ARE AFFECTED BY HVAC OPERATION OR OCCUPANCY. THE KEY ELEMENT IS THE PIPE DETECTOR WHICH HAVE FOUR ON-BOARD ENVIRONMENTAL SENSORS, INTELLIGENT CONTROLS, MEMORY, INDEPENDENT POWER, AND RF COMMUNICATIONS CAPABILITIES. THE DETECTORS ARE NETWORKED IN THE WORKPLACE ENVIRONMENT TO PROVIDE A NONINTRUSIVE NEAR-REAL TIME MONITORING SYSTEM OF THERMAL COMFORT, AIR MOVEMENT, AND CONTAMINANT REMOVAL. PIPE DETECTOR NETWORK CAN BE USED TO ASSESS OCCUPANCY OR PERSONAL ENVIRONMENTAL EXPOSURES. A MICROCOMPUTER WITH RF TRANSCEIVER PROVIDES NETWORK CONTROL.