Analysis of energy savings potentials for integrated room automation

The energy savings potential of selected low-cost measures related to the simultaneous control of blinds, electric lighting, heating, cooling and ventilation in a single building zone (Integrated Room Automation) was investigated. The analysis was based on a factorial study comprising several thousands, whole-year hourly time step simulations. The largest energy savings potential was found for the use of CO2-controlled ventilation as opposed to non-air quality controlled ventilation (average savings of 13%–28%, depending on the building zone characteristics and the choice of technical building system), followed by a widening of the thermal comfort range by ~1.5 oC (6%–16%), and the allowance for night/weekend room temperature set-back (0%–18%). Substantial energy savings potentials were also detected for advanced control: readily realizable energy savings thanks to improved non-predictive control amounted to 1%–15%, and theoretical savings potentials for predictive control to 16%–41%. The found, large case-to-case variability surrounding these average numbers un- derlines the importance of simulation-based assessments on a per case basis

Can developmental trajectories in gait variability provide prognostic clues in motor adaptation among children with mild cerebral palsy? A retrospective observational cohort study

AimTo investigate whether multiple domains of gait variability change during motor maturation and if this change over time could differentiate children with a typical development (TDC) from those with cerebral palsy (CwCP).MethodsThis cross-sectional retrospective study included 42 TDC and 129 CwCP, of which 99 and 30 exhibited GMFCS level I and II, respectively. Participants underwent barefoot 3D gait analysis. Age and parameters of gait variability (coefficient of variation of stride-time, stride length, single limb support time, walking speed, and cadence; as well as meanSD for hip flexion, knee flexion, and ankle dorsiflexion) were used to fit linear models, where the slope of the models could differ between groups to test the hypotheses.ResultsMotor-developmental trajectories of gait variability were able to distinguish between TDC and CwCP for all parameters, except the variability of joint angles. CwCP with GMFCS II also showed significantly higher levels of gait variability compared to those with GMFCS I, these levels were maintained across different ages.InterpretationThis study showed the potential of gait variability to identify and detect the motor characteristics of high functioning CwCP. In future, such trajectories could provide functional biomarkers for identifying children with mild movement related disorders and support the management of expectations

Increasing energy efficiency in building climate control using weather forecasts and model predictive control

This paper presents an investigation of how Model Predictive Control (MPC) and weather predictions can increase the energy efficiency in Integrated Room Automation (IRA) while respecting occupant comfort. IRA deals with the simultaneous control of heating, ventilation and air conditioning as well as blind positioning and electric lighting such that the room temperature as well as CO2 and luminance levels stay within given comfort ranges. MPC is an advanced control technique which, when applied to buildings, employs a model of the building dynamics and solves an optimization problem to determine the optimal control inputs. The result is an optimal plan in the sense that it takes into account the future weather and internal gains and controls the HVAC, light and blind units to minimize energy costs while respecting comfort constraints. Through a large-scale factorial simulation study we show that MPC coupled with weather predictions is beneficial in terms of energy efficiency and occupant comfort. In particular, we investigate the control performance, the impact of the accuracy of weather predictions as well as the robustness and tunability of the control strategy

Prophylactic and therapeutic activity of fully human monoclonal antibodies directed against Influenza A M2 protein

Influenza virus infection is a prevalent disease in humans. Antibodies against hemagglutinin have been shown to prevent infection and hence hemagglutinin is the major constituent of current vaccines. Antibodies directed against the highly conserved extracellular domain of M2 have also been shown to mediate protection against Influenza A infection in various animal models. Active vaccination is generally considered the best approach to combat viral diseases. However, passive immunization is an attractive alternative, particularly in acutely exposed or immune compromized individuals, young children and the elderly. We recently described a novel method for the rapid isolation of natural human antibodies by mammalian cell display. Here we used this approach to isolate human monoclonal antibodies directed against the highly conserved extracellular domain of the Influenza A M2 protein. The identified antibodies bound M2 peptide with high affinities, recognized native cell-surface expressed M2 and protected mice from a lethal influenza virus challenge. Moreover, therapeutic treatment up to 2 days after infection was effective, suggesting that M2-specific monoclonals have a great potential as immunotherapeutic agents against Influenza infection

Dynamics of histone H3.3 deposition in proliferating and senescent cells reveals a DAXX-dependent targeting to PML-NBs important for pericentromeric heterochromatin organization

Oncogene-induced senescence is a permanent cell cycle arrest characterized by extensive chromatin reorganization. Here, we investigated the specific targeting and dynamics of histone H3 variants in human primary senescent cells. We show that newly synthesized epitope-tagged H3.3 is incorporated in senescent cells but does not accumulate in senescence-associated heterochromatin foci (SAHF). Instead, we observe that new H3.3 colocalizes with its specific histone chaperones within the promyelocytic leukemia nuclear bodies (PML-NBs) and is targeted to PML-NBs in a DAXX-dependent manner both in proliferating and senescent cells. We further show that overexpression of DAXX enhances targeting of H3.3 in large PML-NBs devoid of transcriptional activity and promotes the accumulation of HP1, independently of H3K9me3. Loss of H3.3 from pericentromeric heterochromatin upon DAXX or PML depletion suggests that the targeting of H3.3 to PML-NBs is implicated in pericentromeric heterochromatin organization. Together, our results underline the importance of the replication-independent chromatin assembly pathway for histone replacement in non-dividing senescent cells and establish PML-NBs as important regulatory sites for the incorporation of new H3.3 into chromatin

Thermally activated building systems (TABS): Energy efficiency as a function of control strategy, hydronic circuit topology and (cold) generation system

By integrating the building structure as thermal energy storage into the building services concept, thermally activated building systems (TABS) have proven to be economically viable for the heating and cooling of buildings. Having already developed an integrated design method and various control concepts in the past, in the present paper the impact of different aspects of TABS regarding the energetic performance of such systems is analyzed. Based on a simulation case study for a typical Central European office building, the following conclusions can be drawn. The energy efficiency of TABS is significantly influenced by the hydronic circuit topology used. With separate zone return pipes energy savings of approximately 15-25 kW h/m2 a, or 20-30% of heating as well as cooling demand, can be achieved, compared to common zone return pipes, where energy losses occur due to mixing of return water. A strong impact on energy efficiency can also be observed for the control strategy. Thus, by intermittent operation of the system using pulse width modulation control (PWM), the electricity demand for the water circulation pumps can be reduced by more than 50% compared to continuous operation. Concerning cold generation for TABS, it is shown that free cooling with a wet cooling tower is most efficient, if the cold source is the outside air. Variants with mechanical chillers exhibit 30-50% higher electricity demands for cold generation and distribution, even though their runtimes are much shorter compared to the cooling tower runtimes. In conclusion, the results show that significant energy savings can be achieved using adapted system topologies and applying appropriate control solutions for TABS.Thermally activated building systems, TABS Concrete core conditioning HVAC control Pulse width modulation control, PWM Hydronic circuit topology Energy efficiency of cold generation

Control of thermally-activated building systems (TABS)

Integrating the building structure to act as an energy-storage, thermally-activated building system (TABS) has proved to be energy efficient and economically viable for cooling and heating of buildings. However control has remained an issue to be improved. In this paper, a method is outlined allowing both for dimensioning and for automated control of TABS, with automatic switching between cooling/heating modes for variable comfort criteria. The method integrally considers both HVAC and building automation design aspects, as well as the fact that during design and operation heat-gains are unknown, but that bounds of them normally can be specified. This integral method is termed the Unknown-But-Bounded or UBB method. Applying the method guarantees that comfort can be maintained, as long as the actual heat-gains stay within the predefined range between the lower and upper bounds. The UBB method can also handle non-predictable day-to-day variations as well as room-to-room variations of the heat gains. The paper outlines the underlying thermal models and assumptions, and gives the procedure and an example for the application of the method.Thermally-activated building systems, Concrete core conditioning systems Building control Heating Cooling Unknown-but-bounded approach