PNNL

Abstract

The time has come for the commercial buildings industries to reconsider the very nature of the systems installed in facilities today and to establish a vision for future buildings that differs from anything in the history of human shelter. Drivers for this examination include reductions in building operation staffs; uncertain costs and reliability of electric power; growing interest in energy-efficient and resource-conserving ?green? and ?high-performance? commercial buildings; and a dramatic increase in security concerns since the tragic events of September 11. This paper introduces a new paradigm ? autonomic buildings ? which parallels the concept of autonomic computing, introduced by IBM as a fundamental change in the way computer networks work. Modeled after the human nervous system, ?autonomic systems? themselves take responsibility for a large portion of their own operation and even maintenance. For commercial buildings, autonomic systems could provide environments that afford occupants greater opportunity to focus on the things we do in buildings rather than on operation of the building itself, while achieving higher performance levels, increased security, and better use of energy and other natural resources. The author uses the human body and computer networking to introduce and illustrate this new paradigm for high-performance commercial buildings. He provides a vision for the future of commercial buildings based on autonomicity, identifies current research that could contribute to this future, and highlights research and technological gaps. The paper concludes with a set of issues and needs that are key to converting this idealized future into reality.