Heating, ventilation, and air condition (HVAC) systems regulate building temperature and humidity distributions. Sound HVAC system operation is critical for maintaining the comfort level of building occupants, providing the proper operating condition for building equipments and contents, and in general achieving a healthy and safe building environment. HVAC is also a major energy consumer. Balancing comfort and environmental control versus energy consumption is a major theme in building HVAC control. This entry describes the modeling of the HVAC system dynamics in buildings, the HVAC control problem addressing human comfort and energy consumption, and the adaptation to variations in the ambient operating condition.
Encyclopedia of Systems and Control, Living Edition, Editors: John Baillieul, Tariq Samad, Springer, London, 2019.