Energies, Vol. 12, Pages 2713: Designing Intelligent MIMO Nonlinear Controller Based on Fuzzy Cognitive Map Method for Energy Reduction of the Buildings (Energies)

Designing a suitable controller for air-conditioning systems to reduce energy consumption and simultaneously meet the requirements of the system is very challenging. Important factors such as stability and performance of the designed controllers should be investigated to ensure the effectiveness of these controllers. In this article, the stability and performance of the fuzzy cognitive map (FCM) controller are investigated. The FCM method is used to control the direct expansion air conditioning system (DX A/C). The FCM controller has the ability to do online learning, and can achieve fast convergence thanks to its simple mathematical computation. The stability analysis of the controller was conducted using both fuzzy bidirectional associative memories (FBAMs) and the Lyapunov function. The performances of the controller were tested based on its ability for reference tracking and disturbance rejection. On the basis of the stability analysis using FBAMS and Lyapunov functions, the system is globally stable. The controller is able to track the set point faithfully, maintaining the temperature and humidity at the desired value. In order to simulate the disturbances, heat and moisture load changed to measure the ability of the controller to reject the disturbance. The results showed that the proposed controller can track the set point and has a good ability for disturbance rejection, making it an effective controller to be employed in the DX A/C system and suitable for a nonlinear robust control system.