Fujitsu Laboratories’ cooling control technology is reportedly capable of making major reductions to electricity usage by datacenter cooling equipment. Fujitsu’s cooling control technology can determine the rate at which outside air is introduced, factoring in both temperature and humidity, and can determine the optimal temperature settings by measuring the degree of impact each cooling device has on specific areas of the datacenter. As a result, this significantly reduces the energy consumption needed for cooling.
The company has developed algorithms for controlling the intake of outside air to minimize power consumption of cooling equipment, and for efficiently cooling by dynamically identifying heat producing areas. By combining this system with technology previously developed by Fujitsu that predicts temperature changes in datacenters, it is possible to forecast conditions an hour into the future and control operations to effectively minimize power consumption over time.
Sensors are installed to measure temperature and humidity near the cooling equipment in the room, as well as outside. The system then calculates the amount of energy necessary to cool the room and remove humidity when recirculating internal air and when introducing outside air, based on the setting values for the cooling equipment. Also, in place is technology to control the ratio of internal air and outside air to minimize energy consumption.
A control algorithm minimizes cooling equipment power use, tracking change in server heat. When changing the temperature settings for the equipment, this algorithm analyzes past changes in temperature distribution in the room and calculates the impact of each cooling device on each area. By controlling the temperature setting of the cooling equipment, which has the biggest impact on an area when temperatures increase for servers in that area, this system can manage temperatures with minimal energy consumption.
Fujitsu Laboratories will be rolling out its cooling control technology to datacenters operated by Fujitsu Limited beginning in 2019. For further data, visit Fujitsu Laboratories.