In our ongoing commitment to sustainability and technological advancement, Google is excited to announce a significant step forward in the realm of smart buildings. Today, we are open-sourcing two invaluable resources:
1. TensorFlow Smart Buildings Simulator: A powerful tool designed to train reinforcement learning agents to optimize energy consumption and minimize carbon emissions in buildings.
2. Smart Buildings Dataset: A comprehensive collection of six years of telemetry data from three Google buildings, providing real-world insights for developing and validating optimal control solutions.
Empowering the Future of Smart Buildings
Buildings account for a substantial portion of global energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. As we strive to create a more sustainable future, optimizing the energy efficiency of buildings is paramount. Artificial intelligence and machine learning offer promising solutions, and Google is dedicated to accelerating progress in this field.
The TensorFlow Smart Buildings Simulator provides researchers and developers with a realistic and customizable environment to train reinforcement learning agents. These agents can learn to make intelligent decisions about heating, cooling, ventilation, and lighting systems, balancing occupant comfort with energy efficiency and carbon reduction goals. By open-sourcing this simulator, we aim to empower the community to develop innovative control strategies that can be applied to real-world buildings.
Complementing the simulator, the Smart Buildings Dataset offers a wealth of real-world data collected from three Google buildings over six years. This dataset encompasses a wide range of telemetry, including temperature, humidity, occupancy, lighting levels, and energy consumption. By making this data available, we hope to enable researchers to develop data-driven models, validate their simulations, and gain deeper insights into the complex dynamics of building systems.
Collaboration for a Sustainable Future
We believe that open collaboration is key to driving innovation and progress in the smart buildings domain. By open-sourcing these resources, Google aims to foster a vibrant ecosystem of researchers, academics, and industry professionals working together to enhance sustainability and advance the field of smart buildings.
We envision universities leveraging these resources to conduct cutting-edge research, develop new algorithms, and train the next generation of engineers. Industry partners can utilize the simulator and dataset to test and validate their solutions, accelerate development cycles, and bring more efficient and sustainable products to market.
Google's Commitment to Sustainability
This open-source initiative aligns with Google's broader commitment to sustainability. We have set ambitious goals to operate on 24/7 carbon-free energy by 2030 and achieve net-zero emissions across all our operations and value chain by 2040. By sharing our tools and data, we hope to contribute to a global effort to reduce the environmental impact of buildings and create a more sustainable future for all.
Get Involved
We invite researchers, developers, and industry professionals to explore these open-source resources and join us in our mission to build a more sustainable world. Together, we can harness the power of AI and data to transform the way we design, operate, and interact with buildings, creating a future where energy efficiency, occupant comfort, and environmental responsibility go hand in hand.
Let's collaborate, innovate, and build a brighter future for smart buildings!
By John Sipple – Google Core Enterprise Machine Learning Team
