Since the publication of the BACnet standard, my country has been tracking and researching it, and has also introduced and applied it in engineering projects. Overall, my country has achieved phased results in its research on the BACnet standard and has entered the stage of practical application and productization. However, there are few large-scale successful cases in engineering project applications. These factors have laid the foundation for the continued and effective promotion and application of the BACnet standard in my country. The application share of the BACnet standard in my country's construction sector is relatively small. my country is a global supermarket for the construction industry. How to widely promote and apply the BACnet standard in this market, and align my country's building automation field with international standards, is a real issue we face and need to consider.
In today's globalized economy, standards serve as a compass and catalyst for industry development. Standards are crucial for industrial development, involving national interests and property rights, and are key to ensuring the healthy and sustainable development of industries. Based on the consensus that standards have a significant impact on industries, this paper analyzes the necessity of vigorously promoting and applying the BACnet standard in my country, considering the current state of building automation systems, and proposes principles and methods for productizing the BACnet standard for reference and discussion.
In simple terms, the BACnet standard is a fieldbus standard used in the building automation field. Like all current fieldbus standards, BACnet has its own background and high-efficiency application scenarios. Originating in the building automation field, BACnet aims to interconnect all building automation devices and share information, ultimately achieving interaction and interoperability. From its background, BACnet has the highest application efficiency in the building automation field. However, for various reasons, other fieldbus standards (such as LonWorks and CAN) are also widely used in the building automation field.
Since its emergence in the mid-1980s, fieldbus technology has spawned nearly 200 different architecture standards, not including unpublished standards. After decades of development and competition, only a very few technologically advanced standards have survived, becoming leaders in their respective application areas and actively expanding into other application areas to enhance their vitality. Fieldbus standards such as LonWorks and CAN belong to this category of technologically advanced standards. They originated in the field of building automation, but the building automation field has found its niche.
People hope to unify fieldbus standards, but due to technical and economic reasons, it is recognized that different fieldbus standards will exist in different application areas for a considerable period of time. This phenomenon has also been recognized by the IEC. Since its inception, the BACnet standard has also experienced fierce competition and difficult development, but ultimately, thanks to its advanced technology and completely open nature, it quickly became the only ISO standard in the field of building automation in less than 10 years, which is a standard of an industry association (ASHRAE). This marks the leading position of the BACnet standard in the field of building automation.
To date, the BACnet standard has been widely adopted and applied globally, with major manufacturers of building equipment and building automation equipment worldwide supporting and developing the BACnet standard. For example, South Korea adopted the BACnet standard as a national standard in 1999, and Japan has also largely adopted it as a national standard.
The reasons why the BACnet standard triumphed over other building automation standards and became an ISO standard can be summarized as follows:
First, the BACnet standard is an academic standard, developed by experts from various fields of building automation worldwide. These experts are highly familiar with building automation applications, and some are even experts in developing other fieldbus standards. This determines that the BACnet standard technically possesses superior capabilities compared to other fieldbus standards. Second, the open nature of the BACnet standard represents the development direction of the building automation field, meeting the needs of fair competition and interests for building equipment and automation manufacturers. The fact that the BACnet standard defeated other fieldbus standards without commercial "promotion" further demonstrates its advanced technology and alignment with the development trends of building automation.
Furthermore, the BACnet standard boasts an advanced architecture. Theoretically, the BACnet standard can be seamlessly integrated with all communication networks. For example, the BACnet/IP standard can be directly integrated with the Internet without the need for intermediate devices or systems, a feat unmatched by any other fieldbus standard. This also demonstrates that the BACnet standard aligns with the development trend of communication networks.
2. Current Status of Building Automation in my country my country is a member of the WTO and ISO, and a country that supported the BACnet standard becoming an ISO standard. However, the current state of building automation in my country is somewhat inconsistent with international standards. Firstly, the application of non-ISO standards far outweighs the application of the BACnet international standard. Secondly, in engineering applications, the adoption of the BACnet standard almost entirely relies on the import of foreign products and technologies. From a development perspective, these two weaknesses seriously affect and restrict the development of my country's building automation field. In response to this situation, besides the role of market economic laws, the following three aspects should also be considered.
First, there is a general lack of understanding of the BACnet standard and its role in my country. With the development of fieldbus technology, it has become clear that multiple fieldbus standards coexist, indicating that different standards have different application areas. The BACnet standard was developed specifically for the building automation field and is best suited for it. Other fieldbus standards applied to building automation have expanded their application areas through tailoring and modification to "fit" the requirements of building automation. This phenomenon of continuously expanding application areas is unique to the "survival" of fieldbus standards. This necessitates a re-evaluation of the role of the BACnet standard in the building automation field and a substantial strengthening of BACnet standard training and certification in my country. my country should learn from Japan and South Korea in this regard.
Secondly, my country remains the last "clean slate" in the competition for fieldbus standards. Once a fieldbus standard is established, driven by profit, its application areas expand rapidly, and there's a fierce competition for market share. In my country, due to technological reasons, fieldbus standards are primarily derived from abroad. Furthermore, the building automation field in my country is not yet standardized. This has resulted in a situation where multiple fieldbus standards are vying for a foothold in my country's building automation sector, creating a chaotic market. Faced with this situation, we must seize the opportunity to catch up and, at the same time, adhere to international standards to regulate the building automation market.
Third, my country still lacks truly domestically produced products based on the BACnet standard. While my country has tracked and researched the BACnet standard, it has not yet commercialized it. This situation severely hinders the promotion and application of the BACnet standard in my country. Relevant Chinese departments have long recognized the important role of the BACnet standard, but Chinese enterprises have not, and their limited R&D capabilities have prevented them from developing practical products. To change this situation, it is essential to increase research and development efforts and develop products with independent intellectual property rights.
It's worth noting that my country currently has many manufacturers and product developers specializing in building automation systems. However, these products can be broadly categorized into two types. The first type utilizes patented technologies for secondary development. These products are mostly based on LonWorks technology. The second type consists of "closed" products that do not employ any standards. These products typically use local area network (LAN) standards as their communication platform, while the application layer is considered a proprietary "technical secret." Generally, neither type of product possesses its own core technology and can only be used in the domestic market. This phenomenon is similar to the Chinese mobile phone manufacturing market: one type imports and purchases foreign technology and equipment for assembly, solely for the domestic market; the other develops core technologies according to international standards for localized production, expanding into both the domestic and international markets. As my country is already a WTO member, Chinese building automation companies must develop products according to international standards and enhance their core competitiveness to participate in international competition.
3. The Necessity of Promoting and Applying the BACnet Standard my country is a super-large construction market with enormous potential for intelligent building products. In the next few years, the construction of Olympic venues and World Expo facilities will generate huge demand for intelligent building products. Developing products that meet international standards is essential for my country to succeed in the intelligent building market. Furthermore, being the first domestic company to develop products compliant with the BACnet standard is fundamental to enhancing the core competitiveness of enterprises and is also the foundation for Chinese companies to go global and participate in international competition. At the same time, products developed based on open international standards have independent intellectual property rights and comply with relevant international certification systems, which removes various non-tariff barriers for Chinese companies to enter the global market.
To develop my country's building automation products, it is essential to align with national standards and regulations, eliminating various obstacles hindering my country's participation in international competition. Chinese enterprises must excel in standardization and quality certification to compete fairly in the globalized market. This requires Chinese companies to improve their management practices, strengthen international quality certification efforts, adopt open international standards, base their work on my country's national conditions, leverage my country's technological strength, and vigorously develop building automation products with independent intellectual property rights.
The adoption of the BACnet standard as an ISO standard will inevitably lead to its global promotion and application; this is an inevitable trend and will undoubtedly create a massive industry and market worldwide. The BACnet standard has already seen widespread and successful application in North America and Europe, and it is predicted that the Asia-Pacific region will be the fastest-growing market for BACnet standard products in the coming years. Therefore, it is both necessary and feasible for my country to vigorously develop BACnet standard products.
4. Key to Promotion and Application: Promoting and applying the BACnet standard in my country can align my country's building automation system with international standards, improve the application level of my country's building automation field, and promote the development of my country's building automation industry towards independent intellectual property rights. However, how can my country better promote and apply the BACnet standard? Besides emphasizing the BACnet standard and continuing to import foreign products and technologies, my country must develop BACnet standard products with independent intellectual property rights. This is the key to promoting and applying the BACnet standard in my country.
The current state of my country's building automation market and the development of the BACnet standard in my country can be divided into the following two aspects.
Firstly, a BACnet standard interface should be developed based on domestically produced building automation products. my country has many domestically produced building automation products, such as access control systems and meter reading systems. However, most of these products or systems are developed in a closed system, meaning that products from different manufacturers are generally not interconnected, nor can they be integrated with the building automation master system. This situation is frequently encountered in actual engineering projects. Developing a BACnet standard interface based on existing products can expand the application of the original products and effectively solve the aforementioned interconnection and integration problems.
Secondly, new products are being developed according to the BACnet standard. Some in China believe that the BACnet standard is only suitable for system-level integration and not for field applications. However, the BACnet standard defines standardized products that include system-level standard equipment, such as the "BACnet Workstation (B-OWS)," but more importantly, field-level equipment, such as the "BACnet Smart Sensor (D-SS)," "BACnet Smart Actuator (B-SA)," and various functional controllers. In short, the BACnet standard has excellent scalability, suitable for both large and small systems.
To develop BACnet standard products and participate in international market competition, my country should adhere to the following three fundamental principles. These three principles should be the basic starting point for the commercialization of BACnet standard products in my country.
(1) The product must have independent intellectual property rights.
Developing BACnet standard products with independent intellectual property rights can not only align my country's building intelligence field with international standards and improve the level of building intelligence in my country, but also meet the needs of my country's building automation supermarket market, and enable my country's building automation products to directly enter the international market, participate in international competition, and improve the core competitiveness of Chinese enterprises.
(2) The product series is complete and meets the needs of complete applications.
For developed products to be directly applied, their product portfolio must be relatively complete. Conversely, without a single product that meets the requirements of a complete application suite, the development work becomes largely meaningless, and the promotion and application of engineering projects will be severely limited. The BACnet standard is an open international standard, but its underlying layers still include optional standards with proprietary intellectual property rights, such as the LonTalk and ARCnet standards. This requires a correct trade-off within the BACnet standard system: developing products that meet the requirements of a complete application suite while ensuring that the developed products possess independent intellectual property rights.
(3) The products are advanced and moderately ahead of their time, and are sustainable and upgraded.
This principle is fundamental to ensuring the competitiveness of developed products. To make products advanced and sustainable for upgrading, a comprehensive understanding and in-depth study of the BACnet standard is essential. Furthermore, familiarity with building equipment operation and the characteristics of engineering projects is crucial. Moreover, advanced design and foresight regarding the hardware and software structure of the developed products are necessary, along with the adoption of advanced design concepts and development tools.
5. Conclusion As the only open international standard in the field of building automation, BACnet presents an opportunity for my country's building automation sector to align with international standards and catch up with advanced international levels. To better promote and apply the BACnet standard in my country, we must:
(1) Emphasize the role of BACnet standards and vigorously carry out BACnet standard research, education and training.
(2) Align with international standards, actively participate in international competition, and vigorously develop BACnet standard products with independent intellectual property rights.
